Why have elections when you’re not in danger of losing power?
A common front of democracies is the surest way to resist the spread of autocracy and the suppression it brings. When democracies are united they can more easily coordinate sanctions and incentives to autocrats and their people with the aim of moving toward implementing democratic systems of governance. As activists and a political party, we believe it necessary to call out unfair elections when they occur, and to offer solutions on how such a caucus could form and what they could design as a program for fighting autocrats.
Tajiks went to the polls on Friday, March 28th to elect members of the country’s National Assembly, its upper house of parliament. The Assembly is made up of 33 members, with 25 being elected and the other eight appointed by the authoritarian president, Emomali Rahmoun. Emomali’s eldest son, Rustam Emomali, has been the Assembly’s Chairman since 2020. Given its level of corruption and nepotism, along with the harsh restrictions on political party registration, the results are nothing more than a ceremonial rubber stamp for Emomali’s regime.
Putting pressure on the Emomali regime to implement democratic reforms will not be easy. As it pertains to trade, Tajikistan’s largest trading partners are its authoritarian neighbors, most notably Russia, China, and Iran. Dushanbe also has close security ties with Moscow, though it has partnered with Washington regarding the latter’s “War on Terrorism.” Tajikistan’s telecommunications industry struggles due to shortages of electricity and its mountainous, geographically isolated landscape. The country was an early signatory to China’s Belt and Road Initiative, and a 2020 report by the World Bank detailed the expected benefits Dushanbe would reap from the infrastructure investments.
Given the relative ease of access Tajikistan has to security arrangements from Russia and infrastructure investments in China, pursuing a policy of punishing the Central Asian country as a means to move them toward democracy is unlikely to succeed. Democratic countries have lagged far behind China in recent years when it comes to infrastructure developments, and this is a promising road to follow. By focusing on telecommunications infrastructure projects and investments, democracies would not only be able to increase their influence in the country, but the connectedness the Tajik people would experience would make it harder for the Emomali regime to hold on to power in unjust ways. We have seen the power of social media in amplifying the demonstrations of the Arab Spring and the impact it can have in removing dictators. Investing in the connections of the Tajik people is a way to thwart autocrats like Emomali in a manner which will also enrich the society and lead to greater economic opportunities.
Our campaigns for United Nations Secretary-General, Freedom Emergencies, and our Survival Bill are all great ways for working toward this goal. However, getting in touch with our own representatives to lobby for telecommunications infrastructure investments can be a quick way to move toward a future where Tajiks can go to the polls without worry that the results are not predetermined.
By Trent Trepanier
Photo: The Diplomat