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Cease Fire: General Agreement on the Establishment of Peace and National Accord in Tajikistan

Implementations

Cease Fire – 1997

Fighting between UTO forces and the military was not uncommon in 1997, but the CNR was active. There were bombings in September 1997 — after the return of rebel leader, Abdullo Nuri, following five years of exile in Teheran —which injured 16 people.¹ On 26 September, the CNR issued an appeal to armed groups in the country whose loyalty was not clear to come forward. It declared that they join the government or the UTO by 16 November. After that date they would be considered illegal.²

“Bomb injures 16 in Tajikistan after return of opposition leader,” Deutsche Presse-Agentur, September 12, 1997.
“Report of the Secretary-General on the Situation in Tajikistan,” United Nations, (S/1997/859), November 5, 1997.

Cease Fire – 1998

In March, a clash between UTO fighters and an army unit led to a gunfight near Romit that killed 40 people. UNMOT and CNR officials restored the ceasefire on 25 March. More fighting took place between UTO elements and government forces on 29 April 1998 near Teppei-Samarkandi and Dushanbe. The main cause of the fighting was related to the arrest of three UTO members on criminal charges. UTO leaders maintained that the fighting was not endorsed by the UTO leadership. After the fighting, UNMOT worked closely with the Contact Group to diffuse the situation. A meeting took place between the government and UTO leaders on 2 May 1998, in which parties agreed to appoint Mr. Turajonzodah to lead a special commission to restore the ceasefire. The ceasefire was restored on 3 May.³

In September of 1998, Otakhon Latifi, a prominent UTO member of the CNR was assassinated outside his home.⁴

In October, 38 persons were detained for spoiler type violence and the abduction of the Deputy Mayor of Khujand. Interestingly, 15 were government servicemen and one was a Commander in the Ministry of Interior.⁵

“Report of the Secretary-General on the Situation in Tajikistan,” United Nations, (S/1998/374), May 6, 1999.
“Report of the Secretary-General on the Situation in Tajikistan,” United Nations, (S/1998/1029), November 3, 1998.
Ibid.

Cease Fire – 1999

The government and UTO remain dedicated to maintaining the ceasefire.⁶ Sporadic clashes and episodes of violence were reported during the period, but were quickly and effectively managed.⁷

Rashid Abdullo, “Implementation of the 1997 General Agreement: Success, Dilemmas, and Challenges,” in Politics of Compromise: the Tajikistan Peace Process, ed. K. Abdullaev and C. Barnes (London: Conciliation Resources, 2001), Accord 10: 48—53.
“Report of the Secretary-General on the Situation in Tajikistan,” United Nations, (S/1998/374), May 6, 1999.

Cease Fire – 2000

The CNR concluded in 2000 with no reports of ceasefire violations.

Owed in large part to the continued presence of Russia’s 201st Motor Rifle Division headquartered in Dushanbe, no sustained bouts of organized violence were reported for the remaining period of observation.⁷Henry Plater Zyberk, “Tajikistan: Waiting for a Storm?,” Conflict Studies Research Centre (2004), accessed 18 July 2012, http://www.isn.ethz.ch/isn/Digital-Library/Publications/Detail/?id=92523…