Criminal accusations of corruption have been made against Craig Murray:
”
he lobbied so-called businessmen including those from Pakistan willing to get cotton and other state contracts, those people had contacts with different Uzbek clan representatives including Bekzod Akhmedov. Akhmedov was seen many times in Craig Murray and his pseudo businessmen’s company in dens of iniquity of the capital, Bekzod Akhmedov’s favorite venues.
”
The allegations must be taken extremely seriously because they come from an Ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva. The lady in question is of course Gulnara Karimova, daughter of the President of Uzbekistan. As is her usual method, she gave an interview to a glossy magazine journalist in Switzerland not given to probing questioning. Even this publication baulked at publishing these extraordinary statements, so she gave the full works on her blog:
For example yesterday in Geneva, on the first day of spring, we had another “support team” visiting us, those who are always ready to work off their payments while not having anything else to do, any other interests, hobbies or a properly paid job. A group of a few people including a cameraman, a lady of Uzbek origin Mutabar Tadjibaeva, who introduces herself as a president of the «Club des Coeurs Ardents» and guess who else? Exactly! Craig Murray – ex-ambassador to Uzbekistan, who had been scandalously fired from the British Foreign Office. He lived in Tashkent for a long time and had a relationship and even got married to a strip-bar dancer, he lobbied so-called businessmen including those from Pakistan willing to get cotton and other state contracts, those people had contacts with different Uzbek clan representatives including Bekzod Akhmedov. Akhmedov was seen many times in Craig Murray and his pseudo businessmen’s company in dens of iniquity of the capital, Bekzod Akhmedov’s favorite venues. It seems like the group of people that visited us in Geneva wanted to congratulate us with spring and express their grievance by screaming and as they said they wanted me or my sister Lola to come out. They attempted to sneak inside and walk around the house recording it all on video and we had nothing to do, but call the police and make our own video of this March invasion of “human right defenders” as they call themselves.
It is obvious, that those people mentioned above, a group of bloggers and professional PR firm such as R&R were not catalyzed accidentally. The core of the artificially initiated scandal is lost, constant threats, that someone will say something, someone like Bekzod Akhmeodv who is wanted by Interpol due to his relation to the investigation of MTS activities in Uzbekistan, who from the beginning was under the MTS-Russia protection and requested on January, 9 2013 refugee status with his big family. Also threats came for last three months from lawyers who were stating that they will have newspapers like Financial Times publish all they have, all that Bekzod Akhmedov could compose over almost a year which was accepted with pleasure by MTS lobbyists. Where else could you see such involvement at official level and could this be possible without high-reaching goals, even if it is done in such a straight way?
I might as well state for the record that to my knowledge I have never met or had any contact with Mr Bekzod Akhmedov, I have certainly never been in his social company, let alone on a “den of inquity” (though that does sound fun). I have never met any Pakistani businessmen in or to discuss Uzbekistan and I have never sought any role for myself in trading Uzbek cotton.
I certainly did visit Gulnara’s US $25 million mansion in Geneva, because I wanted to see where the proceeds of forced child labour in the Uzbek cotton fields went. I intend to do so again. I hope lots of people will – its at No. 7, Rue Prevote, Cologny, Geneva.
Gulnara’s peculiar attack on me for the “crime” of looking at her house appears a rather desperate reaction to increasing knowledge of her activities. The Chief Executive of Telesonera, Sweden’s largest telecommunications firm, had to resign recently over corrupt payments to Gulnara. In a decision reminiscent of Blair’s shutdown of the BAE Saudi bribes prosecution, Swedish authorities decided there was no public interest in prosecuting. Gulnara’s Swiss registered holding company Zeromax has been declared bankrupt, owing half a billion dollars to the state in taxes, and its assets confiscated then reprivatised to … Gulnara. Russian Telecoms giant MTS has been kicked out of Uzbekistan, substantially reducing available services there.
All of the above were examples of Gulnara kicking out fellow oligarchs from business interests which she held in partnership with others, to take the lot for herself. That has left a lot of despoiled oligarchs rather rueful. This centralisation of cash prior to a succession battle is a very high risk strategy. It is telling that Gulnara refers to my contact with Uzbek “clans”. In the Uzbek context, this does not mean tribe, but rather something more akin to regionally based mafia groupings, with whom the common people of the region have no identity. Gulnara is in the middle of a major rupture with Gafur Rakhimov, the largest mafia boss whose alliance with Karimov had been central to the regime’s stability.
I do not imagine Gulnara really believes I am connected to any of these rival mafia interests, though it is possible she is really that crazy. But plainly she is very rattled, or she would not be drawing all this attention to her business interests.
