DUSHANBE, 14.07.2018. /NIAT “Khovar”/. On July 3, 2018, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan held an International Symposium dedicated to the memory of the Japanese political scientist, Professor Yutaka Akino. This year marks 20 years since his tragic death. The symposium was attended by experts from Asian and European countries. We will recall that Dr. Akino and his colleagues from Poland, Uruguay and Tajikistan were brutally killed by extremists of the terrorist and extremist organization of the Islamic renaissance party of Tajikistan while carrying out UN mandate in Tajikistan in 1998.  

This mission observed the process of achieving peace and stability in our country. The Symposium participants stressed that the terrorist and extremist organization of the Islamic renaissance party of Tajikistan, which in 1998 by using armed forces killed Yutaka Akino and his colleagues, is a part of such extremist movements as ISIS, Al-Qaeda, the Taliban and others, and has a hostile viewpoint in relation of foreign citizens and representatives of the international organizations. As an irrefutable evidence was shown to participants that during its destructive activities the terrorist and extremist organization of Islamic renaissance party of Tajikistan took hostages from among foreign civilians and then executed them.

The Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan, Mr. Taro Kono, the Chairman of the Japan-Tajikistan Parliamentary Friendship League Mr. Keiji Furuya and others made a speech about the tragic consequences of modern terrorism, as well as held discussion on preventing this shameful global trend.

During the discussion of the tragic death of Professor Yutaka Akino and other foreign nationals by militants of Islamic radical groups, the symposium participants pointed out that namely modern radicalists’ hatred towards representatives of other nations and civilizations are the main factors of activity of terrorist organizations of the Middle East, Central and South Asia. For instance, revealed facts show that about 100 foreign citizens were killed or taken hostages by armed militants of the Islamic renaissance party of Tajikistan during the years of the civil war, including employees of international organizations, UN observers, international peacekeeping forces officers, diplomats, journalists, tourists and so on.

The issue of hostage-taking, as a way of making money for the terrorist and extremist organization of the Islamic renaissance party of Tajikistan, sourced since 1991, and the trend of violence and radicalism is not new for renaissances. Namely, taking into account the extremist and radical nature of renaissances, in September 2015, the Supreme Court of Tajikistan took a decision to prohibit the activities of the TEO IRPT in Tajikistan and subsequently its activities were banned on the territory of all member countries of the CIS, CSTO, SCO and so on.

The Symposium participants also stressed that the relation with terrorism and the terrorist parties does not accept the double standard policy. It was addressed to owners of all civilian organizations that they should not only avoid relations with terrorist parties and movements, but also disclose and strongly condemn their acts.

It should be noted that in March 2018, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Japan to Tajikistan Hajime Kitaoka during his working trip to Japan together with his wife visited the Tsukuba University, where they once studied together and Yutaka Akino taught. They examined the exhibition “Dr. Yutaka Akino Memorial”. Ambassador of Japan at a meeting with teachers and students of this well-known educational institution said: “After I was appointed as the first Ambassador of Japan in Tajikistan, I always dreamed to visit my native University and see this remarkable exhibition with my own eyes. In Tajikistan, Dr. Yutaka Akino merits in ensuring peace and stability on this land have not been forgotten, and they always remember him with a kind word”.

Sarvaroy AZIMOVA

In the photos: Yutaka Akino (from above), Ambassador of Japan to the Republic of Tajikistan at the exhibition of Yutaka Akino Memorial at Tsukuba University in March, 2018 (at the bottom)