Tajikistan's President Imomali Rakhmon takes oath during his inauguration ceremony in Dushanbe in this November 16, 2013 handout photograph provided by the Press Service of presidential administration of Tajikistan. REUTERS/Press Service of presidential administration of Tajikistan/Handout via Reuters
ALMATY (Reuters) - Tajikistan's President seems certain to strengthen his power by referendum on Sunday in a country bordering Afghanistan and seen in Russia as a front line in the battle against islamist militants and drug traffickers from Afghanistan.
Imomali Rakhmon seeks a constitutional blanket ban on religious parties after a court shutdown of the opposition Islamic Renaissance Party of Tajikistan (IRPT) last year. Some of its leaders face life in jail on charges of plotting a coup.
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