ConflictBarometer_2015

ASIA AND OCEANIA
searched their homes and Nakanune.kz's offices six days earlier.
afo
KYRGYZSTAN UZBEKISTAN TAJIKISTAN
(BORDER COMMUNITIES / FERGANA VALLEY)
Intensity: 3 | Change: | Start: 2000
Conflict parties:
Conflict items:
Kyrgyzstan vs. Uzbekistan vs. Tajikistan
territory, international power
The conflict over territory and international power between
inhabitants of enclaves/exclaves and the respective governments
of Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan continued at
a violent level.
Throughout the year, border guards shot dead at least one
civilian and injured about a dozen others of the three countries'
enclaves/exclaves. According to the Kyrgyz State Border
Service, 219 people were arrested for violating Kyrgyz borders
from January until October. They also confiscated a
small number of weapons and approx. 1.8 tons of narcotics.
On May 12, Uzbek border guards killed a Kyrgyz citizen at
the border of the Uzbek Sokh region and arrested another
Kyrgyz. On June 29, one Uzbek border guard was injured in
a fire exchange between Uzbek and Kyrgyz border guards at
a non-demarcated border section near the Mashalang border
crossing in the Uzbek village Shahimardan, Fergana region.
The same day, Uzbek border guards opened fire at two Tajiks
trying to cross the Uzbek-Tajik border near Andarkhan, Fergana,
injuring one. On August 3, Kyrgyz and Tajiks clashed
near Vorukh, Sughd region, Tajikistan, engulfed by Batken
province, Kyrgyzstan. Tajik citizens had allegedly blocked a
road to a cemetery near the Kyrgyz Kok-Tash village, while
Kyrgyz citizens had presumably blocked a water canal of
the Tajik Chorku village. The order of events was contested.
The following day, according to Tajik Border Troops, Kok-
Tash residents fired shotguns and threw Molotov cocktails at
Tajiks who had built a disputed water pipe in the Tajik village
Somoniyon, damaging several houses. Around 200 to 500
people participated in the events both days, leaving seven
Kyrgyz and six Tajiks injured. Kyrgyz and Tajik border services
sent deputies to the affected villages for mediation talks.
On February 10, Kyrgyz Foreign Minister Erlan Abdyldaev and
Tajik President Emomali Rahmon emphasized the need for a
peaceful solution and agreed on confidence building measures
during an official visit in the Tajik capital Dushanbe.
Accordingly, in early March, the governments of Tajikistan and
Kyrgyzstan resumed talks in Dushanbe on the demarcation
and delimitation of disputed border parts and signed a joint
agreement on March 7. In mid-November, Kyrgyz and Tajik
governments drafted an agreement on 519.9 km of border
sections. However, several disputed areas were left out of
the agreement. kwu
MALAYSIA (OPPOSITION)
Intensity: 2 | Change: | Start: 1969
Conflict parties:
Conflict items:
various opposition groups, Bersih vs.
government
system/ideology, national power
The system and power conflict between the pro-democracy
opposition, on the one hand, and the government, on the
other, continued at a non-violent level. The opposition consisted
of parties such as Parti Tindakan Demokratik, Parti
Keadilan Rakyat, and Parti Islam Se-Malaysia, as well as of
several non-governmental organizations such as Coalition for
Clean and Fair Elections (Bersih).
On February 15, the Federal Court upheld the 2014 decision
by the Court of Appeal to imprison opposition leader Anwar
Ibrahim on homosexuality charges and sentenced him to five
years in jail. After the verdict, Anwar questioned the judges'
independence from the executive. The court's decision drew
heavy criticism from international human right groups and
the US government, which questioned the independence of
the judiciary in Malaysia and expressed its disappointment
over the ruling.
In July, accusations of corruption arose when approx. USD
600 million from a government-run strategic development
company, 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), were allegedly
transferred to the private bank account of Prime
Minister Najib Tun Razak from the ruling Barisan Nasional
(BN). In reaction, Swiss authorities began to freeze bank accounts
linked to the development agency in September. The
same month, the US Justice Department investigated property
purchases in the US involving Najib's step-son and the
transfer of millions of dollars into Najib's personal account.
On August 29 and 30, Bersih organized nationwide rallies
protesting corruption and demanded Najib to step down. In
contrast to former rallies organized by Bersih, police forces
did not intervene. Approx. 200,000 people participated in
the largest rally in the capital Kuala Lumpur.
In October, opposition leader Wan Azizah Wan Ismail filed
a no-confidence motion against Najib. In December, parliament
and senate passed the National Security Council Bill
2015 allowing the Prime Minister to declare so-called security
areas as well as enabling security forces to arrest and
search without warrant. The opposition heavily opposed the
bill and called it unconstitutional. sg
MALDIVES (OPPOSITION)
Intensity: 3 | Change: | Start: 2003
Conflict parties:
Conflict items:
MDP, AP vs. government
national power
The conflict over national power between opposition parties,
primarily the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) and Justice
Party (AP), and the government escalated to a violent crisis.
Throughout the year, the police dissolved several demonstrations
against the government, injuring protesters with tear
gas and pepper spray. On February 22, the police arrested
former president and MDP leader Mohammed Nasheed after
the Criminal Court of Maldives had charged him under the
Anti-Terrorism Act. Demonstrators immediately gathered in
the capital Male to demand Nasheed's release, but were dispersed
by the police using tear gas and pepper spray. Five
days later, approx. 9,000 people protested in Male against
the arrest and demanded the resignation of President Abdulla
Yameen Abdul Gayoom. Pro-government groups armed
with bats and knives attacked the protesters while the police
arrested 33 opposition members. On March 13, the Criminal
Court convicted Nasheed to 13 years in jail, holding him responsible
for the abduction of a judge during his presidency.
146