Tuesday, February 14, 2012

Kazakhstan

UN Calls For "Borders With A Human Face" In Central Asia

The Ferghana Valley, Central Asia's crossroads (RFE/RL)

7 December 2005 -- A new United Nations report says the Central Asian countries of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan could jointly battle poverty and crime by improving cross-border cooperation and removing unnecessary trade barriers.

TEXT SIZE - +

December 07, 2005

The report by the UN Development Program, which was published on 7 December, says the five countries should work together to create what the report calls "borders with a human face."

The report urges measures including simplified and coordinated border crossing rules and improved governance of police and customs services.

The UN Development Program said removing trade and border restrictions that currently hamper economic development would significantly improve the lives of people in the five countries.

The report advises the countries to upgrade their transportation networks and liberalize trade laws with an eye to eventually joining the World Trade Organization.

It says that modernized border management could also help the five governments control illegal drug trafficking and cross-border terrorist activities.

(AP)

RFE/RL Central Asia Report

SUBSCRIBE For regular news and analysis on all five Central Asian countries by e-mail, subscribe to "RFE/RL Central Asia Report."

A vendor in the central Bosnian town of Zenica sells heart-shaped cushions with proclamations of love for 1 euro each.

Love It (Or Hate It), It's Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day, the Western holiday celebrating love, has become a global phenomenon over the past two decades. The fall of communism and the emergence of the Internet have helped February 14 become something of an unofficial international day of romance. However, not all the passions the holiday stirs are related to love. While some countries have openly embraced the holiday, others are attempting to ban it or replace it with local customs. More

Production and distribution of rap music is not officially banned, but it

Yo! Turkmen Rappers Flip The Script On Repression

For a growing number of Turkmen youth, rap music has become a way to express their daily struggles and inspire political change in one of the world's most oppressive countries. More