Transition in Central Asia and Human Security on April 22-24, 2002
Round Table on Transition and Human Security in Central Asia
Ashgabad, Turkmenistan, 22-24 April 2002
Rapporteur's Summary for the Commission on Human Security
 The Commission on Human Security (CHS) held a regional consultation co-hosted by the Turkmen Institute of Democracy and Human Rights and the UNDP Regional Bureau for Europe and the CIS for the five countries of Central Asia: Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. The format of a Round-Table allowed for a dynamic discussion among participants from the region as well as representatives of the numerous UN and multilateral agencies engaged in the region.
Purpose of the Meeting
Central Asia was chosen as an area of study by the Commission as it presents a host of internal and external issues that deserve to be examined from the human security perspective: Perplexities of ten years of independence, transition to market economy and to democratic political systems, inter-state conflicts, and a backdrop of intense geopolitical changes have had deeply felt impacts on the political, economic, social and cultural aspects of people's lives. The challenge for the region is to regain the relatively high human development indicators, overcome the newly emerging poverty and unemployment, and increase the capacity of institutions, including civil society, to maintain social cohesion and provide human security.
The purpose of the meeting was a two-way dialogue between representatives of the region and members of the Commission in order to:
- familiarize participants with the human security paradigm, which, if not new, can be considered as a new approach to old problems,
- identify issues related to new and old insecurities as they have appeared in the region which are of common concern to all, as well as the differences among the five countries of the region,
- explore the inter-relationship between these insecurities,
- propose guidance for the formulation of strategies and policy proposals that could influence action at the international level, and which could be followed-up regionally and nationally.
- form partnerships for follow-up.
Ultimately, the purpose of the workshop was to explore how the concept of human security, while being conceptually and operationally further defined at the global level, is relevant to regional and national policy dialogues. As summarized by Commissioner Surin Pitsuwan, the round-table was successful in allowing participants, representatives of Governments, NGOs, Statistical Agencies and research institutions to internalize the language of human security, and in awakening the interest of representatives of UNDP, UNHCR, UNDCCP, UNICEF, Asian Development Bank (ADB), OSCE, World Bank, IMF, IOM and the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) in exploring joint follow-up activities. A background paper, prepared by Kathleen Collins, Assistant Professor of Political Science and Central Asian Studies, University of Notre Dame, USA, was prepared for the meeting and formed the basis of discussions. The paper provided key questions on identity and nation-building, economic, social and political dimensions of human security as they apply to the region, and potential strategies.
The Concept and its Relevance to the Region
 The concept of Human Security was discussed, for the purpose of this round-table, in its broad and all-inclusive aspects. As Commissioner Sadako Ogata pointed out in the opening session, the concept brings about a shift of attention from the state-centered to the people-centered approach to security and focuses on potentially at-risk people. People is to be understood not only as individuals but also as communities. Manifestations of human insecurity could range from the slow degradation of standards of living to open conflicts. The challenge is to bridge the existing gap between humanitarian and development assistance, and between securing borders to responding to concerns of people within them. The concept pitches new threats such as poverty, environmental degradation and inequality against old ones, such as territorial integrity of the state. It is both a pre-condition and a by-product of peace and human development.
UNDP/RBE C Director, Mr. Kalman Mizsei, recalled the definition of Human Security from the Human Development Report of 1994, which argued that people should be able to exercise choices safely and freely, while being fairly confident that the opportunities acquired today will not be taken away from them tomorrow. The 1994 Report outlined the two main aspects of human security: 1) safety from such chronic threats as hunger, disease and repression, and 2) protection from sudden and hurtful disruptions in the patterns of daily life, whether in homes, in jobs or communities. Human security may result from sudden abrupt changes, or from changes that have been neglected, from natural causes or from bad management and poor policies.
Participants of the Round-Table agreed that the challenge is not only to further conceptualize human security globally, but also to map out its operational modalities and to make it relevant to national and regional situations. Although each country may have a different vision and different means to achieve it, some of the principles of human security, as they apply to Central Asia, were discussed as follows:
- Human security does not replace but complements and reinforces state security.
- Human security addresses the dual goal of freedom from want (which in the context of Central Asia comes from the sudden loss of guarantees of access to jobs, healthcare, social welfare, education, etc,) and freedom from fear (stemming from violations of human rights, extremism, spread of conflicts, displacement, etc.)
