Written by Vasilina Brazhko
The Times of Central Asia
DUSHANBE (TCA) ¬– Russian diplomats found “forces ready to endanger the safety of the Embassy of the Russian Federation in Dushanbe.”
They have announced this due to one tajik government official, Makhmadusuf Shodiev’s statement who urged to picket the Russian diplomatic mission in protest against the way Russian Federation deals with migrant workers from Tajikistan. Official called the Moscow detention centers for migrants “concentration camps” and said that every day two or three coffins arrive from Russia.” According to kommersant, he expressed his own view.
Makhmadusuf Shodiev made such statement after an incident happened in Dushanbe airport that does not relate to Russia at all. The dispute happened over allegations made by Latvian members of the musical group “Barack” that at the airport in the capital of Tajikistan, they were confronted with the extortion of money. The head of the band, Dmitriy Evsikov wrote about an incident on his page in Facebook saying that airport staff demanded double price for registration.
This incident brought big resonance in Tajik media. In protest against corruption, the chief editor of “Nihog” (The view) magazine, Saimiddin Dustov called to organize the picket in front of airport main building. Makhmadusuf Shodiev got involved in controversy suggesting picketing the embassy of the Russian Federation “Not a day passes when two or three coffins come from Russia to Tajikistan. You place a claim of an artist higher than dignity of the nation. Moscow concentration camps made for Tajik migrants do not make you angry. I have never expected this from you”, – he is quoted as saying.
Russian diplomats have decided to interfere into the discussion and issued wrathful statement at the official Facebook account. “As it turns out, there are forces in Tajikistan, ready to threaten the security of the Embassy of the Russian Federation “, – is stated referring to Makhmadusuf Chodiev posts. Diplomats caught Tajik official in the “aggressive attitude” toward their embassy and a desire to “discredit Russia”. At the same time, they expressed surprise at the fact that the airport spokeswoman “began to count the coffins arriving from Russia. “We have already made an official statement focusing on the obvious: from 1.2-2 million Tajik labor migrants working in Russia, someone will inevitably die, not necessarily, as it is trying to present spiteful critics, from the hands of skinheads – says the statement of Embassy of the Russian Federation. – What is the need or interest for press secretary to bring this information up is a big mystery”.
The issue of increased freight from Russia to Tajikistan attracts more and more tajik politicians’ and journalists’ attention. 636 coffins with dead bodies were brought from Russia to Tajikistan in 2011, 730 coffins in 2012. According to Shodiev, this year the number of coffins will rise and did not comment the statement of Russia Federation about big number of Tajik labor workers in Russia though he noted the bad attitude of officials towards Tajik citizens living and working in Russia Federation. Migrants informed Shadiev about the “hell” in deportation camps set for migrants in Moscow.
As a reminder: the Government of the Russian Federation promised to provide Tajik migrants with preferential regim last autumn. It was a part of agreement to prolong a contract for the 201st Russian military base at the territory of Tajikistan. Moscow has executed the set obligations though the parliament of Tajikistan will review this matter in upcoming autumn session.
Rate out a migrant
I believe Russian Federation makes number of mistakes when announced a war to illegal labor workers thus detonating vivid, aggressive reaction in number of Central Asia states. First of all, officials must detain and charge those who had invited and hired labor migrants at their enterprises. As labor migrants are eager to earn money for their families due to the lack or simply absence of sufficiently paid jobs back home. Secondly, recently appeared a note to Russian citizens of how to identify and detain illegal labor workers. It is nasty and not socialized.
Recall that the head of the district administration Terence Mescheryakov from July 2013 banned the subordinate administration “Zhilkomservice” to hire people not holding Russian citizenship for the post of wiper. According to him, it is done in order to give a primary opportunity to Russian citizens to be hired to qualified jobs. Wiper job is quite qualified, I think! Needless to say that people who are willing to work are searching all kind of opportunities to earn for living and accepts the offer. If there was a high demand in wipers in Russia though citizens of Russia considered these jobs to be beneath their dignity, people from Asia, considered these jobs the chance to make a difference in their lives, and fulfilled the demand. Is it bad that someone whose dignity depends more on honor wisps roads and cleans WCs not robbing officially or unofficially your families with dignity?!
In any way, the mechanism has already been launched and now let’s see to what consequences the ‘war against migrants’ will lead to if taking into account that even in Kyrgyzstan all partials of Russia Federation, working in education, health and other spheres in the republic were dismissed from their posts of governmentally run institutions.
