Posted: October 20th, 2022

ISLAMIST INSPIRED TERRORISM AND THE SECULAR GOVERNMENTS OF KAZAKHSTAN AND UZBEKISTAN

ISLAMIST INSPIRED TERRORISM AND THE SECULAR GOVERNMENTS OF KAZAKHSTAN AND UZBEKISTAN

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Contents
1. INTRODUCTION 4
1.1 Background Information 4
1.2. Problem Statement 9
1.3. Aim 10
1.4. Research Questions 11
2. LITERATURE REVIEW 11
2.1. Do Islamist groups have the capacity to topple regional governments? 11
2.2. Why is there a growing appeal for violent Islamic extremism in the region? 15
2.3. How are states in the region responding to Islamist Violence? 16
2.4. Relationship between authoritarian governments and the rise of Islamist groups 17
2.5. What role does regional geopolitics play in the rise of violent Islamist movements in Central Asia? 19
2.6. To what extent does terrorism affects the governments of Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan? 20
3. METHODOLOGY 21
4. RESULTS AND ANALYSIS 23
5. DISCUSSION 28
6. CONCLUSION 29

Abstract
Terrorism is an act committed by extremist groups in which violent acts are committed against civilians. The issue of terrorism and its effects have been studied and documented in many parts of the world and especially the Middle East. However, terrorism in central Asia as well as the effects it has on governments of this region remains to be adequately studied.
Kazakhstani and Uzbekistani governments fight terrorism to foster sustainable piece and socio-economic development. Both governments have had challenges due to a high number of extremist groups present in their countries and the region as well as the entire world. Additionally, terror organizations and their mode of operation are dynamic; this requires governments to continuously adapt to always use responsive countermeasures.
Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan have been able to adequately suppress terrorists through swift and decisive measures despite having large percentage of Muslim population and many terror groups. These governments have been swift and decisive in applying countermeasures while large percentage of populations have opted to have a clear separation between state and religion and have not joined terror groups all of which seek to establish Islamic caliphates.

Islamist Inspired Terrorism and the Secular Governments of Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan
1. INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background Information
Terrorism can be described as a crime meant to instill fear in people through violence. These crimes leave citizens with the fear of sending their children to school, go to work or even attend public events. Another definition as per the United States department, states that terrorism acts are: “Premeditated politically motivated violent acts perpetrated against noncombatant (civilians and military personnel who are unarmed or off duty at the time) with intent of influencing an audience.” (Yancey 2008).However, there is not a distinct definition of the word terrorism though certain factors if present help us single out terror attacks from a pool of criminal offences (Elshtain 2004).
1.1.1. Components of terrorism
Causing fear, though the main form of terrorism is not the only one, some terrorist organizations, try political means of gaining recognition and disguise their operation as political. There are lots of ambiguity to the word terrorism because so many crimes in the term. For example, a woman who kills her husband because she thinks that the police would never believe the fact that she is a victim of domestic violence and that they definitely will not protect her. This is hence her personal act of safety and a political act eventually designed to change society (Elshtain 2004). When civil rights activists illegally marched into the streets led by Rev Martin Luther King, Jr, so as to help topple Jim Crow, they most certainly used force for a political agenda. These civil rights activists did however disavow violence, though they certainly used force. It was not long before violence erupted.
Using the above examples, a conclusion can be dawn stating that, terrorizing coupled with force and political or social motives does not necessarily constitute terrorism. This brings out the question, whether terrorism is defined by criminal actions plus violence with an affiliation to a group
Another component of terrorism is that the perpetuated acts are always calculated with an aim of frightening the public or a section of it (Elshtain 2004). The American definition fails to mention the spread of terror at all. This would insinuate that attacks on buildings are not terror attacks for it is not possible to frighten an inanimate object.
Many presidents and other policy makers agree that terrorists target innocent civilians, non-armed groups or armed groups who are not in a state of war (Abazov 2008). This hence brings to light the fact that the motive behind the violent act or the type of force used puts it in the terrorism category. Therefore, organized acts of public bombings and similar acts can be described as terrorism. For an act to be classified as a terror attack it must also be random however calculated it might be. This enables it to achieve its other aspect of fear instillation. This way, everyone is afraid that they might be the next victims. In some definitions, it is the targets that must be random (Lia 2009).
The use of the term terrorism may vary and the actions and events that constitute terrorism. Due to its many definitions including many contexts in which it may be applied, the term can be used to label groups with legitimate concerns, whose peaceful concerns and drives can be turned violent for various reasons (Tehan 2015). Consequently, it can and has been used to discredit peaceful dissent or to refer to some races and religions whose movements were basically none violent and were peacefully raising a genuine concern without any intentions of causing fear. However, using all the above instances and cases, terrorism can be seen as the act of using violence against people, public and private installations (to cause fear/terror) in order to seek some recognition and advance a form a political and/or social agenda (Weinberg & Eubank 2006)
1.1.2. Islamic terrorism
It is the act of terrorism that is committed by Muslim extremist groups .Such groups profess Islamic or Islamist motivations or goals as the fuel of their terror attacks. They rely on particular interpretations from the Quran and the Hadith to justify their acts. In recent decades, these acts have heightened and got to a global scale targeting both Muslims and non-Muslims. In some of the worst affected areas, these terrorists have been met with a lot of resistance from politically liberal Muslim protesters.
