25 Years After Independence, a Country at a Crossroads
A photographer explores life in remote and rugged Tajikistan, the poorest of the former Soviet bloc countries.
“That’s the ‘roof of the world'," says Didorali, my fixer, pointing vigorously toward the majestic Pamir Mountains on the opposite side of the valley.
It's 25 years after the collapse of the Soviet Union, and I'm spending three weeks traveling across Tajikistan to explore the imprint left on the poorest of the former Soviet bloc countries. Here, I meet some of the hundreds of thousands of Tajiks who are believed to be Russian guest workers and who, because of sanctions in Russia and the downfall of the ruble, are returning to their native country.
On a Saturday morning in mid-May, Didorali and I drive along the Panj River, having just entered the mountainous Gorno-Badakhshon Autonomous Oblast, or GBAO. The river is the
