TAJIKISTAN - THE PRESIDENT'S MODEL GOVERNOR

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 DUSHANBE 000680 SENSITIVE SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PREL ECON KPAO TI SUBJECT: TAJIKISTAN - THE PRESIDENT'S MODEL GOVERNOR Sensitive But Unclassified - Not for Internet Distribution. ¶1. (SBU) Summary. In Tajikistan's impoverished Shahritus District, Ambassador met local government and NGO leaders struggling to make agriculture viable despite the harsh conditions. President Rahmon has publicly held up Kulmurod Rahmonov, the district governor, as an example for other governors to emulate. Rahmonov's method of demanding donations for district projects from residents and businesses with modest incomes is crude and excessive. He nevertheless is genuinely driven to improve the standard of living for residents. End summary. ¶2. (SBU) Tajikistan's Shahritus district consists of 920 arid square miles in the southwest corner of the country bordering Afghanistan and Uzbekistan. The Kafernikhon River cuts a lush green swath across the plain hemmed in on the west by steep dun-colored hills. A battleground during the civil war years 1992-1997, the area is now home to hardworking farming communities trying to eke an existence from the arid land. Water is a precious, but problematic resource. Flooding is common in spring when silt clogs the irrigation canals that are supposed to drain water away to crop land. Irrigation is essential for coaxing harvests of cotton, wheat, potatoes, onions, and other field vegetables from the harsh conditions. Water management is the most important issue for local government and farmers' associations trying to raise the standard of living for the district's 100,000 residents. Pleasing the President at the People's Expense -------------- - ¶3. (SBU) Ambassador traveled to the Shahritus district in April to meet the hukumat chairman (the equivalent of a state governor) and Tajikistan's civil society leaders. Kulmurod Rahmonov, the chairman since March 2007, has the right background for the job, having graduated from the Tajik Agricultural Institute with a degree in irrigation systems. He is known -- and disliked -- for seeking recognition from higher levels of the government by literally over-taxing his constituents. When President Rahmon held a televised meeting for all district chairmen in February, he singled out Rahmonov for building schools and municipal projects with the support of local businesses and without national government assistance. Some residents complained these projects were completed at their expense. They said Rahmonov coerced parents, already struggling to make ends meet, into donating funds for the schools. Businesses were similarly "encouraged" to donate funds to build hospitals. Residents also said that Rahmonov has made midnight phone calls to farmers to check the status of planting and harvest tasks. ¶4. (SBU) Rahmonov's ambition and work ethic are discernible in his style. He met the ambassador at the outskirts of Shahritus driving his own white Toyota Camry and dressed in casual pants and a long sleeved shirt, unbuttoned at the neck. He led the embassy convoy to his office for a half hour meeting carved out of a day touring farms in anticipation of President Rahmon's May 24 visit to attend the chairman's seminar on effective oblast management. ¶5. (SBU) A lean man with pale green eyes set in a deeply tanned face, he revealed no emotion or humor during the meeting. He thanked the ambassador for the embassy's grant to renovate Khoja Mashad, the 9th century madrassa and mausoleum that Tajiks revere as a sacred place. He said the Minister of Culture plans to add tourism infrastructure to the site after the renovation is Qtourism infrastructure to the site after the renovation is completed. He also noted the assistance of international associations in renovating schools, hospitals, and a 10-hectare garden which he hoped would be in place for President Rahmon's visit. Freedom to Farm - or not? -------------- ¶6. (SBU) Moving closer to the sensitive issue of farmers' rights, Rahmonov said he was especially grateful for the work of the Water Users' Associations (WUA). Ambassador Jacobson noted the project was funded through USAID. When she asked him how the government's Decree 111 (Freedom to Farm) would affect development plans, Rahmonov avoided a direct response, saying that the most important issue for his district was rational use of the land and the biggest problem was a lack of equipment to clean the irrigation canals. He said that private agriculture was developing rapidly and building up a tax revenue base. (Note: By law, Tajik farmers have the right to raise crops, sell them, and keep the profit, but they can only lease the land, not own it.) The farmers in Shahritus, he said, grow 6,500 hectares of cotton and 4,800 hectares of vegetables and fruits, or 57 percent cotton. (Note: An NGO leader later claimed that 75-85 percent of the district's crops were cotton). Praise for Nizhniy-Pyanj Bridge -------------- DUSHANBE 00000680 002 OF 002 ¶7. (SBU) Looking toward the future, Rahmonov said cross border trade is increasing, thanks in part to the Nizhniy-Pyanj bridge. He said the district exported vegetables north to Russia and Kazakhstan via railroad, and 2,800 tons of onions south across the bridge to Afghanistan. In response to the harsh winter of 2008, he said he plans to ask local businesses to build a propane heating plant for Shahritus residents and to pay for purchases and transport of coal from distant districts of the country. Rahmonov also said a Russian gas company wants to drill for natural gas on a two-hectare plot in the district and share sales profits. He is also trying to attract business investment in the area by offering tax breaks for supporting the city. ¶8. (SBU) Comment. Rahmonov is genuinely driven to bring progress to his impoverished district, even if his methods of extracting taxes from local businesses are crude and excessive. His praise of the Water Users' Association is sincere, and he is generally willing to listen to farmers on issues of concern. When farmers complained about Rahmonov's attempts to appoint his own directors to their associations, he attended arbitration sessions organized by USAID-supported NGOs and conceded that farmers' associations could choose their own directors. Rahmonov had a full page interview in the May 9 issue of the ruling party's Tajik language newspaper "Minbari Khalk" (People's Tribune) -- another sign of his special status. JACOBSON