- Addressing human security requires a two-pronged approach: Protection (including institutional set-up, responding adequately to early warning signs, providing for basic needs, protecting people in conflict situations, off-setting consequences of insecurity threats when such occur, etc) and Empowerment (which requires development assistance, guarantees of freedom, community building, participation and inclusion in policies, etc.)
- Human security is a relevant approach to the unfinished dual agenda in Central Asia: Transition to a democratic political system and to an efficient and fair market economy, without further impoverishment of people or depriving them of equality and access to quality education, healthcare and participation in political processes.
- For Central Asia, the relationship between human security, human development, human rights and conflict prevention should be further explored, causes and consequences further delineated, and threats classified and prioritized for holistic strategies.
- Strategies for addressing human security need to be balanced between short and long term goals, be integrated, multi-sectoral and multi-level, and be relevant in two stages: Avoiding risks and off-setting consequences of sudden or chronic insecurities.
Relationship between Conflict and Development
The relationships between conflict, poverty and development were explored by Mrs. Ogata, commissioner Brahimi and participants from the region, especially in light of the situation in Afghanistan. Although there has been no correlation proven between how poverty affects conflict, what is clear is the relationship between lack of development and lack of security. Conflict exasperates human insecurities, while insecurities in the first place can lead to disintegration and violence. As Mr. Brahimi pointed out, the Afghanistan case points to a dialectical relationship: peace makes development possible, but development must also start now in order to reinforce and consolidate peace. As many participants argued, if people are busy and cared for, they would not seek out conflict. Poverty, on the other hand, as experienced in pockets of Central Asia such as the Ferghana Valley, can lead to situations where people don't have anything to lose, therefore can be easily manipulated. For these people, conflict creates an opportunity to participate in the distribution of power, means of production, assets, etc. Participants noted that poverty is one of the most serious and newest insecurities in the region which could potentially create instability for other regions if it leads to mass migration or the spread of crime or extremism, etc. Sudden and new poverty, especially leading to or resulting from inequality and injustice, has serious human security implications nationally and regionally.
The eruption of violent conflict does not only affect internal stability but also that of other countries of the region (manifested through the spread of extremism) leading to border controls, and the displacement of people and refugees resulting from the Tajik Civil War (to Kyrgyzstan, Afghanistan) and from the more recent Afghan crisis (to Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan). Conflicts within Central Asia in the past decade have come in a variety of shapes: from border trouble over land and water, to Islamic-military cross-border insurgencies, to a full-fledged civil war where vacuum at the top has allowed for a variety of new political entities vying for power. The common denominator, however, has been failed conflict prevention and a difficult transition to national sovereignty, sustainable development and security after the break-up of the Soviet Union.
The transition process in Central Asia has had a high human cost not only as a result of the loss of lives through violence, but especially given large scale development-related problems: high levels of morbidity, poverty, income and wealth inequalities, rising gender discrimination, educational decline, unemployment, corruption etc. Participants stressed however that Central Asia should not continue to be talked about in the context of crisis and conflict only, as it has not been a region in crisis. Nor should it been seen only in the context of under-development and poverty. These relationships need to be further explored and preventive measurements enforced, as conflict as well as poverty are both looming threats and dangers that need to be averted in the region.
PART I: Types of Threats
Types of Insecurities in Central Asia: Internal and External
 Round-table participants discussed a large variety of internal and external human insecurities in Central Asia. In order to identify linkages which could then facilitate addressing causes and consequences, the many threats are organized in terms of three categories: 1) Chronic threats which were inherited from the past, 2) new insecurities that have appeared during the transition period, and 3) threats that have resulted from geo-political changes in the region and in the world. Ultimately, all of these have one commonality: They are manifestations of difficulties in the management of new processes.
1) Inherited human insecurities
These types of insecurities are related to what the countries of Central Asia inherited from their history, a combination of spatial distribution, the nature of the rural and traditional societies and the transformation processes which the republics underwent as part of the Soviet Union. These include:
Nation-state formation: Nation-state processes are a result of the demarcation of the borders in the 1930s, the settlement of Russians in the region, and the uneven distributions of ethnic groups to different countries which affect choices for language and education policies of today. Current efforts for integration into regional and global processes are also hampered by the history of isolation of the region.
