Tag Archives: corruption

US criticises Georgian charges

SEPT. 13 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – Once again the United States has said it is concerned about criminal charges brought against leading members of the former Mikheil Saakashvili government. The current government has charged several members of the previous government with abuse of power.

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(News report from Issue No. 200, published on Sept.17 2014)

Kyrgyzstan opened another trial against Bakiyev

SEPT. 17 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – Kyrgyzstan has opened another trial against Maksim Bakiyev, the son of ousted president Kurmanbek Bakiyev, media reported. Bakiyev lives in London. He fled Kyrgyzstan with his father in 2010. He has already been sentenced in absentia to 25 years in jail for corruption.

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(News report from Issue No. 200, published on Sept.17 2014)

Firtash appeal dashed in Tajikistan

SEPT. 4 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – An appeal court in Tajikistan upheld the decision of Tajikistan’s High Court to invalidate a takeover by Ukrainian billionaire Dmitro Firtash in 2002 of Tajik fertiliser maker TajikAzot. Analysts have said that the authorities in Tajikistan have used the problems in the country as a cover for a corporate raid.

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(News report from Issue No. 199, published on Sept. 10 2014)

Uzbek prosecutors look to charge Gulnara

SEPT. 8 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – The authorities in Uzbekistan appear to be on the brink of charging the once all-powerful Gulnara Karimova, eldest daughter of Uzbek President Islam Karimova, with various financial crimes.

A press release from the Uzbek Prosecutor-General named a Karimova G. as part of a group that has been investigated for economic crimes.

“The investigation has undertaken to fully recover the economic damage inflicted on the State. 457 billion soms have been recovered to date from the members of the organized criminal group, who are present in Uzbekistan,” the statement said.

These various economic crimes hinge around taking state assets cheaply, embezzlement, forgery and blackmail.

Russian news agency RIA-Novosti quoted a source in the Uzbek government later confirming that the reference to Karimova G. was to Gulnara Karimova.

Ms Karimova’s closest aide Gayane Avakyan has already been imprisoned for economic crimes.

Ms Karimova has been under house arrest but, even so, the charges will shock Uzbeks who had, until 12 months ago, viewed her as untouchable. Ms Karimova had controlled all the biggest components of Uzbekistan’s industry and business, been Uzbekistan’s ambassador to the UN in Geneva and had been tipped to succeed her father as president.

A power grab by rival clan members in the Uzbek elite, though, appears to have undermined her ambitions.

Although Ms Karimova’s fall from grace sounds like a purely internal dispute, the implications are region wide. If Uzbekistan hosts a complicated dispute over power and destabilises, it will affect the entire Central Asia region. With a population of 30m, Uzbekistan is the most populous country in Central Asia and some of the best transport links. It also lies geographically at the heart of the region and shares a border with all four other Central Asian states.

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(News report from Issue No. 199, published on Sept. 10 2014)

TI having funding problems in Azerbaijan

AUG. 27 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – Anti-corruption lobby group Transparency International (TI) said it is having problems receiving funding from USAID, the US government aid agency, through an Azerbaijani bank, media reported. TI has been critical of corruption in Azerbaijan.

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(News report from Issue No. 198, published on Sept. 3 2014)

Georgia responds to US criticism

AUG.11 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – Georgian PM Irakli Garibashvili responded to criticism from US senators that Georgia was unfairly prosecuting former president Mikheil Saakashvili for abuse of power by saying his prosecution would create a more equal society.The US, Georgia’s most important ally, has said charges against Mr Saakashvili are politically motivated.

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(News report from Issue No. 195, published on Aug. 13 2014)

Georgia responds to US criticism

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(News report from Issue No. 195, published on Aug. 13 2014)

Georgia issues Saakashvili arrest warrant

AUG. 2 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – A court in Georgia issued an arrest warrant for former president Mikheil Saakashvili on charges that he abused his power and illegally privatised state assets during his 10 years in power. Mr Saakashvili, who is living in Europe, has said the new Georgian government is using the law to settle vendettas.

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(News report from Issue No. 194, published on Aug. 6 2014)

Uzbekistan jails Gulnara associates

JULY 19 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – A court in Tashkent reportedly sentenced to jail 13 associates of Gulnara Karimov, the eldest daughter of Uzbek president Islam Karimov.

The prison terms for the 13 people severely damage Ms Karimova and will virtually end any hopes she may have harboured of succeeding her father. She had been touted as a potential successor but her position has been steadily undermined over the past year by rivals.

Ms Karimova has not been seen in public for several months. Her London-based son has said that she is under house arrest in Tashkent.

Among those sentenced to jail for tax evasion and money laundering were Ms Karimova’s alleged boyfriend Rustam Madumarov and Gayane Avakyan. Ms Avakyan is an ethnic Armenian and one of Ms Karimova’s most loyal associates. She has been implicated in a major money laundering case involving Swedish-Finnish telecoms company TeliaSonera in 2007.

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(News report from Issue No. 193, published on July 30 2014)

Anti-monopoly chief detained in Kazakhstan

JULY 2 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – Police in Almaty detained the chief of the state anti-monopolies commission, Murat Ospanov, for allegedly taking a $200,000 bribe, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty reported. Kazakhstan appears to be pursuing an anti- corruption drive and has detained several high-ranking officials.

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(News report from Issue No. 192, published on July 9 2014)