From War to Reconciliation: Tajikistan and the Integration of Islam into Politics

Between 1992 and 1997, Tajikistan was embroiled in a bloody civil war, pitched between the Tajik government and Islamic-inspired religious extremists. Despite the vicious war, Islamic parties have been successfully integrated into the political process in Tajikistan (which is, coincidentally, the only Central Asian republic to hold open election since the fall of the Soviet Union). My work in the CSWA program has focused on post-Soviet Central Asia. In particular, I have focused on how the Soviet Occupation, and its repressive policies on Islam and Central Asian culture in general, has affected the political, social, and religious realities, vis-à-vis terrorism and Islamic-inspired religious extremism. Four out of the five Central Asia republics continued ruling their countries in Soviet-styled dictatorships, where the free expression of Islam was hindered. In most cases, this has resulted in violence. Yet, in Tajikistan, a level of political normality has followed the integration of Islamic parties into Tajik politics. My paper seeks to focus on how Tajikistan has been able to integrate Islam into politics and avoid any major conflicts since the civil war and whether there was a difference in Soviet policy in Tajikistan