- Geography: Most of the countries of Central Asia are landlocked. The proximity of an Afghanistan in crisis has had an impact on national and regional security for the past decades.
- Infrastructure: As part of the Soviet Union, Central Asian countries did not have access to global markets and choices in technologies. Planned economy resulted in an uneven distribution of processing plants and factories across the territory of the Union, leading to economic dependencies.
- Ecology and the environment: Ecological problems result from natural causes as well as from policy choices. The region is earthquake prone and has undergone a number of environment catastrophes such as drought. Environmental insecurities of today are also the result of poor management of water resources (which resulted in the drying up of the Aral Sea and to the need for effective trans-border negotiations), waste management, including of toxic and biological waste, radio-activity and pollution from uranium and aluminum plants in the region, as well as ineffective agriculture policies which led to mono-culture, desertification and health pollution from the overuse of pesticides.
- Traditional society: Traditional mentality affects the position of religion vis-a-vis power and authority, as well as the roles that women play in decision making in households and communities. With the abolition of quotas and political measures, gender inequality has been challenged by traditional behavior, resulting in under-representation in politics, uneven distribution of resources and inequalities in income rates, discrimination in the labor market, etc. Former equalizing measures did not lead to true empowerment.
- Reliance on an all-providing system: As the Soviet state guaranteed many of the basic needs of people (access to free education and healthcare, social welfare, job security, etc), individuals have come to rely and depend on the state and have not cultivated their sense of personal initiatives and incentives. Human security continues to be seen through the responsibility of top-down measures, instead of bottom-up solutions.
2) Human Insecurities Acquired during the Transition Period
The past decade of transition in Central Asia has been marked by a sharp increase in a variety of human insecurities, as a direct result of 1) sudden and multi-dimensional structural changes in society, the economy and the political system, 2) ill-conceived policies or reactions to these, and 3) the changing nature of the roles and responsibilities of the state. Transition offered an opportunity of change, but was also seen as a time of crisis for many individuals and households. Although the causes of these insecurities need to be further analyzed, their manifestations are the following, with varying degrees between the different countries:
- Economic insecurity experienced at the individual level through unemployment, underemployment and chronic unemployment, wage gaps and arrears, high inflation, and drastic loss of savings. At the state level, it has been experienced through economic crimes, gray and black economy which does not replenish the capacity of the state, and corruption.
- Poverty: Cuts on social programs have led to increasing pressure on families and created a growing gap between the rich and the poor, men and women, rural and urban areas, and among minorities. The polarization of income and the withdrawal of social safety nets in the region have led first and foremost to the expansion and aggravation of poverty and the sudden drops of standards of living.
- Decline in levels of human resource development. These were especially related to declines in:
- Education: The education system suffered both in terms of access and quality: infrastructure breakdown; introduction of fees hampering on equitable access; acute shortage, migration, under-qualification and under-payment of teachers; decline in expenditures to the sector as a whole; the need to change textbooks and curriculum; falling prestige of higher education etc. These have led to drastic declines from former levels of universal adult education. Ultimately, as one participant noted, the countries are "advocating illiteracy and semi-literacy."
- Healthcare: Similarly, the health care system has suffered from declines in access, quality, expenditures, poor and outdated technologies, lack of adequate medicine, etc. One of the most worrying manifestations is the revival of old diseases, such as tuberculosis, as well as the spread of new ones, such as STDs and HIV/AIDs. Participants noted their worries that although absolute numbers of people infected with HIV/AIDs may be low in the region for now, this may be the beginnings of an epidemy which can be spread from one country to the other, and requires urgent prevention and education.
- Social welfare: The withdrawal of the welfare state and budgetary constraints have called for a reexamination of the social welfare system. While the state is looking into alternative modalities for incentives and more efficient targeting systems, the need to ensure equity and adequate protection of an increasingly vulnerable variety of population remains high on the policy agenda.