Current Islamic extremism is believed to have developed from Kharijites who lived in the 7th. This Muslim community advanced violent doctrines that differed from Sunni and Shi’a Islam. The Kharijites adopted these radical school of thoughts where they ended up declaring other Muslims as unbelievers and hence worthy of death. With time, these groups formed into political movements seeking to lead their nations and hold large territories (Johnson 2007). However, established state governments cannot hand over their governments to these groups. Another characteristic of these groups is that they lack popular backing by the majority of the citizens and cannot take the leadership in a legitimate way. Conversely, peaceful groups may possibly use violence if they lack alternative means of advancing their beliefs. Islamic terrorism has been common in many countries in the world with dominant groups in countries with significantly large Islamic populations. Many of the countries of Middle East have had one or several instance of armed terrorist groups aiming to take over their countries’ or regional governments. This has also been the challenge in countries in the soviet Middle East (Central Asia); the are Uzbekistan and Kazakistan
1.1.2.1 Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan faced the significant terror threats in the late 90s: insurgency/ terror groups began developing. By the year 1999, Uzbekistan experienced a series of explosions. In 2000s, Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU) supported by Taliban government in Afghanistan executed several attacks in Uzbekistan, most IMU fighters having been based there. After the Taliban government fell in 2001 they became less active in Uzbekistan. IMU splinter groups have however been linked to the sporadic attacks in the country (Elshtain 2004).
The Uzbekistan government has survived as a secular government without any influence from its Muslim populace since early 90s. As result, some analysts attribute the evolution IMU which was later re-named as the Islamic Movement of Turkestan (IMT) to regime’s actions (Ebert 2001). The government has responded to heightened security threats by the use of decisive security procedures which include establishing security checkpoints, restrictions on access to various buildings and streets, with numerous deportation cases of nationals from suspect countries.
Uzbekistan outwardly prohibits torture; however, According to the U.N. Special Rapporteur in 2003 law enforcement agencies often maltreat detainees to obtain declaration of guilt together with incriminating information often using crude methods like suffocation, electric shock, and other sexual abuse. Some also assault suspects (Abazov 2008). Respondents in court hearings frequently claimed that their declarations of guilt were obtained illegally through torture.
Over time, these methods have reduced though some still remain in use; Uzbekistan has made some strides forward in curbing terrorism.
1.1.2.2 Kazakhstan
Kazakhstani is keen on tackling terrorism in the country and foster economic growth: the fight against terror has had its challenges due a high number of extremist groups. Some terror organizations present in Kazakhstan are IMU, Jamaat of Central Asian Mujahedins, Hizbut-Tahrir al-Islami (HT), Lashkar-e-Toiba, and Al-Qaeda (Forest 2006) among others.
The regime denounces terrorism as a way of cultivating sustainable peace and development: it also participle in the efforts of global community to stamp out this violent vice. Due to its commitment, Kazakhstan strictly fulfills UN Security Council’s requirements. The country is also a major player in supporting the international universal tools against and other acts that hinder the security of maritime trade and navigation. Changes are constantly made to some of the Acts concerning to provide a responsive legal framework to curb terrorism (Tripathi 2011). These also include the application of the approved laws that are enacted by the constitutional reforms of the Republic of Kazakhstan.
1.2. Problem Statement
Many researchers, scholars and world leaders agree to the fact that terrorism destroys innocent lives. It also effectively undermines a society’s sense of security together with the very foundation of lasting peace and stability. Because of these, factors, national interests are under threat not only in Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan, but all around the world; no one is immune terrorism (Elshtain 2004). A major challenge faced by the Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan governments is that their counter-terrorism policy is limited in its ability to influence international factors. It however keeps them in view (Warikoo 2011).
The right legal framework against terrorists should also be drafted with their sympathizers in mind. It is now a well-known fact that it is not only events that shape the responses to terrorism, rather the differing interpretations of such events. These interpretations are ideologically spread by the terrorism extremist groups. Terrorism is not only a physical war involving destruction of life and property but also an ideological one.
A research done in French prisons that involved Islamic terrorists revealed that candidates for suicide bombings were usually young Muslim in diaspora in Western Europe who lacked in-depth understanding of the Islamic teachings, heavily depending on the understanding of the Islamic extremists. Such people are often cut off from the Islamic societies of their parents and relatives but at the same time not excluded from the Western society. They are victims of racism, and have more often than not failed to gain jobs and opportunities to match their education and abilities. In their consistent association with jihad they find roles as agents of a new Islamic world order. It in turn compensates for their sense of marginalization and loss of dignity. Resentment fuels their dramatic damaging acts. These make sense sociologically though it does not forestall the resultant pathological adaptive behavior.
Another shortcoming to these governments is the fact that suicide bombing is a social, cultural and individual action (Tehan 2015). Terrorist organizations have well-developed systems of publicizing, recruiting and training. This relies on creating an image of heroism. Recruits bond and become a close-knit interdependent group with powerful collective military training skills. In various radical Islamist such notions are informed by a theology in which the sacrifice of an individual who inflicts retribution on God’s enemies is commanded and approved. The chosen martyrs are celebrated by their sympathizers.
Researchers, legal and security specialists have researched about the issue of terrorism, its causes and a number of countries that have been affected significantly by the vice. However, due to the general peaceful nature of the central Asian countries as compared to their counterparts in the Middle East, the issue of terrorism in these nations remains to be well researched. Terror groups operating in these countries seem to have limited significance as compared to the larger groups in the Middle East which have overtime gained global attention due to their violence (Abazov 2008). However, terrorist organizations in Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan remain a threat to sustainable peace to the citizens and need to be studied and their effects on these countries and their populations. Additionally, the extents to which these groups affect these countries’ governments need to be understood so as to get sustainable solutions.
1.3. Aim
Terrorism in the 20th and 21st century is accompanied by political conflicts that rotate around nation-states. In recent years international terrorism has changed drastically and developed better adoptive mechanisms making it difficult for governments to eradicate or predict their patterns. Even though some have well defined agendas, governments are still unable to control their activities. For example, Al-Qaeda aims at establishing an international Muslim caliphate. It therefore requires the maintenance of a state of enmity between authentic Islamic regions and the United States together with its and its allies throughout the world. Having understood what terrorism is all about; this paper will seek to determine the extent of the effects of terrorism in governments specifically Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan
1.4. Research Questions
1) Do Islamist groups have the capacity to topple regional governments?
2) Why is there a growing appeal for violent Islamic extremism (violent movement in the region)?
3) How are states in the region responding to Islamist Violence?
4) Are there a relationship authoritarian governments and the rise of Islamist groups?
5) What role does regional geopolitics play in the rise of violent Islamist movements in Central Asia?
6) To what extent does terrorism affects governments of Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan?
2. LITERATURE REVIEW
2.1. Do Islamist groups have the capacity to topple regional governments?
According to Elshtain (2004), Unchecked Islamists groups can have a great capacity to inflict harm on the governments and use the various dynamics between governments and civilians to illegitimately seize power. Despite the debate around the issue of Taliban and the accent to power in Afghanistan between 1996 and 2001, this group represented a good example of how an armed Islamist groups can topple a government and seize power. The group enforced strict sharia law under its commander who was also a spiritual leader named Mullah Omar. Those who view the group as having been a terrorist organization refer to its close collaboration with Osama-Bin Laden’s AL Qaeda (Shoebat 2007). IMU was also started in the late 90s as an armed terrorist group aimed at overthrowing Islam Karimov and establishes an Islamic caliphate under sharia. After failing, the group has identified with other terrorist groups like al Qaeda and Taliban and has also pressed to be recognized as a part of Islamic States of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) – which has gained large swaths of Iraq and Syria. Without proper efforts of global powers, this group is capable of toppling Iraqi, Syrian and other regional governments. What would follow next is a probable declaration of an Islamic State through its union with other terrorist organizations in Iraq and Syria.
In the central Asian countries, the Islamic mass protest of Middle East was seen to spill over to Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan especially in 2011 (Mohanty 2012). Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan are the most economically developed in this region and experienced the least effects of these mass protests. However, there were constant concerns of escalation where Islamic terrorists would hijack these protest causing a situation like the Syrian, where they would hold territory and even overthrow some governments. To prevent this, some regional governments have found themselves in need of employing mass surveillance and crackdowns on civil liberties at home as a result of the terror threats. These governments have found themselves in need of reaching out to other governments for support and hence affecting these countries and their plus the neighbors.
Taking the example of Syria, the rise of the insurgency has over a short period of time influenced the surrounding governments including Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan to take a sectarian direction with the aim of attracting diverse support from Sunni across the affected region. It has now become a matter of concern in the regional government that has seen a lot of resources channeled towards establishing their influence in the region.
The main objective of the terrorists is to create an official or even unofficial Islamic caliphate over Eastern Syria from which they can expand their influence over the regional governments with an aim of ultimately overthrowing them. This is the same agenda that Islamists have in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan and all other countries with Islamic communities. They also aim to use the same style to pressure the secular Kazakhstani and Uzbekistani governments which they consider as Shia and ultimately replace them with Salafis caliphate.
As for Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan governments, banned Islamic group Hizb ut-Tahrir had an aim of toppling the government based on a survey done in the countries (Vicziany, Wright, Neville, Lentini & Elgar 2004). The information collected was obtained from their sympathizers. Most of them claimed that this group’s main agenda was peace, truth and progress. They also claimed that they would use nonviolent and diplomatic means in their operations with the Helpance of neighboring and friendly administrations. Further studies showed that this group believed that the society was corrupt and needed to be salvaged through fundamentalists using sharia law. Their quest to create Islamic caliphates traditionally Muslim territories is the driving agenda behind the Hizb ut-Tahrir’s movement (Kavalski 2010). It is strongly bent on the reestablishment of Islamic Caliphate. This group has outwardly dissociated itself from violence but it teaches hatred of Israelis and calls for dismantlement of their state.
