The leader of the Hizb-ut-Tahrir extremist party activists detained in Moscow, Alisher Musaev, a Kyrgyz Republic citizen, appears in no files of KR National Security Service. He has not ever been in sight of the local Law Enforcement System, either. The Kyrgyz NSS started a total inspection of passport issuing departments around the country. Alisher Musaev is supposed to be a native of South Kyrgyzstan. National Security Service officials claim that gathering information on the detained religious leader is complicated given the deep conspiracy of Hizb-ut-Tahrir members. Nevertheless, NSS chiefs state they will get the information they need.

The Hizb-ut-Tahrir party is what Kyrgyz official authorities lately worry most about. Media regularly informs about arrests of religious fanatics who post propaganda leaflets in public places in the southern Osh and Jalal-Abad regions. Radicals urge local people to join the movement for the creation of an Islamic caliphate in Central Asia, to hold antigovernment demonstrations and war against the Christian world.

This year, representatives of Hizb-ut-Tahrir sharply gathered speed as a result of constitutional reforms and the military operations in Iraq. As National Security Service City Department chief Kolbay Musaev says, Hizb-ut-Tahrir propaganda became more specific and purposeful, and now leaflets distributed by party members contain systematic criticism against the secular principles of the state regime. Some of them condemn America and Britain, calling them western aggressors, while other proclamations concern the past referendum on the new, progressive Kyrgyz Constitution. These state that “There may be no Constitution, but Qur’an.”

Recently, Hizb-ut-Tahrir activists appeared in Bishkek. In April, city police detained three members of the illegal party, all natives from southern Kyrgyzstan, for distributing leaflets with anti-constitutional contents in metropolis. Local analysts argue that the religious fanatics’ efficiency in the distribution of their print materials confirms the fact that Hizb-ut-Tahrir has access to modern technology and good financial resources.

Statistics show that the spread of Hizb-ut-Tahrir ideas in Kyrgyzstan are reaching a threatening scale. According to police data, last year, about 50 people around the country were arrested in charge of religious feud provocation, and altogether over 1350 are registered in Law Enforcement System files. Forces confiscated more than 320 books and magazines, 5950 leaflets, and 246 audio and video cassettes.

However, as National Security Service analysts note, followers of Hizb-ut-Tahrir keep growing in numbers. They are usually uneducated people from poor families. Religious inspirers do not give the party members financial incentives, instead promising careless life in Paradise after death. To deserve this, fanatics have to prove their devotion to the ideology by concrete actions. Terrorist acts are planned by the top management only, and so called privates are responsible for recruiting new members into the party.

Several years ago, Kyrgyz National Security Service officials stated that the future activity of the illegal religious party consisted of three phases. At first, Islamic radicals recruit new adherents among local youth, then they hold mass propaganda by distributing leaflets; and at last, Hizb-ut-Tahrir introduces its representatives into state structures. Now, NSS officials admit that Hizb-ut-Tahrir is about to implement this third stage.

The State commission on religion affairs tried to contact with the illegal party leaders. “We can’t fight against invisible people,” said Omurzak Mamayusupov, commission chairman. “We’d better hold open negotiations. Let them come and say what they want. And we’ll analyze their goals based on existing laws. We are open for talks,” he said. The official statement, in fact, was considered as an admission of Hizb-ut-Tahrir as a serious force. Mr. Mamayusupov, however, denied this fact, claiming that the government initiates dialogue just to let the illegal party leaders speak out their ideas.

Nevertheless, Hizb-ut-Tahrir has not shown up so far. Religious extremists instead started distributing proclamations in different directions. Leaflets with specific contents are more often found in mailboxes of state officials. Hizb-ut-Tahrir stepped to the third phase.

Allegations of Hizb-ut-Tahrir’s direct connection to possible terrorist acts was announced by Kyrgyz authorities last year, after an unsuccessful assassination attempt against Security Council Secretary Misir Ashirkulov. Later, Prime Minister Nikolay Tanaev stated at a press conference that the NSS had discovered burial places of ammunition and explosives in a southern district. As Tanaev claimed, religious extremists planned to set off bombs in 30 public places in Jalal-Abad city on Kyrgyz National Independence Day.

Kyrgyzstan’s authorities have obviously grasped the gravity of the situation. Special forces react to every move of the potentially dangerous extremist organization. The Government admitted it cannot ignore the local accent of Islamic fundamentalism. So far, only individual party members have been detained. However, no one predicts whether the police will ever apprehend their leaders.