Russia conquered most of Central Asia in the 19th century, and by 1885 Tajikistan was completely controlled by Russia or its satellites. After the Russian Revolution in 1917, the Bolsheviks and Lenin wrenched any semblance of self-governance away from the locals, conducted a couple of purges, and imposed harsh laws and restrictions that led to famine and violence.
Even after the breakup of the Soviet Union in 1991 and the subsequent independence of Tajikistan, the shadow of Lenin hung over the country for many years.
And so of COURSE there is an oversized monument to Lenin in Khujand. It was erected in 1974 on the 50th anniversary of Lenin's death because, you know, it's important to memorialize the guy who took over your country and outlawed your religion and co-opted your farms and starved your people.
This 36-foot-tall statue on the 36-foot-tall base is the largest statue of Lenin in Central Asia. (Some sources say it is the largest in the world,)
But 20 years after the break-up of the Soviet Union, the Tajiks finally decided Lenin's days were over, and they sort of got even. They dismantled Lenin's statue during the night and re-assembled it on the edge of town in a low-lying, low-visibility, scrubby park called Victory Field. Now instead of surveying the center of commerce in downtown Khujand, Vladimir rules over a bunch of old posters of war heroes lining a quiet sidewalk leading to an uninspiring war memorial. It gives new meaning to the phrase "social outcast."
Walking away from Lenin . . .
to the war memorial . . .
. . . and back to Lenin. That's it, folks.
At least there are some pretty (thorny) flowers in the foreground:
