Matter of Honor: Galustyan is a “Hero,” while Rajabov is a “Criminal”

Last week, two incidents occurred, each of which can undoubtedly be called an insult to the nation and the statehood of Tajiks.

One of the incidents sparked a wave of protest and discontent in society. However, the other incident, initiated by the law enforcement agencies of Tajikistan, either went unnoticed by the public or was ignored. The authorities of the country, despite the resonance, turned a blind eye to both incidents and did not respond in any way.

The visit of Russian comedian of Armenian descent Mikhail Galustyan to Dushanbe and his formal meeting with representatives of one of the recently established construction companies triggered a storm of protests on social media.

For many years, there has not been such a wave of protest in the Tajik-language segment of social media, indicating how sensitively Tajiks reacted to this comedian, the creator of the characters “Ravshan and Jumshud” on the Russian TV channel TNT. However, there were also those who welcomed Galustyan’s visit to Tajikistan, claiming that he should see “Tajik culture” and change his opinion about Tajiks. But a very large and angry wave of opponents to this comedian’s visit to the country immediately drowned out the weak and cautious voices of his supporters.

Many social media users considered Galustyan’s arrival in Tajikistan an insult. Later, a person who introduced himself as: “I am Tajik, my name is Tabrez Shahidi, I am the son of composer Tolikhon Shahidi and philologist Gulsiifat Shahidi, the concert director of Mikhail Galustyan,” called the opponents of Galustyan’s presence “uneducated Neanderthals,” turning this wave into a storm, and himself, according to the definition of the platform “Kitobkhon,” into the “second Fitrat” (referring to Abdurauf Fitrat).

Despite the fact that the wave of discontent and protest from the residents continued as sharply as before, the authorities of the country did not respond in any way. Meanwhile, the dissatisfied and protesters found no answers to their questions: which state agency allowed the Armenian comedian to enter Tajikistan and why none of the agencies opposed the entry of a person who had insulted Tajiks for about a decade.

This raises another question: why did none of the state agencies take into account the feelings of thousands of dissatisfied residents of the country and explain the situation? Was Galustyan’s visit coordinated at the highest level, and do lower levels of government fear to comment on this issue?

When comedian Galustyan was just starting with his program “Nasha Rasha,” there was a lot of protest and discontent in society. Some individuals made significant efforts to prevent such an insult to the nation. However, without support from state agencies, they were unable to do anything.

The details of Galustyan’s visit are known to everyone because his visit became loud and sparked numerous debates on social media.

However, another insult to the Tajik people, which also occurred last week, went unnoticed. The authorities of Tajikistan handed over 43-year-old Tajik citizen Saidjon Rajabov to Russia. In Russia, the court sentenced him to 20 years in prison.

Saidjon’s “guilt” lay in the fact that 18 years ago he “neutralized” two Russian skinheads while defending two Tajiks.

As reported by Russian media at the time, about ten skinheads, who were then “in fashion,” were conducting a so-called “cleansing,” discovered two defenseless Tajiks, dragged them into the street, and began to beat them. Saidjon happened to be at the scene, intervened in the fight, and stabbed three skinheads. One of them, Maxim Danilin, died at the scene, while two others, Sergey Chuprov and Dmitry Samoylov, died in the hospital.

The number of skinheads, as noted in the news of those times, was more than ten. However, recent media reports only mention the murder of three individuals. The existence of other skinheads is not mentioned at all. Most likely, they want to ensure that the self-defense version is not used.

Saidjon managed to escape the scene before the police arrived and left Russia. The Russian authorities declared him wanted through Interpol. After 18 years, he was detained by law enforcement agencies in his homeland – Tajikistan, and was literally handed over to Russia.

No self-respecting country hands over its citizens to another country. In international diplomacy, such actions are considered an insult to one’s own country and a refusal to protect one’s own citizen. According to diplomatic rules, if a citizen of one country commits a crime in another country, the first country first requests the case materials from the second country, reviews the case itself, and imposes a punishment.

In the case of Saidjon Rajabov, the competent authorities of the country not only ignored this diplomatic rule of protecting the honor and dignity of the country but also handed over to another country a person who should have been recognized and presented to society as a hero. Every year, dozens of Tajiks fall victim to Russian skinheads. There has practically never been a case where the authorities of Tajikistan achieved an investigation into the cases of murderers and demanded deserved punishment for them, let alone consider the extradition of a skinhead to Tajikistan. The authorities of Tajikistan have not even dared to detain a Russian officer who killed a Tajik woman on the territory of the country.

On the other hand, the Russian law enforcement agencies themselves acknowledged that Saidjon Rajabov fought alone against at least four skinheads. In this case, there is a high probability that he would have been killed by them, and the use of a knife can be considered a means of self-defense. If the case were considered objectively (which is extremely unlikely in Russian courts), Saidjon could have been acquitted.

Article 16 of the Constitution of Tajikistan explicitly states the prohibition of extraditing citizens of the country to the authorities of another country: “No citizen of the republic may be handed over to a foreign state.”

Part 1 of Article 5 of the Constitutional Law of the Republic of Tajikistan also explicitly states: “The extradition of a citizen of the Republic of Tajikistan to a foreign state is prohibited.”

The authorities, by handing over Saidjon Rajabov to Russia, not only violated diplomatic rules for protecting the honor of the country but also the Constitution of the Republic of Tajikistan.

On the other hand, these actions are effectively aimed at destroying the courage of any Tajik who in the future may want to defend their compatriots. When he stands up against a skinhead to protect a fellow countryman, he will first think that no one stands behind him. Neither his people nor his state. He will think that his country will not only fail to protect him but will also hand him over to a foreign state on a silver platter.

In this case, the authorities of Tajikistan should have acted differently. Saidjon Rajabov, who apparently acted to protect himself and his compatriots, should have been declared a national hero. This is how it happens all over the world when national heroes are needed, or an event occurs from which a hero can be made; some formalities are overlooked.

Creating a national hero out of Rajabov and others like him, who have risked their lives dozens of times over these 35 years to defend their honor and the honor of their compatriots, would not only give migrants the courage to defend themselves but also send a signal to the government and society of Russia that a migrant can defend himself and is not defenseless.

Last week we discussed the high likelihood of a second stage of independence that was given for free for Tajikistan. And there we raised the question: Will the country, unlike the first time, be able to use its second chance, or will the independence that was given for free remain undervalued once again?

These two events that occurred in the last few days have clarified the answer to this question…

Abdumanon Sheraliyev