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UNITED NATIONS DONOR CONFERENCE ON TAJIKISTAN RAISES $56.5 MILLION FOR ORGANIZATION'S FIRST-EVER PEACE-BUILDING OPERATION

28 November 1997


Press Release
IHA/640


UNITED NATIONS DONOR CONFERENCE ON TAJIKISTAN RAISES $56.5 MILLION FOR ORGANIZATION'S FIRST-EVER PEACE-BUILDING OPERATION

19971128 Tajik President and Opposition Leader Participated in Conference, Held from 24-25 November

VIENNA, 25 November (UN Information Service) -- A two-day United Nations Donor Conference for Peace and Reconciliation in Tajikistan concluded here this afternoon, having raised $56.5 million in pledges for the ongoing peace process in that country, which followed six years of conflict. In addition to pledges of specific support for the peace process, it also raised numerous tentative pledges far beyond the transition period, as well as for humanitarian assistance and rehabilitation.

The meeting was attended by 112 delegates from 40 States, as well as a further 65 participants representing intergovernmental and international organizations, foundations, non-governmental organizations and various United Nations entities. It was convened at the joint request of Tajik President Emomali Rakhmanov and opposition leader Said Abdullo Nuri, who also serves as Chairman of the Commission on National Reconciliation. Both leaders participated in the Conference.

The Secretary-General's Special Representative for Tajikistan, Gerd Dietrich Merrem, said the meeting was an "unqualified success in several aspects -- first, as concrete support for the process, in political support and assurances to Tajik parties, and as an expression of international solidarity".

During the Conference, many participants expressed concern regarding persistent difficulties in creating security conditions conducive to implementing the programme for Tajikistan.

Addressing yesterday's opening meeting, President Rakhmanov said peace in Tajikistan would have been "impossible without the important work of the United Nations". Three years of negotiations under United Nations auspices resulted in June in the signing of a General Agreement on the Establishment of Peace and National Accord in Tajikistan, which provides a framework for the political, social and economic reconstruction of the country after six years of civil war.

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The Donors Conference, intended to mobilize international support to implement the agreement for a transitional period of 12 to 18 months, is unlike other United Nations pledging conferences for humanitarian assistance, since it will actually launch the Organizations's first post-conflict peace-building exercise.

The funds raised will support a broad range of tasks, including "mutual forgiveness", amnesty, the return of refugees, demobilization and eventual multi-party elections. All forces, say the two Tajik leaders in a preambular statement will now work jointly on the restoration of the country's destroyed economy.

Background

Tajikistan, which became an independent country in 1991 following the breakup of the Soviet Union, was soon plunged into an acute social and economic crisis, aggravated by civil unrest and ideological differences between secularists and pro-Islamic traditionalists. The civil war which erupted in May 1992 resulted in an estimated 50,000 deaths and hundreds of thousands who fled the hostilities.

The economic and social upheaval caused by the disappearance of the previous economic system, together with the effects of the civil war, has been compounded by the country's geographic isolation. Fuel shortages, frequent cuts in utilities, lack of employment opportunities, breakdown of health services and education and a marked decline in law and order, have caused further hardship to the population.

Why Peace Needs Support

The support document before the Conference points out that "while many obstacles and some setbacks can be expected on the road to securing a durable peace, there are ample reasons for increasing support to Tajikistan now that a peace accord has been reached". At this moment, according to the document, the international community is presented with an opportunity to play a pivotal role in the promotion of regional peace and stability. Both parties, it says, have demonstrated good faith.

Among the factors giving cause for optimism, the document cites the country's 99 per cent literacy rate, the high degree of technical and intellectual skills of its people, and the country's relatively small size. It considers that the signing of the General Agreement has created an "environment of expectation and hope that will allow initiatives to succeed".

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For information media. Not an official record.