The word Islamic Caliphate denotes theocracy system of administration which was introduced by Prophet Muhammad. In this system, there is no clear separation between a state and a religion and religious leaders double up as administrative/political leaders; Prophet Muhammad and his students took these conflicting roles (Kavanaugh 2006). Despite the fact Hizb ut-Tahrir has been banned in many countries, it commands a large followership by violent people who preach hate against secular governments and non Salafis. It has potential to topple regional government or seize territory as it was seen in the Fergana Valley; from this territory, its neighboring countries (Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan). It would later become the single largest Islamist organization spreading to some parts of Russia (Gabriel 2002). Uzbekistani and Kazakhstani authorities have repeatedly claimed that Hizb ut-Tahrir sought to forcefully overthrow. Based on the investigation done by Nabi Rahimov, the deputy prosecutor in Tajikistan, the group’s objectives are felonious in nature. The documents and papers confiscated from some of its members expose their hidden agenda which entail encouraging ethnic, national, and religious animosity; mainly regionalism. In some of the documents, it was reasonably established that they were contravening the 307th clause of Uzbekistani constitution (Gabriel 2002). This was contrary to statements made by the group’s sympathizers who insisted that the group was advancing peaceful agenda in line with the country’s constitution.
The Uzbekistan government, have accused the group of having been involved in a sequence of bombings in Tashkent that left scores of people dead (Akbarzadeh 2005). Further investigations have established that the group is related to terrorists like Al-Qaeda, IMU and Taliban. Hizb ut-Tahrir however denies the claims, stating that their agendas are peace driven. The IMU also has the potential of toppling the regional government with its growing number of followers and self-declaration of links with ISIS.
This same group, operating from Tajikistan, planned and executed armed attacks, assassinations and abductions targeting Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan in 1999-2001. These terrorist activities were aimed at establishing an Islamic caliphate over Uzbekistan. It however changed its base to Afghanistan. Later on, its influence decreased after their destruction in the U.S-led operation that ousted Afghanistan’s Taliban regime, late 2001 (Ebert 2001).
2.2. Why is there a growing appeal for violent Islamic extremism in the region?
It is generally difficult to establish why people join terrorist groups despite the heinous actions committed by these groups: many authors, scholars and theorists seek to answer this question (Child 2002). Understanding terrorists motives, believes and ideologies barely scratches the surface of the main question that covers them all. Most authors and scholars have come to agree that the main question is how they joined these terror groups and when and where they joined them. Another question would be, what networks facilitated the act of joining these groups and how they reach civilians.
Answering these questions would Help law enforcers to disrupt the process of recruiting young people. Despite a wide array of answer obtained, a large number of them suggest a significant correlation between recruitment and kinship. However, there is a need for more enquiries to establish the importance of societal and family networks radicalization. The fact is, many answers about this question need to be found. Furthermore, establishing how people join these groups is important in understanding the growing appeal for Islamist violent movement in the region and globally.
The Zoolander Theory of Terrorism is one that seeks to answer the question at hand. It states that individuals are driven or pushed to join (Dalin, Rothmann & Dershowitz 2009). This way of reasoning has been developed over a long time, with the realization that terrorism is a societal than a personal movement; people are forced or lured by circumstances to join terrorist organization. Personality does not play a major role: even tempered people with upright moral character can change into violent terrorist when cruel thins are either done or taught to them. This may create destructive mindset.
The above is also agreed upon by researchers who hold leftist views about terrorism and jihadi groups. For instance, teaching of jihadi ideologies becomes more successful in individuals or groups who feel that certain injustices were committed to them. The results are similar whether the individuals are Muslims of not. For instance, some individuals can and have exploited the unlawful US invasion of Iraq in 2003 to cultivate hateful and violent feelings towards West, US and other regimes and individuals that collected them. Such people may use Islam and/or some Qur’anic interpretations that may link their vengeance with divine service. People recruiting terrorists may also look for Muslims who have been alienated lacking strong contact with peaceful Islamic teachings. These people are view their violence as a way of avenging for their previous mistreatment or injustices done to Islam.
2.3. How are states in the region responding to Islamist Violence?
Islamist violence ranges from mass booming, beheading of victims, beatings, suffocation, rape electric shock or drowning among many other forms of torture inflicted by Islamic terrorist on non-combatants. These acts leave victims in fear and others bitter, hungry for vengeance. For example, terror-attack survivors may not want a repeat of the same. It is hence important to analyze and understand how states respond (Cornell 2004).
Islamist terrorists are ill-reputed for their brutal strategies of torturing people including beheadings of hostages. Therefore, some of the states move into the territory of the terrorists with an aim of eliminating them before they end up attacking their home states and neighboring states. This is a justifiable move as states seek self-preservation in the face of large and sophisticated terrorist groups for instance, ISIS. Such rationales hence enable the states of the region to attack them before they decide to kill scores of innocent people, both Muslims and non-Muslims alike. Countries also use their law enforcement agencies to crack down on terrorist and charge them in courts. Countries also try to foil terror attack before they happen to avoid loss of life and property.
