Essay on Uzbekistan free essay sample

Uzbekistan is a country located in the northwest of the region known as the Middle East. It shares borders with the following countries: Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Afghanistan. It is approx. 173,000 sq. mi, or roughly the size of California. It has a pop. of about 30 million people. From 1924 to 1991, it was ruled by the Soviets. The vast majority of people fall into the ethnic group Uzbek, and are Sunni Muslim, but about 20% of the population is classified as: Russian, Tajik, Kazakh, Karakalpak, Tartar, and other. However, the most prominent culture is Uzbek, and they live very interesting lives. In their free time, Uzbek citizens enjoy many activities, such as biking and hiking in the countries mountainous regions, visiting the Chatkalsky Reserve, 60 miles from the capital Tashkent, go to the National Puppet Theatre in Bukhara, where they use puppets to act out various folk tales. As for sports, Uzbeks enjoy wrestling, such as kurash, and upright form developed in uzbekistan, horse-back riding, hiking in the mountainous southern region, caving in the 4,600 ft. deep Boi-Bulok, and 3,200 ft. deep Kievskaya. Also one can ski on the mountains of Tashkent. This is only a few of the things Uzbeks do for fun. For holidays, Uzbeks celebrate various Sunni Muslim holidays, as well as New Year’s Day (Jan. 1st), Women’s Day (March 8th), a popular holiday from the soviets, Navrus (March 21st), originally a zoroastrian holiday, which has lost its religious significance, but is still celebrated with Sumaliak soup, made from milk and grains, Victory Day (May 9th), a celebration of the defeat of the Nazis in 1945, and Independence day (September 1st), celebrated their independence from the USSR. When Uzbeks celebrated, the often visit friends and family to eat large meals and drink large amounts of vodka. Also, they have parades centered in the cities and towns. The government marks both Independence Day and Navrus with massive oudoor jamborees in the capital, Tashkent, and broadcast them on TV. When Uzbeks regularly eat, they eat meals centered on bread, specifically the traditional flat and round bread, called tandir non, which is always torn by hand, never placed upside-down, and never thrown away. Meals begin with small amounts of nuts and raisins, then soups, salads, and meat dishes, followed at last by palov, a dish made of rice and meat. Other dishes that are eaten, but not considered strictly Uzbek, are monti which are basically lamb dumplings with onions and pumpkin. Uzbeks usually eat mutton, as even the non-religious tend to stay away from pork. Due to the climate, Uzbeks also enjoy fruits and vegetables. They also eat dairy products like katyk, and liquid yogurt, and suzma similar to cottage cheese. Green tea is drunk throughout the day. Meals are usually eaten on the floor, of on a low table. They always eat of a dusterhon, a traditional Uzbek tablecloth. They sit on carpets, padded quills, chairs, and beds, but never on pillows. Men usually sit cross-legged, and women with their legs to one side. The dusterhon is to remain clean at all time. The choyhona, or teahouse, is the focal point of the neighborhoods men. It is always shaded, and if possible located near a stream. The Karakalpaks national dish is besbarmak, boiled mutton, beef, or horse served over a plate of broad noodles and accompanied by the reduced broth. Russians have brought many of their foods, such as pelmeni, boiled meat dumplings. The media is Uzbekistan, although has been ‘uncensored† since 2002, is still heavily restricted by the government. There is only 50,000 newspaper readers. The only national news agency, is state-controlled. In early 2006, a new media law further restricted journalism. The information flow from Uzbekistan is scared with only a few sources of info having day to day coverage, one such source is http://uznews. net, which has operated since 2006. Journalism is regarded as dangerous in Uzbekistan, with the country having the highest number of imprisoned journalist in the region. In Uzbekistan, eleven years of primary and secondary education are obligatory, starting at age seven. This requirement includes four years of primary school and two cycles of secondary school, lasting five and two years, respectively. The rate of attendance in those grades is high, although the figure is significantly lower in rural areas than in urban centers. The official literacy rate is 99 percent. However, in the post-Soviet era educational standards have fallen. Funding and training have not been sufficient to effectively educate the expanding younger cohorts of the population. Between 1992 and 2004, government spending on education dropped from 12 percent to 6.3 percent of gross domestic product. In 2006 education’s share of the budget increased to 8. 1 percent. Lack of budgetary support has been more noticeable at the primary and secondary levels, as the government has continued to subsidize university students. However, bribes often are necessary to ensure success and advancement in universities. Between 1992 and 2001, university attendance dropped from 19 percent of the college-age population to 6. 4 percent. The three largest of Uzbekistan’s 63 institutions of higher learning are in Nukus, Samarkand, and Tashkent. All are state-funded. Private schools have been forbidden since the establishment of Islamic fundamentalist (Wahhabi) schools in the early 1990s brought a government crackdown. However, in 1999 the government-supported Taskhent Islamic University was founded for the teaching of Islam. Most opportunities from people in Uzbekistan lie within the countries cotton industry, the backbone of Uzbekistan, which creates about 85% of the country’s GDP. Agricultural machinery, especially for cotton, is produced in the Tashkent region. Oil refineries produce about 173,000 barrels a day. The Korean car maker Daewoo invested $650 million in a joint venture, UzDaewoo, at a plant in Andijan, which has a capacity of 200,000 cars. However, in 1999 the plant produced just 58,000 cars, and it produced far less in 2000, chiefly for the domestic market. With Daewoos bankruptcy in November 2000, the future of the plant is uncertain at best. Uzbekistans main trading partners are Russia, South Korea, Germany, the United States, Turkey, and Kazakhstan. Before independence, imports were mainly equipment, consumer goods, and foods. Since independence, Uzbekistan has managed to stop imports of oil from Kazakhstan and has also lowered food imports by reseeding some cotton fields with grain. Uzbekistan is the worlds third-largest cotton exporter. Unfortunately, the cotton industry has cause environmental problems. The largest is the shrinking of the Aral Sea. Uzbekistan exported about $3 billion (U. S. ), primarily in cotton, gold, textiles, metals, oil, and natural gas, in 1999. Its main markets are Russia, Switzerland, Britain, Belgium, Kazakhstan, and Tajikistan. According to government statistics, 44 percent of workers are in agriculture and forestry; 20 percent in industry; 36 percent in the service sector. Five percent unemployed, and 10 percent are underemployed. Many rural jobless, however, may be considered agricultural workers. A particular feature of the Uzbekistan labor system is the requirement of school and university students, soldiers, and workers to help in the cotton harvest. They go en masse to the fields for several days to hand-pick cotton. Many Uzbeks, particularly men, work in other parts of the former Soviet Union. Bazaars from Kazakhstan to Russia are full of Uzbek vendors, who command higher prices for their produce, the farther north they travel. Others work in construction or other seasonal labor to send hard currency home. About 2 percent of the workforce is of pension age and 1 percent is under sixteen. That concludes this report on the Republic of Uzbekistan. As one can see, the country is very diverse and deferment from many of the countries of the west, that’s to its unique blend of Mongol, Soviet, and Muslim influence, and its people continue to uphold the many traditions that they’ve gained over the centuries.