Tajikistan's secular regime shaves beards of 13,000 men in "fight against radicalism"

[Glac09]

Tajikistan’s secular regime have shaved nearly 13,000 men’s beards and shutdown more than 160 shops selling Islamic clothing last year as part of the country’s fight against what it claims “foreign” radicalism.

Bahrom Sharifzoda, the head of the south-west Khathlon region’s police, said at a press conference on Wednesday that the law enforcement services convinced more than 1,700 women and girls to stop wearing the hijab in the Central Asian country.

The move is seen as part of efforts to battle what the authorities regard as “radical Islam”.

Tajikistan’s secular regime has long sought to prevent an overspill of what it sees as unwelcome traditions from neighbouring Afghanistan.

Last week, the country’s parliament voted to ban Arabic-sounding “foreign” names as well as marriages between first cousins.

The legislation is expected to be approved by President Emomali Rahmon, who has taken steps to promote secularism and discourage beliefs and practices that he sees as foreign or a threat to the stability of his secular regime, Radio Liberty said.

In September, Tajikistan’s Supreme Court banned the country’s only registered Islamic political party, the Islamic Renaissance Party of Tajikistan.

Rahmon has ruled Tajikistan since 1994 and his current presidential term is expected to end in 2020.

In December, the parliament granted the president and his family life-long immunity from prosecution, giving Rahmon the title “Leader of the nation” and officially designating him “the founder of peace and national unity of Tajikistan”.

The country of 7.1 million people has struggled with poverty and instability since independence from the Soviet Union more than 20 years ago.

It remains heavily dependent on Russia, where the majority of Tajik people go for work.

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[Karl]

Wow what a great leader. Now I am going to go and tame my dog by putting him in a cage and poking him with a stick.

[M.I.A.]

What! All at once!

..anyway the thing about beards is that they often grow back.. Given time.

Also I know a lot of people who are more knowledgeable than me who have shorter beards.

Genuinely, the mosques are still open and people are allowed to pray freely.. So its OK.

One thing that I noticed is that a pretty beard is very hard to keep.

I always see American news how they keep shooting sihk's mistaking them for Muslims.

And I'm like.. But they look like sikh's

And then one day I looked in the mirror..

Depends on which hat you wear.

Seeek's


Mass shavings are better than mass beheadings I suppose.

Try again


Allah swt have mercy upon me, I'm sure people have been left humiliated by the incident..

But a middle ground has to be achieved for fear of how easily a spark ignites.

Not easy to fight imaginary lions.


*Tom cruise watches as they chop of his top knot*

...em..last samurai ref.


Still waiting for the stars to turn up?

[Pygoscelis]

Forced shaving of beards? That's a new level of crazy. What's next? Banning anything remotely connected to the moon?

[sister herb]

Do they think that having beard means same as being radical? Or that the beard causes radical thoughts and behavior? When you cut it off, the guy immediately stops his radicalism but wants to attend to the peace march? But hey, the hippies too have quite often the beard.