2.4. Relationship between authoritarian governments and the rise of Islamist groups

Studies show that there is a link between the caliph, who is the leader of the Muslim world, and God, It contributes to the Muslim people’s submission to authority (Martin, Harvey Kushner & 2011). There is general lack of separation of religion and the governance in some Muslim countries. However, this is not the case in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan as these two countries have secular governments. Elections are also held where the presidents of these two countries have garnered large percentage of votes – over 90% (Rubin 2010). Terror groups like Hizb ut-Tahrir al-Islami (HT), Jamaat Takfir and IMU have fought to with no avail to replace these secular governments with Islamic caliphates. This is in sharp contrast with Middle East where some armed insurgents fight due to lack of legitimate peaceful means to seek recognition (Katzman 2000).
Based on the studies done, there are two forms of the cultural thesis. The one that is more restrictive claim that democracy, a phenomenon that is cultural, is alien to their culture and hence is incompatible with Islamic State societies .The evidence put forward for this is that since democracy was discovered in the early 19th century most democratic countries have been found in Europe and not in Asian countries like Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan.
Another perspective is that certain cultures are very hostile to democracy an example of which is Confucianism and some interpretations of Islam. Comparisons between the affected nations with the movements fighting authoritarian regimes to Islamic societies were present in the 1980s. These movements consistently fought for democratic politics but were strongly opposed by powerful opposition from Islamic fundamentalists (Brown & Poremski 2005).
Gradually, liberalization in Islamic countries strengthened the power of important social and political movements. However a limitation to this argument is that cultural arguments are not reliable since they have not held up in the past. The fact that great historic cultural traditions such as Islam that span many years are so complex to completely understand. Therefore, labeling them as non-democratic could be facile. This dynamism of culture and religious tradition has been in existence for a very long period of time. This argument therefore has many limitations that should not be brushed aside but rather further researched so as to unearth the deeper meaning and dynamics of the cultural differences.
Wahhabis or Salafis Muslims vehemently reject the idea that a state should be separated from religion (Takeyh 2006). Terror movements like IMU, Hizb ut-Tahrir al-Islami (HT), Taliban, al-Qaeda and Jamaat Takfir seek to replace all secular governments with Muslim caliphates. HT and Jamaat Takfir seek to establish a world Islamic government: Can be seen in of Taliban which overthrow Afghanistan government, with the help of IMU and al-Qaida which also held territory in Pakistan and Uzbekistan (for IMU). The same case is also seen in ISIS (which holds large territories of Iraq and Syria). Violent extremism in central Asia cannot be linked to authoritarian government but Islamic groups wishing to establish Muslim caliphates (Ebert 2001).
2.5. What role does regional geopolitics play in the rise of violent Islamist movements in Central Asia?
The fall of the Soviet Union was the main turning point for central Asia’s political and economic equations (Tripathi 2011). While world powers tried to compete for influence in these countries, groups with Wahhabis ambitions thought it was easier to further destabilize and overthrow, terror outfits like IMU would later be formed. Terror groups began to compete with legitimate governments while regional and global powers continued to compete for influence over the region. The Iran-Iraq conflict was an indicator of rivalry for influence in the region (Davis & Azizian 2007). Moreover, Soviet Union’s collapse generated a power void in the entire region (Aydın 2000). This triggered geopolitical and philosophical competitions that attracted all forms of players (Tripathi 2011).
Terror groups like HT, Taliban and al-Qaida would all be interested in exerting their influence on countries that are in the heart of Asia. This can be seen in the action of HT to distribute propaganda leaflets urging locals to join Jihadi and overthrow a secular government (Moghaddam 2008). On the other hand, the Russian influence of on Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan is still strong and the locals still hold soviet nationalism and a concept of separation of state and religion (Brown & Poremski 2005). For this reason, Islamist propaganda in these nations does not become popular among the locals.
On the other hand, many Islamists group consider Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan as a part of traditional Muslim world. For this reason, terror groups from central an East Asia try to exert their influence, for instance, Uighur Liberation organization planned and executed a terror attack in Kazakhstan, which cleaned lives of two police officers. HT and Jamaat Takfir, Al-Qaeda and IMU which operates from Afghanistan, Tajikistan and Pakistan have all tried to exert their influence on Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan either through preaching Jihadi or distributing propaganda leaflets and CDs (Tripathi 2011). However, soviet/Russian influence remains strong in the central Asian countries and Salafi/jihadi movements have not gained any momentum as the central Asian countries remain largely peaceful.
