The Hunt for Big Businessmen in Uzbekistan

Was it a way to clean up the endemic corruption in the republic or a new method of money extortion?

In March 2010, many of the leading businessmen in Uzbekistan were hunted and some of them imprisoned. The reasons for imprisonment and search arrests were not clearly explained by the law enforcement. Local media and official sources reported that some of them are being investigated for financial crimes ranging from tax evasion to corruption.

This campaign started with the detention of the head of Tashkent’s largest wholesale market ‘Karavan’, Dmitry Lim, and his 50 high-ranking employees.

According to RFE/RL, also detained are Batyr Rakhimov, owner of 'Kapital Bank', a tungsten deposit in Jizzah Region and Tashkent’s ‘Pahtakor’ football club. His brother Bakhtiyor Rakhimov is also wanted but reportedly fled the country. Also, 'Alp Jamol-Bank' owner, Mukhiddin Asomiddinov, and 'Kyzylkumtcement' factory director, Rajabbai Jumanazarov, have fled the country.

The chairman of the ‘Zeromax’ company, Mirodil Jalalov, who worked with the president’s daughter Gulnara Karimova, is rumored to have been detained or to have fled the country.

According to Uznews.net, this campaign started after President Islam Karimov’s speech given in December 2009 in which he stated that Uzbekistan was not a country of rich tycoons.

However, after a while, Batyr Rakhimov was released on bail which confirmed some observers’ suggestions that the move against businessmen was a state-sponsored racket.

Rumors also suggested that this campaign was prompted by the desire of authorities to bridge gaps in the budget and that detained Batyr Rahimov paid in-between $100,000 to $1 million for his release on bail. This may mean that many other wealthy detainees will also pay for their releases soon.