- Political changes and democratization: Participants argued that an absolute value for democracy cannot be imposed on the region, and that each country is adapting to the changing processes of political liberalization and democratization at its own pace. Countries are faced with finding the right balance between democratic pluralism, sharing of power with political parties and the regions, maintaining stability and guaranteeing rights and freedoms for the population. The speed, quality and fairness of political reforms are being tested through trial and error, and are plagued by difficulties such as lack of transparency and corruption and lack of capacity to impose and implement the rule of law. The participation of a vocal and capable civil society, including mass media and NGOs is also providing new opportunities but is a slow process. On the other hand, extremism may be growing as a reaction to the vacuum left after socialist ideology and as a response to repression and violations of human rights in the name of stability.
- Changing social structures: Participants discussed at length the problem of gender and the youth in the region.
- Gender: Economic crisis among households has forced women to seek income generating opportunities, which, although positive, have often been in informal and unregulated, and hence un-empowering markets. Forced employment of women has also resulted from lack of employment among men. Although household survival has been on the shoulders of women, rights and access to land, assets and property have been eroded by lack of capacity to implement legislation or government commitments. Although anti-discriminatory legislation has been the norm in all the countries, understanding these rights requires mobilization by civil society. Widows, divorcées, mothers of many children without support, and female heads of households have suffered the most.
- Young people: Changing roles and structures of the family, lack of education and job opportunities and general disillusionment among the youth are manifested through drug abuse, migration and emigration, crime and prostitution.
- Drugs: Central Asia as a transit route has led to drug consumption and the organization of mafia groups (narco-mafia). Drug abuse, as a social phenomenon with economic connotations, is a recent and young problem in Central Asia, and is a result of both supply from Afghanistan as well as demand from urban youth. The drug problem in the region has also serious social and health consequences, given the distribution of cheap and impure heroin in local markets and the spread of HIV/AIDs. Participants noted that the problem is not only a centralized one, and should involved civil society as a whole, including the media and institutions at the local level.
- Crime: Rising crime in the region has also been manifested through violence in households, mafia structures, criminality in business and politics, and trafficking of goods and people.
- Globalization: Finally, globalization has introduced new opportunities from integration into world markets, access to new technologies and population mobility, but has also led to loss of competitiveness, migration, brain drain and spread of diseases. Eased flows of goods, people, ideas, and capital, can create new prosperities as well as vulnerabilities, requiring mechanisms to protect the interest of the individuals while ensuring that globalization will not bring more harm to the already frail systems of economic and social welfare.
3) Human Insecurities as a Result of Changing Regional Contexts
 These types of threats were identified as a result of changing dynamics within Central Asia and from conflicts from outside the region, and call for a common regional platform to ensure regional stability.
Inter-Regional conflicts and Threats:
- Fall-out from open conflicts: Although the 1992 Civil War in Tajikistan has been successfully regulated with the implementation of the Peace Accords, the creation of a national reconciliation government, disarmament and return of refugees, the war, fueled by instability in neighboring Afghanistan, created a number of fears for countries in the region. These were fears or reactions to fears of :
- escalation of instability in other countries, leading to the securing of border areas, establishment of visa regimes, tightening of control on opposition movements, mining of borders and resulting disputes, etc,
- large scale displacement of populations, especially for purposes of labor migration as well as refugees fleeing from conflict areas,
- armed insurgencies and threats of terrorism and extremism, which, fueled by instability and ammunitions from Afghanistan, became a network of terrorists that threatened Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan, and, finally,
- destabilization of trade and economic security for markets in the region.
- Poor management of common resources: The need for improved management of common resources, especially of water, was greatly disputed among the participants. The problems lay in disputes over the sharing of water among some countries (Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan), and the shortage of it and its seasonal needs in others (Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan). Disputes over water can be explosive in the region and require regional cooperation. Participants also discussed how other natural assets available in the region, such as gas and oil, also need to be seen as regional assets which should contribute to the well-being of the population of the region as a whole.
Extra-Regional Conflicts and Threats:
 These threats come from two sources: Instability in Afghanistan as well as the changing global context, and demonstrated once again the need for regional stability to ensure human security.