Two small points from the above. Firstly, one passage seems to reveal that the “interviewer” from Bilan was a chum of hers.
and guess who else? Exactly! Craig Murray – ex-ambassador to Uzbekistan,
I don’t think an ordinary Swiss journalist would have any idea who I was, let alone know I had called at the house.
This is one of my all time favourite tough journalist questions:
You are leading the list of most popular personalities from Central Asia in 2012 on search engines such as Google and Yandex. You are almost every day active on Twitter where you post many of your photos. How is this all related?
Final point – the first sentence of this post refers to me in the third person not because I have gone delusional, but so it works well as a retweet.
I have every hope the Karimov regime will fall in spring 2015.
Will Dennis Rodman deflect the N. Korean threat, with basketball diplomacy? Stranger things have happened.
http://www.cnn.com/2013/03/11/world/asia/north-korea-kim-rodman/
Dreoilin,
@Jives,
“do you really think there are “trolls working in concert” or (as some others suggest) trolls paid to come here? I think the interruptors are just enjoying themselves, a bit like I do myself when I insist on posting on USA right-wing blogs where I’ve been banned 4-5 times already. I amuse myself by getting around their bans — mainly because they don’t even try to deal with the substance of my arguments, just ban me out of hand when they see I’m not a Tea-party type, but a “libturd” (in their parlance).”
********
Absolutely i do. I believe there’s at least 4 working here in
concert,and at least another 2 orbiting pretending to be the voice of neutral reason,ahem.No names need be mentioned.
If you wanna go and noise up other blogs that’s quite your right of course,but i’m very surprised you cant sense a concerted trolling gig here,largely to disrupt but moreso to intimidate Mary it seems.
Somewhat surprised you cant tell the difference between casual noising up and unsettling group-stalking bullying Dreoilin.
It’s certainly very clear to me.
Anyway,best wishes to you.
Why does HabbaTroll insist on using multiple identities??
I suppose it means they are not real,or are just here to disrupt.
Why Habbabkuk? Why?
Why do you have to hide behind fake identities?
I guess you must be a fake.
Which is rather shameful really isn’t it,all in all?
Oh and by the way Habba…
Remember and set your alarm clock so that you can respond to Mary in the early hours of the morning-usually within 4 minutes of Mary’s first post.
Have you read the UK laws on Cyberstalking Habba?
You should.
It can lead to a ong jail term,you horrible weak little bully.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyberstalking
CE, are you using the same screen-name and e-mail address as you use on the football sites?
I note that you enter an e-mail address into the “Website” field in the comment form. That should be OK so long as you enter the e-mail address that you registered with Gravatar into the “Email” field.
I remember when i was young and at school.
There was a young kid;pallid,delicate but very very bright and an original thinker.When all around him were obsessed by rugby and other such macho pursuits he was into poetry and art and had his own ideas about the world and how it worked.
For 5 years he was remorselessly bullied and ridiculed for his perfectly legal valid views and nature.The boors made his life an abject misery.He was doing nothing wrong but whatever he said and did and wherever he went he was bullied and taunted by the madding pack,remorselesly.
Age 13 he committed suicide.
I wonder where his bullies are now?
Do they feel shame? Do they even remember that tragic talented delicate child?
Perhaps they rose high up in the world of politics,media or military psy-ops…
Oh and by the way Habbabkuk/O’Brien
You accused me yesterday-most erroneously-of being the same poster as Nevermind.
Now,knowing your methodology i don’t expect an apology.
That’s Ok.
But i invite any Mods here to freely reveal my IP adress to prove you were wrong,for all to see.
I’ve been on this blog for almost 7 years and have never once employed a fake handle.
You can’t say that Habbakuk can you?
You are fake and you are here in Bad Faith Habbabkuk.
And most of us will recall,i’m sure,Mr.O’Brien was the name of the torturer in Orwell’s 1984 Room 101…the provocateur who inveigled people to incriminate themselves to Big Brother and thereafter tortured them.
A nasty little grass,in other words.
Hi Clark,
No, and no! 🙂
I’ll try that, hopefully will not be accused of using an alias though! 😉
I see you have changed yours, just showing off now!
Thanks as always.
Clark; When my avatar disappeared, Jon said there was a typo in email. I corrected and voila’.
Is the screen name, in any way connected to the problem CE is having?
Clark,
LOL…nice one…i laughed 🙂
http://wingsoverscotland.com/right-sentence-wrong-crime/#more-30940
Way-Hey, Muchas Gracias Clark! 🙂
Don’t worry the ‘The’ in my name isn’t me being pretentious, rather a Scottish football in-joke.
Vronsky will get it, but probably no-one else!:-)
Goodnight.
More on the SWP implosion;
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2013/mar/12/swp-rape-implosion-why-i-care
I’m no longer a moderator, but from when I was I remember that Jives and Nevermind were distinct contributors. I did quite a lot of sock-puppet hunting. Neither Jives nor Nevermind ever used multiple IDs. Nevermind did formerly comment under a different name, but made a clean change to his current ID.
