Tajiks vote on allowing president to rule for life

Polls closed in ex-Soviet Tajikistan on Sunday in a referendum on constitutional changes almost certain to strengthen the hold of long-time President Emomali Rahmon and his family over the Central Asian state. The country’s electoral commission, which declared the vote valid, said some 88.3 percent of the roughly 4.3 million eligible voters had cast ballots […]

Polls closed in ex-Soviet Tajikistan on Sunday in a referendum on constitutional changes almost certain to strengthen the hold of long-time President Emomali Rahmon and his family over the Central Asian state.
The country’s electoral commission, which declared the vote valid, said some 88.3 percent of the roughly 4.3 million eligible voters had cast ballots by 1300 GMT.
The 63-year-old leader has ruled Tajikistan for nearly a quarter of a century, demonstrating what critics say is an increased disregard for religious freedoms, civil society and political pluralism in recent years. Many residents of the Tajik capital appeared enthusiastic in their support for Rahmon, who led the country out of a five-year civil war that began in 1992, less than a year after independence.