- Afghanistan: Commissioner Brahimi, Special Representative of the Secretary General in Afghanistan, characterized the implications of decades of conflict in neighboring Afghanistan as having had both an "outside-inside" influence as well as an "inside-outside" ones. Interference from far and near countries fueled the conflict with arms, ammunitions and support, while the conflict continues to have spill-over impacts on the region, especially for the countries of Central Asia, which were the first to call for a political resolution of the problem. Weak and failed states, instability and unpredictability in Afghanistan have had direct implications not only for Tajikistan which shares more than 500 kilometers of border, but also for all the countries of the region. Instability has led to the a) spread of fears about extremism through transparent and uncontrolled borders, b) proliferation of arms, c) spread of drugs both in transit and for consumption, d) large-scale refugee flows with additional stress on host communities and countries, e) the militarization of the region, and f) creation of networks of mafia structures and organized traffics of arms and drugs.
- Global context: In the changing context of the global war against terrorism, participants also noted dangerous repercussions for Central Asia and the need for the protection of individual interests within the interests of global and regional actors. These were related to: a) a global context where freedoms are increasingly targeted in the name of security, b) an update on the "great game" in the region, this time involving a larger number of actors, far and near, each with different roles and different interests and c) fears from an eventual targeting of Iran or Iraq, and talks of Axis of Evil which create hysteria in the region.
PART II: Addressing Human Security: An Integrated Approach
Levels of Human Security, Roles and Responsibilities
Participants argued that although each country is responsible for dealing with the existing variety of threats identified above, since regional security ultimately affects everyone, a common platform with roles and responsibilities of leading actors needs to be identified.
Vertical: Human security is relevant in five levels simultaneously: These are: insecurities at the level of the: a) Individual, b) Community, c) National, d) Regional and e) Global. Each level is where the problems lay, but also, each level is where the solution can also be found. Failure to do so encourages risks to accumulate and affect the next level. Lack of empowerment at the individual level, for example, does not allow participation in community decision-making. National policies cannot be properly designed or implemented if they do not involve the community. National insecurities can spread into neighboring regions, and, ultimately, the global agenda is affected if regions and nations are in turmoil.
Horizontally: Given that human security components are inter-related and mutually connected, failure to address them has multiplication effects on other sectors. Poor water management can lead to poverty, which can then lead to inequitable distribution of resources, migration, spread of diseases, etc. Poverty can be transmitted inter-generationally. Migration and displacement of people are indicators of human insecurity in the country of origin and create risks to the human security of the host country.
Hence, dealing with each level requires recognition, capacities and resources for solving problems at the level they occur. The principle behind addressing human security is inclusion, participation and empowerment at all levels. Ultimately, human security is the responsibility of all:
- Individuals, communities and civil societies to know and advocate for their rights.
- National governments and the states to have a strategic vision, to prioritize actions to protect and empower citizens, and to cultivate partnerships among civil society.
- Regional bodies to regulate conflicts and provide a framework of mutual cooperation, regional economic and political integration and a common platform.
- The international community to provide technical, financial and policy support, and, especially, to coordinate its activities for more effective support.
- The international system to ensure a stable and empowering global environment.
Types of Solutions
Participants argued that addressing human security issues requires a long-term vision, holistic, multidisciplinary approaches and cooperation among a variety of actors. An agenda must be multi-sectoral with an understanding of the interconnectivity between various insecurities. For Central Asia, the approach should be multi-dimensional and address potential risks from the treats outlined above, and capacities to off-set them when risks occur. They should be sustainable and proactive and avoid further degradation of standards of living and human development. Ultimately, they will have to do with an efficient management of new processes. Participants argued that the solutions to human security problems require the following:
- Identification of the causes and consequences of human insecurities at every level and awareness building through dialogues
- Recognition of human insecurities as potential threats and political commitment for a strategic vision on behalf of the states
- Collection and analysis of qualitative and quantitative data around tangible definitions of human security components in order to generate information and knowledge, measure, compare and monitor, as well as advocate for policy changes. Data needs to combine statistics with perception studies, and be broken down according to gender, urban/rural, and sub-national.
- Policy choices that balance between short term needs and long term strategic ones. Adoption of preventive and proactive policies which avoid negative consequences, and holistic approaches with coordination among sectors as well as on issues common to all the region.
- Partnership between the different community/national/regional levels, including sharing of responsibilities on the management of common goods and the engagement of international organization for support.
- Proper financing through prioritization and proper budgeting, and efficient collection of revenues. As one participant noted, human security in the region would go a long way if expenditures towards the reinforcement of the militaries and mining of borders would be reallocated to human development.