Jives, “O’Neil” was Habbabkuk’s false ID (a parody of “Oneil”), not “O’Brien”. “O’Neil” posted a comment crafted to be offensive to Jews. Jives, you haven’t posted any of your humorous comments since Habbabkuk misrepresented one of them, and I miss them.
Habbabkuk is hypocritical. It posted that anti-Jewish comment, but also likes to ridicule people for criticising Zionism. On this thread it has complained about off-topic comments, but then started an off-topic debate about referenda. It complains about insults, but directs more personal insults at other contributors than anyone else. It hardly ever reveals anything of its own opinions, but posts a lot of criticism of others, which seems cowardly. And it has plainly stated that it wishes to annoy other contributors.
Recommendations: don’t fall to H’s level. And don’t fire back, as its major source of ammunition is through recycling.
Jives wrote, “Absolutely i do. I believe there’s at least 4 working here in
concert,and at least another 2 orbiting pretending to be the voice of neutral reason,ahem.No names need be mentioned.
Why not? Mention them, Jives, for Christ’s sake – why be so coy about it? Or is this the dump-and-run sort of commentary, of which you are so particularly fond? FGS, “man up” and tell us what you’re trying to say for once!
There such a lot of bickering going on here – leave it alone, you lot, and let’s get back to the serious/entertaining/informative stuff.
Good morning everyone!
I shall show forebearance and leave Jives’ comments unanswered (limiting myself to seconding Glenn’s comments at 02h51)
Feel obliged, though, to correct Clark on one of his points : I don’t think I ridicule Zionists per se, but I do ridicule those of you who see the hand of Zionism behind everything you disapprove of; this is part of my objection to the growth of conspiracy theories. And if I recall it correctly, my post as O’Neil was intended to be a humourous kick at someone who posted as Oniel and was venting stuff which I judged to be hasbara; I don’t remember it as being anti-Jewish.
Hope that clarifies.
BTW, speaking of conspiracy theories, I recall that, just after his death, there was some excited talk on this blog about Hugo Chavez having been “given” a cancer virus (or something like that, anyway). Which talk vanished as suddenly as it had appeared. Any updates on that “conspiracy”?
PS Ben Franklin – good points again, I understand what you’re saying.
*************
La vita è bella, life is good!
Ben Franklin. You say I do not debate. I agree but I have responded to you once or twice! I come here to be informed and to inform. I live alone and there is always a job to be done in the house or garden, plus two daily walks with my old dog. Yes the dog is female and getting on in years too! She cost me £38 yesterday for her annual vaccination. When I worked at a vets, the phials used to cost under £3 each to buy from the manufacturer so there is massive inflation in the veterinary world too, as elsewhere.
Our RI is twisting things again I see. I have said numerous times to him/her, either directly or indirectly, that I will not respond to the daily quota of barbs and insults. Sometimes, when they get too extreme and I am being called ‘a poison fanged viper’ or similar, I boil over and return the ammo.
This blog is certainly not as happy and as unified as it once was. That was the intention I am assuming.
BBC’s anti Iran element rumbled.
Iran foils ‘new sedition’ ploy hatched by BBC-affiliated network
http://www.presstv.com/detail/2013/03/11/293088/network/
Who said this five days ago?
“We know that all this will only work if we are
Open about what we do.
And if you’re not happy, tell us.
Seriously.
This is it.
We are changing.”
Or this?
“What’s been happening lately has made us
Look at the way we do things.
Made us realise that we need to do our bit
To change the way our food industry works.”
A. Tesco and today they find their meatloaf is actually horsemeat loaf.
Horsemeat scandal ‘changing shoppers’ habits’
The survey suggested that public trust in the food industry had declined
More than half of UK consumers have changed their shopping habits as a result of the horsemeat scandal, a consumer group survey suggests.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-21765737
~~~~
Off to see the sows! Surrey Wildlife Trust have put six sows on to a piece of woodland that is infested with bracken. They go for the roots ?rhizomes and it is amazing to see how much earth they have turned over with their snouts in a very short time. They are very friendly and inquisitive and are behind an electric fence.
Clark at 2.32 a.m. I never read certain comments except by mistake. The best thing to do when in your own mind you have discovered a troll is to ignore it. It does not matter whether it goes away or not. What matters is that it is not getting the attention it seeks. Eventually it will dies from within. There are at least 3 current contributors whose names I bypass to get at the real information. I would encourage everybody to do the same. These people are here to disrupt.
Hey hey, see some activity has been going on since i posted. Crab, thanks. Jives, you really do sound remarkably familiar. Mary, you respond all over the place – have been enjoying your posts more, as a result. Btw I share in the presumably general belief that kne-jerk snarky comments and guilt-by-association attacks are unnecessary and reductive (am quite capable of doing them myself of course).