2.6. To what extent does terrorism affects the governments of Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan?

These two governments have had to battle extremist groups that aim at taking over leadership and asserting themselves onto the citizens of these countries. Both have also suffered losses caused by terrorists. For instance, the IMU orchestrated several explosions in Tashkent Uzbekistan in the late 90s where over 40 people died and 33 terrorists. Chinese Uighur liberation organization was suspected to have shot dead two police officers in Kazakhstan in early 2000s (Zahab & Roy 2004) Hizb ut-Tahrir al-Islami (HT) planned and excecuted more attacks in mid 2000s in uzbekistan which left close to 50 people dead. The same group has has planned many attacks aimed at Kazakhstan, all of which has been foiled without any major casualty. This group and Jamaat Takfir has also tried to preach hatred and intolerance against secular governments and distributed leaflets urging civilians to embrace jihadi to establish an Islamic caliphate. According to Jandora (2008), the soviet middle east has a rather different school of thought towards government and religion as compared to the rest of Middle East. These former soviet republics have succeeded in being resilient against Islamic terrorists, which the author attributes to soviet’s way of thinking in which the state was taken to have more importance than the religion (Gunaratna & Oreg 2015). Although both governments respond swiftly and decisively terror activities mainly to dissuade their citizens against joining, the citizens themselves are seen to have inherited the soviet perspective where much of preference is given to statehood and development over religion.
Jandora (2008) states that terrorism in the soviet central Asia may not take rook in the near future and those terrorists’ organizations in this region pose limited threat to governments as compared to other parts of Islamic world. Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan are nations with above 80% of Muslims population who are reluctant in embracing Wahhabisim (Rashid 2002). The author notes that Uzbekistan has had only few hundreds of deaths caused by violent Islamic extremism while Kazakhstan has only tens. On the other hand, some other Islamic countries such as Afghanistan, Pakistan, Yemen, Syria and Iraq among others have had tens or hundreds of thousands of deaths that have been occasioned by Islamic terrorism. For this reason, Islamic terrorism affects Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan only to a small extent.
3. METHODOLOGY

This section details in depth the method through which the data needed to answer the research questions was to be collected. The data collected will then be used to discuss the effects of Islamist inspired terrorism on the secular governments of Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. So as to obtain this data, secondary sources of data will be utilized. Such secondary sources of information include books, articles and internet resources. These sources are resourceful as a good starting point for the basic information based on the topic of interest. They will also include encyclopedias and historic thesauruses and atlases. The information of the characters in the biographical dictionaries is often written by experts. Atlases are a collection of maps. Another source of secondary information will include periodical journals which will offer a variety of information concerning the topic.
Secondary sources of data were preferred because they are easily accessible and are time saving, precise information can also be obtained from online web resources. These sources also offer Feasibility for comparative studies. Continuous or regular surveys that have over time been carried out are recorded in such sources hence making them feasible for a study such as the one at hand. Despite depending on secondary sources for information, they too have their drawbacks. Among these drawback is the fact that the secondary source of information may not be specific to the needs of the researcher. Sometimes the report may not be structured in a design that is usable to the researcher and hence may force the researcher to compromise or discard the data collected. They may also have incomplete information, a factor that may be attributed to time. Information may at times look promising where in fact it ends up being a teaser supplied by the researcher. This is the case mostly when small portion of a study are supplied for free while the full report on the other hand is in fact quite expensive to access. Caution must also be exercised when relying on secondary data that may have been acquired in the past. Out-of-date data may have been out run by events and hence not reliable. Having identified the advantages and the disadvantages of using secondary sources, the advantages outweighed the disadvantages and hence the preferred source of data. The research will conduct a literature search through these secondary sources and obtain information needed respond to the research questions in order to ultimately achieve the aim of this research.
4. RESULTS AND ANALYSIS

Several terror attacks have taken place in Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan. Uzbekistani government has had to battle low-intensity insurgency since late 1990. In February 1999, there was a series of explosions in Tashkent leaving close to 30 people dead (Beinin & Vairel 2011). The government did not take this lightly. After investigations, 22 suspects were found where six were put on death row. Yuldashev and Namanganiy who were commanders of IMU were also awarded death sentences in absentia in 2000 (Bayman 2003). Due to increasing risk of national and global threats, both governments have applied finely tuned security procedures. Most of the measures include establishment of security checkpoints and deportation of suspects and convicts to countries of origin.
Instability is also fuelled by political and ethnic violence with sporadically occurrence in some parts of Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan (Forum 2008). Such events often raise a lot of tension especially at the borders, making the conditions favorable for terror attacks. In such scenarios, some borders crossing points shut for extended periods. Although the Uzbekistan – Afghanistan border is officially open, stiff restrictions still exist with only few Afghans permitted into Uzbekistan due to security reasons.
Funding is a critical element for large-scale terrorist operations to continue (Rubin 2010). Terrorism is also fuelled by the recruiting of supporters and acquisition of weapons in terms of materials and knows how. Governments therefore concentrate their efforts on restricting the supply of these factors. Many countries around the world, among them Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan are working towards freezing of terrorists assets. In Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan, the recruiting of new members is one of the strategies being dealt with to curb terrorism. Identification of the key terror leaders and terror groups, with an aim of making such knowledge public is also a tactic employed by these countries governments.
