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             Tajikistan Vote Allows President to Rule Indefinitely

   by Associated Press

   People in the Central Asian nation of Tajikistan have voted
   overwhelmingly to approve changes to the Constitution allowing the
   authoritarian president to rule indefinitely.

   Elections officials said Monday that an initial count showed 94.5
   percent of voters had supported amendments that included a provision to
   scrap presidential term limits.

   The referendum was held with only cursory international scrutiny. No
   election in Tajikistan has ever been deemed free and fair by the most
   thorough monitoring organization.

   Sunday's referendum came amid an intense onslaught against fundamental
   political freedoms in the former Soviet state. Almost the entire
   leadership of the most popular opposition party has been tried over an
   alleged attempted coup and they are awaiting lengthy jail sentences.

   Emomali Rakhmon, a 63-year-old former collective farm boss, has ruled
   Tajikistan since 1992.
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   [1]http://www.voanews.com/content/ap-tajikistan-vote-allows-president-t
   o-rule-indefinitely/3341815.html

References

   1. http://www.voanews.com/content/ap-tajikistan-vote-allows-president-to-rule-indefinitely/3341815.html