Extraordinary stuff going on in the USA:
Judge approves use of ‘truth serum’ on accused Aurora shooter James Holmes
Legal experts question use of ‘narcoanalytic interview’ to settle question of Holmes’s legal insanity at time of theater shooting
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/mar/12/judge-approves-truth-serum-james-holmes
Manning: US Army like ‘child torturing ants with a magnifying glass’ (FULL LEAKED TESTIMONY)
http://rt.com/usa/manning-trial-recording-leak-177/
Defying the military’s ban on making recordings at Manning’s pre-trial tribunal at the military court at Fort Meade, the Freedom of the Press Foundation (FPF) has released Manning’s February account to the judge explaining why he exposed military secrets.
“We hope this recording will shed light on one of the most secret court trials in recent history, in which the government is putting on trial a concerned government employee whose only stated goal was to bring attention to what he viewed as serious governmental misconduct and criminal activity,” the FPF said in a statement.
Clark:”Recommendations: don’t fall to H’s level. And don’t fire back, as its major source of ammunition is through recycling.”
Good morning to All,
Just yesterday I referred this website to a young man studying politics as an undergraduate at the LSE. I told him that there was a pretty vibrant comments thread at this blog. Now i’m thinking what a mess! What kind of impression is he going to get of us here? We really need to take a good look at ourselves, i.e. those of us who are serious enough and capable of it.
Re the H-person, it is not at all the fact that he is annoying, but the proven fact that that is his mission AND he revels in it. I feel real compassion for those around him who have to suffer it in ‘real’ life, not a ‘virtual’ one.
Summary: I couldn’t agree more with Clark’s words above.
Enjoy the Spring!
Villager opines :
“Re the H-person, it is not at all the fact that he is annoying, but the proven fact that that is his mission AND he revels in it.”
Which proven fact would that be, Villager? Please refer. Thank you.
(you’re scratching the bottom of the barrel if you’re referring to my use of “La vita è bella” but if you are, please explain why that should annoy you so much)
re Trolls
Actually, the thought has occurred to me that there seem to be different ideas around as to what a troll is. So, in the interests of clarity (and perhaps to get some sense of your own mind-setand sense of judgment and proportion), could each of those contributors who have accused a minority of other contributors of being trolls please offer their definition of the term (in particular, John Goss, Nevermind, Villager, Mary, Jives and Clark. Contributions from others also welcome, of course).
No silly comments like “if it walks and quacks like a duck, it’s a duck”, please.
Thank you.
***********
La vita è bella, life is good!)
“Actually, the thought has occurred to me that there seem to be different ideas around as to what a troll is. So, in the interests of clarity (and perhaps to get some sense of your own mind-setand sense of judgment and proportion), could each of those contributors who have accused a minority of other contributors of being trolls please offer their definition of the term (in particular, John Goss, Nevermind, Villager, Mary, Jives and Clark. Contributions from others also welcome, of course).”
As one of those who hasn’t called anyone a Troll I will contribute.
A Troll is a control freak, one of those sad people who get satisfaction from the sense of superiority they feel from making other people do what they want. So they make posts like yours, not because they are genuinely interested but to solicit a response from as many people as possible.
British hypocrisy
“The Duke and Duchess of Cornwall were visiting the King Abdullah camp [Jordan], which is home to 1,500 Syrians who have fled the two-year conflict.”
“Prince Charles ‘heartbroken’ by plight of Syrian refugees”
“The prince said many of the children had been “traumatised by the horrors of what they’ve witnessed”.
“He also praised the “extraordinary generosity” of the Jordanian people and called for greater assistance.”
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-21766971
Jordan is a country that routinely uses torture against opponents.
As for the “extraordinary generosity” of the people:
According to a 2010 Pew Global Attitudes survey, 86% of Jordanians polled supported the death penalty for those who leave Islam; 58% supported whippings and cutting off of hands for theft and robbery; and 70% support stoning people who commit adultery.
Later in the week the Prince will be visiting Saudi Arabia which, as we know, is supplying weapons to terrorist groups in Syria who are exacerbating the refugee problem.
Also:
“Seven men have been executed in Saudi Arabia, officials say, despite appeals by UN experts and human rights groups.”
“On Tuesday, a group of UN independent experts urged the Saudi authorities not to proceed with the executions.”
“They expressed concern at allegations that the charges against [the men] were fabricated and that they were convicted following unfair trials.”
“The special rapporteur on torture, Juan Mendez, added: “Also of grave concern, are allegations that the seven individuals were subjected to torture and other ill-treatment in detention and were forced to sign confessions.”
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-21767667
What wonderful company Prince Charles and Camilla keep.