- Coordination of extra-regional and global efforts to create environments that guarantee security and stability. This point is especially relevant to the situation in Afghanistan, which calls for coordination of efforts on both sides of the border in order to stop the smuggling of weapons, drugs and people, as well as coordination with Russia for labor migration issues.
On Growth processes:
For economic processes, participants argued for inclusive growth policies that balance equity with efficiency, concentrate on redistribution, employment generation and poverty eradication, and are based on human and social capital as opposed to relying on extraction of natural resources which can create exclusive growth . Pro-poor policies should emphasize agriculture development where most people work, and industrial development for long term sustainability. These should concentrate on employment, land reforms, technological advancement, emphasis on skills building, and support to private initiatives.
On Democratization Processes
Participants argued that while democracy is good for society and for human security, it is a process rather than a prescriptive model, and should be based on principles of participation, empowerment and equity. Political processes need to accommodate the universality of human rights and democracy with socio-political national contexts and local traditions and culture. Balance needs to be sought between the regulatory role of the state to ensure stability, freedom, human rights and between pluralism and sharing of power with political parties and local authorities Implementation of human security strategies also requires the strengthening of the judiciary, the enactment of legislative norms that are not declarative in character but provide protective mechanisms, and the strengthening of civic organizations' capacities for mobilization purposes. Central Asian countries also have a number of traditional bodies, such as the Council of Elders in Turkmenistan and the Mahalla system in Uzbekistan, which should be further explored for participatory and pluralistic political processes and distributive roles in support of the state. Furthermore, Islam as a religion and its institutions can be cultivated as a partner for the perpetuation of peaceful dialogue on human security. As one participant noted, in the same way that the economy can be enhanced by FDI, democracy can be raised by further investments in culture, mentality and social reforms.
On regional integration
Threats to human security have interlinkages and consequences in Central Asia, requiring first and foremost a regional approach to human security. Participants agreed that regional cooperation is the main solution for solving both national and common problems, especially since not one government can single handedly provide what it could before, and since international focus may be on Central Asia today, but will move on eventually. As one participant noted, "we have to be a society where people are not in need of the most basic needs: regional security, integration and regional cooperation are the only solutions." Regional integration, however, requires mutual trust and cooperation and can start with simple projects that bring people together, and lead to mutual cooperation on larger issues like water and gas.
PART III: Concrete proposals made
Participants made the following concrete proposals:
- A network of researchers and representatives from governments and civil societies interested in human security can be formed in each country in order to further conduct research and identify the causes and consequences of human security, make policy recommendations and advocate for human security approaches.
- Monitoring and evaluation tools and methodologies on human security need to be further developed and implemented. These should also include the use of new information technologies. The collection of standardized data on human security need to be systematized and coordinated among the countries of the region and be integrated into the next round of censuses.
- Country and regional reports, such as National Human Development Reports, can provide further definitions, data, long term analysis and policy recommendations on human security issues.
- Advocacy: Recommendations from this Round-Table need to be lobbied and advocated among the governments and civil societies and shared with the media, etc. National workshops should be organized in each country to disseminate and further discuss the human security approach. Regional meetings should be organized on common concerns, such as the issue of water, HIV/AIDs, and migration.
- Political Commitment: Governments could be encouraged to devise long term and multi-sectoral human security strategies, and involve various actors in the design and implementation The high level Ministerial Human Security Network, presently chaired by the Government of Childe and to be chaired by the Government of Austria next year, could consider putting human security high on the agenda of the governments.
- UN and multi-lateral Organizations working in the region can foster dialogue and protection and create a platform for cooperation among regional and international actors. UN and multi-laterals also need to better coordinate their own efforts in the region and with neighboring countries. The coordination of humanitarian, development and political mandates would allow for an integrated human security approach in the region.
- Support to Afghanistan: Resources in Central Asia should be tapped for helping the stabilization and reconstruction of Afghanistan, whether by channeling aid and support through the region, providing skills, know-how and expertise on such subjects as law enforcement and small medium size enterprise development, or by providing concrete supplies such as energy/electricity.
 Prepared by:
Shahrbanou Tadjbakhsh
Policy Advisor, NHDR Unit
Human Development Report Office, UNDP
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