Author: Saafiyya Abdur Razzaaq

ST. PAUL, Minnesota (AP) — Minnesota officially unfurled its new state flag atop the capitol for the first time Saturday on statehood day. The new flag and accompanying state seal were adopted to replace an old design that Native Americans said reminded them of painful memories of conquest and displacement. The new symbols eliminate an old state seal that featured the image of a Native American riding off into the sunset while a white settler plows his field with a rifle at the ready. The seal was a key feature of the old flag. That’s why there was pressure to change both.…

The country’s most important archaeological find has been compared to Machu Picchu. Here’s how to see it At first glance, it doesn’t look like much, just a rectangular meadow in the Pamir foothills of central Tajikistan. But there was a time when this ground reverberated with the thunder of hooves. Occupying a broad saddle, high above the mighty Panj River, this meadow is believed to be an ancient arena for the Central Asian sport of buzkashi, or dead goat polo. The playing field was a centerpiece of a once sprawling settlement, a political and religious capital inhabited for centuries but since lost to…

DUSHANBE — Exorcism is a key source of income for Sabohiddin Shodiev, a popular cleric in his rural community on the outskirts of Dushanbe, the capital of Tajikistan. Shodiev — not his real name — says that every week he treats about 15 clients who ask him to expel what they believe is an evil spirit, or jinni, possessing them, or to rid them from “an evil eye.”The 53-year-old cleric has been practicing exorcisms — which he learned to do from his father — for more than two decades. Most of Shodiev’s clients come from Dushanbe and nearby districts, but…

The Indonesian defence minister, Prabowo Subianto, a former general dogged by allegations of human rights abuses, has promised to be a leader for all Indonesians after unofficial figures showed he was on course to win the country’s presidential race. More than 200 million people were eligible to vote on Wednesday in the world’s largest single-day election, a race to decide who should succeed the popular outgoing president, Joko Widodo, known as Jokowi, as well as future executive and legislative representatives at all administrative levels across the country. Addressing supporters in the evening, Prabowo said: “This win shall be a win for…

Rustam Emomali is increasingly the face of his country on the international stage On January 29, China signed off on an agreement to hand Tajikistan the gift of $2 million to fund the construction of a conference room in a government building. As grants go, it is not a lot, but the real significance of the development lies elsewhere. As an official press release asserts, that the money was disbursed at all was the result of a visit paid to Beijing by the 36-year-old chair of the Senate, Rustam Emomali, better known to the public for being the son of President Emomali Rahmon. Common…

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 12 — Malaysia is seeing exponential growth in electric vehicles’ (EV) sales yearly and the government is optimistic the positive momentum will continue strongly through end-2023, Investment, Trade and Industry Minister Datuk Seri Tengku Zafrul Abdul Aziz said. To date, Malaysia has recorded more than 100,000 registered electrified vehicles, he said. “More than 12,000 battery electric vehicles (BEV) have been registered since 2011 with the number of BEVs registered this year alone surpassing 9,000 units,” he said in his address during the soft launch of the Malaysia Autoshow 2024 (MAS 2024) here, today. For the first ten…

While family offices may wish to retain as much control as possible, balancing costs remains critical and outsourcing has become commonplace in the industry.  Rapid wealth creation in Asia continues to drive demand for the ultra-rich to establish single family offices (SFO). In Singapore, for example, the local regulator said that the number of SFOs that were rewarded tax incentives reached 1,100 at the end of 2022, up from 700 in 2021. According to data analytics firm Handshakes, another 182 family offices were formed in the city-state from January to April 24 this year. Despite the allure of operational control over the management…

London (07/11 – 71) For ten years now, the authorities of Tajikistan have been engaged in forced assimilation of the ethnic Pamiri people, giving away the heartlands to China for debts,” Orzu M. shared with RFI – Radio France Internationale is a French news and current affairs public radio station that broadcasts worldwide. RFI met with Orzu in Paris, sharing the fact that more and more Pamiris are leaving their native homes in Gorno-Badakhshan Mountainous Autonomous (GBAO) Region of Tajikistan; they are driven into exile by the persecution of the authorities, who are displacing indigenous peoples. RFI: How did it…

Fiscal strengthening and consolidation are the focus of Malaysia’s 2024 budget. To widen the revenue base, reduce expenditures and address the RM1.5 trillion (US$319.6 billion) national debt — which currently stands at 82 per cent of the GDP — Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s administration is introducing new taxes and targeted subsidies. In contrast to the October 2023 budget, the supply bill emphasises boosting Malaysia’s globally competitive industries — specifically manufacturing, halal goods and services, Islamic finance and foreign investment. Foreign investment is expected to receive additional support as Malaysia implements the Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement and its New Industrial Master Plan. But the…

London (28/11 – 58) Tajikistan’s human rights record continues to deteriorate amid an increased crackdown on freedom of expression and the political opposition, as well as the targeting of independent lawyers, journalists, and family members of opposition activists abroad. Freedom of assembly is severely curtailed with any local protests, such as a series of protests in the Gorno-Badakhshan autonomous region (GBAO), violently quashed. The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) Programme Office in Dushanbe, the OSCE Transnational Threats Department, and the Permanent Representation of France to the OSCE organized a study visit to Paris for government officials from…