When Center for Political Studies was founded by Alisher Fayzullaev, one of the first diplomats who represented our country in UK in mid-90th he couldn’t imagine that his brainchild would generate Gulnara Karimova’s interest in political studies in future.

“He gathered 20-25 most active students of the University of World Economy and Diplomacy and called those who were interested to make proposals on topics and fields for academic researches. Also he conducted specialized courses on Leadership, meetings with outstanding academicians, politicians both local and foreign. It hadn’t had a big interest of any governmental structures and functionalized as an NGO.” – says one of the students participated in that meeting.

Gulnara Karimova, who wasn’t well-known enough as a public figure and her (or her father’s) PR-agents decided to start the campaign of creating new image of President’s elder daughter with appropriation of CPS.

The first wise thing Gulnara Karimova did was blocking the passageway from the first floor to the second in one of the blocks of the University of World Economy and Diplomacy with security aims in order to let her have free safe (from whom and what?) way to her new office. While the passageway for student which used to pass by this way was transferred close to the Rector’s office. It became looking like courtyard without any hint to the Rector’s presence on the reverse side of the wall.

And no one expressed indignation because of impertinent appropriation of the CPS, even Alisher Fayzullaev. He had to be silent because he knew who is the new owner of the Center.

Ambitious Director held pompous opening o the Center as if it was opened by her and the Center didn’t exist before the presentation. But after a little period of time she put her deputy instead of herself and used to visit “her” center once a week, or more rare.

Nowadays there is no conference on political issues when CPS isn’t announced as a partner-organizer: starting from Gaz&Oil-Uzbekistan Conference which is held annually and ending with negotiations on governmental level.

After becoming popular as a pop-star everybody found in Googoosha a new side of Gulnara Karimova. After she was assigned with Islam Karimov’s special decree to a new position of deputy minister on cultural affairs within Ministry of foreign affairs everybody found her as a good political leader. All these reincarnations were supposed to be understood by people of Uzbekistan as a presentation of a new potential political leader of Uzbekistan and heiress of Presidential throne of Islam Karimov.

Time will show how effective was the campaign and what kind of leader Gulnara Karimova will be: feminist man-hater dictator or more open for discussing democracy issues with Western countries. These are great topics for discussion within CPS. Maybe Gulnara Karimova will find something new for herself during the discussion at the Center she leads nominally.

So, what is CPS looking for in the future: to be recognized as a real think-tank or stay as another [un]successful experiment of President’s PR-agents?