Kazakhstan has enjoyed a peaceful environment free of terror activity, for instance, no terrorist activity took place in its first decade of existence (Moghaddam 2008). The first confirmed terrorist activity took place in 2000 in which two police officers were shot dead in the city of Almaty. A terror organization in the name of Uighur Liberation which is based in China was suspected to have orchestrated the killings. This lead to series of event leading to legal and structural changes to enable the country fights extremists. The country’s Supreme Court would update list of terror organizations that were banned in the country. The terror group that topped the list was the IMU that began in Uzbekistan’s Fergana valley and which was capable of exporting its terror activities and ideologies to Kazakhstan (Jull 2005). Its operatives had ben flushed out of this Uzbekistan and operated from Afghanistan and Pakistan (Crosston 2006).
Other terror groups that were listed included al-Qaeda, Muslim brotherhood, Taliban, Kurdistan Workers party, JMCA and Hizb ut-Tahrir al-Islami (HT) among others. This least scared the citizens as all due to these many and potentially dangerous terrorist group. However, the prosecutor general and the Supreme Court stated that only a few of these groups had operatives in Kazakhstan and the move to list and outlaw them was only a precautionary measure. According to the prosecutor general, these organizations were active in countries such as the US, Russian federation, turkey and Pakistan. However, IMU which was affiliated with Taliban, al-Qaida was active in Uzbekistan and posed a significant threat to the country. In November 2006, the Kazakhstan’s Supreme Court stated that East Turkestan Liberation Organization and Aum Shinrikyo had active operatives in the country. There has also been allegation of presence of Hamas in Kazakhstan especially after an umbrella body for Muslim invited Hamas leaders to the country.
HT’s operation in central Asia dates back to 1998 when the organization was linked by Kazakhstani and Kyrgyzstani authorities of preaching massages of hate and inciting ethnic violence (Roy 2007). In this year and 2006, this terror organization is also believed by authorities to have distributed leaflets inciting citizens to overthrow Kazakh government and replace it with Salafists caliphate with strict observance of sharia laws. This led to banning of this group, which was followed by a security crackdown to weed out members of this group which weakened the group and crippled its operations in Kazakhstan. In the five years leading to 2010, terror groups including HT suffered many setbacks in Kazakhstan including arrest and extradiction of its leader Otobek Muminov to Kyrgyzstan and arrest of HT’s central Asian faction Mahamat Y. Mamasadykov in Jalalabad. This was followed by dismantling of many of its cells in Kazakhstan and confiscation of its printing equipment. In late 2007, in the city of Janaozen, several of its HT’s operatives were arrested and printing equipment, computers, CDs and many forms of printed reading materials meant for propaganda were confiscated. Many of HT members have been arrested and successfully tried although they haven’t been able to stage a successful terror attack.
Jamaat Takfir is a little known Salafist group whose 9 members were arrested and successfully tried in western Kazakhstan for preaching hate and advising Muslims to join in Jihad. This group encourages Muslims to violently form a global Islamic Caliphate and amputate anyone who does not convert to Islam (Snyder 2002). In general, Wahhabism, which takes two forms of Quranis and salafists in Kazakhstan is prohibited and is closely monitored by authorities to ensure that it does not lead to violent acts (Ali & K̲h̲ān̲ Vaḥīduddīn 2011). After 2010, it is only limited explosions and gun battles that have been seen as the police have foiled many terror attacks. Terrorists have not been able to mount any successful attacks in Kazakhstan. The government has used these minor attacks as a reason to increase the capabilities of law enforcement agencies.
Uzbekistan on the other hand has suffered causalities from islamists terrorists. One of the largest terror groups, IMU was formed in this country in 1998 in Fergana valley. In 1999, the group is alleged to have coordinated several attacks in Tashkent, Uzbekistan that were targeting Islam Karimov. Over 30 Islamists lost their lives, those arrested claimed to have been trained in Kazakhstan, prompting the country to launch an operation to crack down on terrorists in Fergana valley. The lethality of IMU was confirmed later the same year when it successfully conducted attacks on Kyrgyzstan. IMU continued to launch many cross-border attacks from exile.
HT terrorist killed 50 civilians in 2004 and later on continued distributing leaflets urging Muslim to join jihadi and overthrow the government (Vitaly 2005). Law enforcement began a crackdown and continuously suppressed these groups and other terror organizations. As a result, the country has experience few terror attacks compared to Tajikistan and Muslim countries in Middle East. A campaign to freeze terrorists’ assets in Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan has been used as a way of reducing terror attacks; this restricts financing and support for terrorists.
