Saturday, July 21, 2012

Who is Akbar Abdullaev and why is he dangerous?

As covered in my previous post about who will replace Islam Karimov, the only viable candidate currently is a man called Akbar Abdullaev who is, for want of a better handle, a murderer, criminal and danger to the country.  

Akbar Abdullaev
Akbar Abdullaev
Due to a variety of reasons, Akbar Abdullaev is now the most likely candidate to replace Islam Karimov as leader of Uzbekistan.  While this might not seem like a problem (because hey, who pays attention to middle eastern politics in the western world, right?), this is a man who has openly bragged about the murders he has ordered.

He has been affectionately labelled as the overlord of the money laundering industry.  There are reports starting to appear about the businesses he has "acquired" in Uzbekistan - where he now appears to operate numerous high profile ones in the Ferghana region.

By "acquired", I actually mean the original owners were forced into handing them over, murdered, or generally blackmailed into submission.  This is a dangerous man indeed.

So consider what a man of such loose moral grounding would do as leader of an entire country?  

A law firm named Huntsman Lewis LLP have already had to close their Tashkent office because Abdullaev was making undue threats to them.  Their press release stated:


"We are proud of the work we have done in Uzbekistan, in particular representing the plaintiffs in fraud charges brought against Akbar Abdullaev. However, in the wake of that case, we have received several serious threats to our persons, and those of our staff."


"As such, we have taken the decision to have no one physically on the ground as it is perceived to be too dangerous"


So while he is an unknown for many people, those who have encountered him would definitely have an opinion on the matter.  Whether they're willing to speak out for fear of being intimidated, beaten or murdered is an entirely different matter.  It's imperative that this man is not allowed to be in a position of greater authority.  But if a legal firm is unable to operate, how exactly will he be brought to justice?

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