P rominent t ajik f igures of the

Turaev, Sayfiddin

Tajik politician and businessman Sayfiddin Turaev was born into a

farming family in Uroteppa on January 28, 1945. His career began as a

simple worker in a wine factory in Uroteppa in 1961. Between 1964 and

1967, he served in the Soviet military. He joined the CPSU in 1972.

Turaev graduated from the Moscow Textile Institute in 1973. There-

after, he served as Chief of Textile Machines and as division head.

From 1973 to 1975, he was a Chief Engineer and the Director of the

Uroteppa Knitted Fabrics. After 1975, Turaev continued his studies and

graduated from the Moscow Textile Institute in 1979, then from the

Academy of Agriculture at the Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of

Tajikistan in 1991.

Between 1986 and 1992, he was the Minister of Consumer Services

of the Republic. He was elected to the parliament twice, once in 1990

and again in 1995. In 1991 and 1992, he served as the First Deputy at

the Supreme Soviet of Tajikistan. In 1992, he was elected as the Direc-

tor of the National Unity Congress. In the same year, after the defeat of

the Opposition, Turaev left Dushanbe for his hometown of Uroteppa.

There, he became the president of the Istaravshan International Con-

cern.

In 1995, Turaev became the Chair of the Congress of the National

Unity of the Republic. On September 20, 1999, he was nominated by

the Adolatkhoh Justice Party as a candidate for the presidency, but did

not pass the 5% minimum requirement hurdle to be included on the

ballot.

Turaev received the Badge of Honor, and the 20

th

 Anniversary of

Victory of the Great War Award.

---

Iraj Bashiri

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     

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