Some terror groups abduct people and ask for ransoms to obtain funds. Governments are therefore concerned about their citizens’ safety. Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan work to ensure safe release of their citizens if taken hostage. The main goal of the government is to pursue abductors, apprehend them and prosecute them, ensuring that no ransom is paid to terrorists as this would only encourage this vice. Other counterterrorism tools employed by Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan include sharing of security intelligence to facilitate maintenance of peace through foiling terrorist’ plans (Jenkins 2010). There is a lot of increased scrutiny for travellers; the public must endure searchers at airports and other checkpoint areas. Passengers may be required to remove footwear, coats, and jackets and are scanned with hand-held magnetometers they are also required to walk through scanning devices with the bags X-rayed or opened and rummaged through. In the haste of checking luggage and bags, items may be picked without the owner’s knowledge. This has increased the chances of theft occurring in such checkpoints. Security agents try to ensure that firearms and improvised explosive device (IED) is not hidden in travellers’ baggage. Government safeguards of Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan are thus aware that the reduction of one security problem may lead to another and hence a need for security agents to remain vigilant. Security agents of both countries have compiled lists of wanted and suspected terrorists to ensure that these people do not have an easy access to public places where they would increase casualty (Jenkins 2010). This also Helps in easily identifying and arresting these individuals.
Suspects information that is closely monitored include individual’s name, flight origin, flight time, travel itinerary, destination, duration of flight, travel agent, form of payment, seat location, address, telephone number, credit card number, and meal requests. It has been an effective method because several prominent figures have been arrested at the airports and barred them from flying (Yancey 2008). This may offer challenges to innocent people whose names are similar to suspects’. Technology Helps in circumventing some of these issues
Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan have in close succession come up with comprehensive Acts detailing punishment for people convicted of involvement in terrorist organizations (Tehan 2015) these governments are trying their hand at strict measures to attack the intensely hyped specter of Islamic terror. The penalty outlined in the new anti-terrorism will now apply if a given individual is convicted of causing substantial harm to the interests of society or the state or both by taking part in activities in the interests of a foreign state (Tehan 2015). The same applies for persons also found guilty of crimes threatening peace and security of the country. Crimes against peace and stability are interpreted in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan as acts that include incitement to conflict and terrorism, or any other activity related to terrorism and mass murder (Beinin & Vairel 2011). The governments of both countries advocate that it is the responsibility of each state to eliminate terrorism so that it does not spread to neighbors.
5. DISCUSSION
It is evident that terrorism has the ability to influence domestic politics and regional politics, for example it has been used by terrorists such as IMU and ISIS to capture territory some spanning across nations. Therefore terrorism has broader political and economic repercussions than merely putting seeking recognition. In some other instances, terrorist activities influence government formation, course of action and even alliances, for instance the cross boarder cooperation meant to flush out terrorist and foil their attacks. Sometimes, presence of terror threats necessitates the ironing out of local disagreements to face the greater enemy. This induces formation of more inclusive coalitions between various agencies even across countries.
Terrorist activities have the ability to impact on government’s survivability as voters hold leaders to account dependent on how they handle terror threats and occurrences. Presidents of Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan have been seen to respond decisively on terrorism, in a manner that some have criticized, as an excuse to crack down on Islam of dissent c. Was specifically seen in the late 90s and early 2000s where president Karimov dealt decisively with this threat until IMU retreated to Afghanistan and Pakistan. The survival of these two governments can be said to have been partly dependent their swift action against terror groups, especially considering that that some terrorist groups have toppled governments and/or occupied large territories in Middle East. Swift and decisive reaction to terror activity is likely to lead to reduced political divergence. These two countries have managed to have very few terror attacks despite having majority Muslim population. This has been due to governments efforts and the fact that majority of citizens are more interested in development than in violent Islamic extremism.
In the central Asia, and especially in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, terror groups in this region are Wahhabis or Salafis in nature. Their activities, as seen throughout the paper cannot be linked with government’s dictatorship as they lack genuine and legitimate concerns. IMU, HT, Taliban and al-Qaeda which are all active in these two countries seek to illegitimately gain power. These groups wish to establish Islamic caliphates in all areas that are believed to have been historically dominated by Muslims. To make matters worse research essay writing help, instead of promoting their ideologies peacefully and seeking to be elected, these groups preach and sponsor ethnic and religious animosity, hoping to take advantage of violence to introduce wahhabis’ order. They also urge citizens in countries with significant Muslim populations to violently overthrow their governments and replace them with caliphates. When citizens fail to heed to terrorists will, they (terrorist groups) use violence and fear to force citizens to comply. For these reasons, these groups should be fought and defeated using all necessary means.
6. CONCLUSION

As seen above violent Islamic extremist groups exist and operate worldwide, including Central Asia. While many Middle Eastern and Central Asian countries have lost hundreds of thousands of lives and replacement of legitimate governments by extremist wahhabists, nations of former soviet central Asia have remained peaceful, with exception of Tajikistan. Uzbekistan has suffered loss of hundreds of lives while Kazakhstan has much fewer. In comparison to other countries with Islamic majority, these countries can be said to have been largely peaceful. This has been partly due to the fact that their governments act swiftly and decisively to foil terror attacks and to flush out suspects including people and clerics who preach intolerance. Such people are arrested and charged which dissuades others from attempting such acts. On the other hand, decades of soviet rule promoted a secular nationalist culture among citizens, which makes citizens of these countries to seek national development over terrorism.
Their governments have strengthened their counterterrorism measures over time and are affected only to a small extent by Islamic extremism.
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