Page 19 - bne_newspaper_May 5 2017

Eurasia
May 5, 2017 www.intellinews.com I Page 19
“The problem runs much deeper and... cannot be calculated in economic terms,” Gussarova says, noting such factors as the number of internet users in each of the five countries, as the inter- net has grown to be one of the primary recruit- ment tools, as well as “traditionalist [cultural] value systems”, which may clash with those of the secular world, among multitudes of other causes. Gussarova believes the recruitment process is “deeply personal” for each recruit; as such, at- tempts to track any trends specific to the region may fall flat.
Making the worst of a bad situation
So far, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan have attempted to crack down on various elements of Islamic ex- tremism, but their actions have only emboldened radicals. Though crackdowns in Uzbekistan have been violent, Tajikistan has also attacked local Islamic customs. At the same time, the threat of radical Islam has been politically convenient for both countries, but especially for Tajikistan, where the only formidable opposition group, the Islamic Revival Party, was shut down in 2015 under the pretext of its alleged affiliation with extremism.
The Kazakh authorities have taken their fair share of counterproductive measures against terrorism
in the past. Bans on the Hizb ut-Tahrir al-Islami (HUT) group in 2005 and Tablighi Jamaat in 2013 have only moved the movements into prison cells – an unprecedented opportunity for a steady supply of potential recruits. More importantly, following in Rahmon’s footsteps, Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev raised the issue of banning Islamic attire and beards associated with extremism at a meeting with Kazakhstan’s Spiritual Board of Mus- lims in April.
That, coupled with the proposed ban on
Salafism from October, could potentially enhance the oil-rich country’s vulnerability to radicalisation amongst the population.
“There are approximately 15,000 to 16,000 fol- lowers of Salafism in Kazakhstan – they are not all extremists,” Kazakh political analyst Dosym Satpayev tells bne IntelliNews. “The number isn’t small considering Kazakhstan’s population, which raises the following questions: Where will most of them go? Will they reject their beliefs or will they develop an underground form of Salafism?”
By failing to tackle these questions, the authorities in Kazakhstan – as in other Central Asian countries – could be storing up problems for the future.
Saudi deputy crown prince threatens to widen conflict with Iran
bne IntelliNews
Saudi deputy crown prince Mohammed Bin Sal- man, who is second in line to the throne and serves as defence minister, categorically ruled out in a widely televised interview on May 2 any dia- logue with arch rival Iran, with which the kingdom is embroiled in a number of bitter regional proxy wars stretching from Yemen to Syria.
The Saudi royal, whose family legitimizes its rule partly on being Custodian of the Two Holy Sites, Mecca and Medina, went further, insinuating that the theocratic Shia government in Iran intends to take over the holy places from the hands of Sunnis.
“Their stance is that the awaited Mahdi will come,