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Craig Murray

Murder in Samarkand - A British Ambassador's Controversial Defiance of Tyranny in the War on Terror Hardcover – 29 Jun. 2006

by Craig Murray (Author)

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Craig Murray was the United Kingdom's Ambassador to Uzbekistan until he was removed from his post in October 2004 after exposing appalling human rights abuses by the US-funded regime of President Islam Karimov. In this candid and at times shocking memoir, he lays bare the dark and dirty underside of the War on Terror.

In Uzbekistan, the land of Alexander the Great and Tamburlaine, lurks one of the most hideous tyrannies on earth - one founded on cotton slavery and brutal torture. As neighbouring 'liberated' Afghanistan produces record levels of heroin, the Uzbek rulers cash in on massive trafficking. They are even involved in trafficking their own women to prostitution in the West. But this did not prevent Karimov being viewed as a key US ally in the War on Terror.

When Craig Murray arrived in Uzbekistan, he was a young Ambassador with a brilliant career and a taste for whisky and women. But after hearing accounts of dissident prisoners being boiled to death and innocent people being raped and murdered by agents of the state, he started to question both his role and that of his country in so-called 'democratising' states.

When Murray decided to go public with his shocking findings, Washington and 10 Downing Street reached the conclusion that he had to go. But Uzbekistan had changed the high-living diplomat and there was no way he was going to go quietly.

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Product details

Hardcover: 400 pages
Publisher: Mainstream Publishing (29 Jun. 2006)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1845961943
ISBN-13: 978-1845961947
Product Dimensions: 16.3 x 3.5 x 24.2 cm
Customer reviews: 77 customer ratings
Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 697,133 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #6395 in Political Biographies
- #4786 in Murderer Biographies
- #7043 in History of Asia

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Review

"I thought that diplomats like Craig Murray were an extinct breed. A man of the highest principle" (John Pilger)

"The Uzbek people know only one word for Craig Murray: hero" (Mohammad Salih, Uzbek opposition leader)

"Fantastic . . . [like] a very funny version of a Graham Greene novel" (Michael Winterbottom, film director)

"The actions of this brave and principled man have certainly exposed the "war on terror" for the sick charade that it is" (Morning Star)

"There is plenty of black comedy in this frank story of the disillusionment and downfall of one of Britain's brightest young ambassadors" (The Guardian)

Synopsis

Craig Murray was the United Kingdom's Ambassador to Uzbekistan until he was removed from his post in October 2004 after exposing appalling human rights abuses by the US-funded regime of President Islam Karimov. In this candid and at times shocking memoir, he lays bare the dark and dirty underside of the War on Terror. In Uzbekistan, the land of Alexander the Great and Tamburlaine, lurks one of the most hideous tyrannies on earth - one founded on cotton slavery and brutal torture. As neighbouring 'liberated' Afghanistan produces record levels of heroin, the Uzbek rulers cash in on massive trafficking. They are even involved in trafficking their own women to prostitution in the West. But this did not prevent Karimov being viewed as a key US ally in the War on Terror. When Craig Murray arrived in Uzbekistan, he was a young Ambassador with a brilliant career and a taste for whisky and women. But after hearing accounts of dissident prisoners being boiled to death and innocent people being raped and murdered by agents of the state, he started to question both his role and that of his country in so-called 'democratising' states.

When Murray decided to go public with his shocking findings, Washington and 10 Downing Street reached the conclusion that he had to go. But Uzbekistan had changed the high-living diplomat and there was no way he was going to go quietly.

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Customer reviews

5 star		64%
4 star		15%
3 star		13%
2 star		3%
1 star		5%

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Dr. George Kirov

like some people whose stories he exposed

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 8 October 2018

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Wow! Why was he not worried that he would be boiled alive, like some people whose stories he exposed? It is not only a revealing book, but a great account of life in that country, probably an image unknown to most readers. Pity we don't have a few more people like Craig.

3 people found this helpful

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Prof DBG Heuser

Insightful original angle on IR, a must read for students!

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 23 October 2017

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Excellent introduction to the internal workings of a cruel dictatorship and extreme human rights violations, but also the callousness with which we, following our "national self-interest, are prepared to ignore human rights abuses elsewhere.
For students of International Relations, this is a wonderful introduction to the workings of an embassy, and to foreign policy making in a democracy.
I wish we had heard a little less about the lovelife and health problems of the author, important though they undoubtedly are to him.

2 people found this helpful

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D. Forbes

A Controversial Tale From Our Ex-Man In Tashkent.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 22 November 2013

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The BBC's recent screening of the David Mitchell/Robert Webb comedy drama Ambassadors prompted me to buy this book. I remembered Craig Murray from my student days when he variously held the posts of University President, High Hied Yin and Rector. I'd initially been put off buying Murder in Samarkand by what I perceived as being poor reviews at the time of its first publication. This book isn't exactly Kipling: it's more Hapless Tales From The Hills Of Uzbekistan rather than a well crafted work of literature about Britishers abroad. But I found it to be a thoroughly absorbing good read.

Aside from the grim picture of the ghastly Soviet-like regime of President Karimov, which murdered hundreds of dissidents or tossed them into modern-day gulags; our ex-man in Tashkent portrayed the strained workings of a far flung British Embassy having to work with very limited resources. There didn't appear to be a lot of glamour in this Central Asian outpost of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office: it seemed to be more steaming bowls of plov rather than platers of Ferrero Rocher.

Humorous comments pop up in some odd places in the text. The ghastly account of the kangaroo court in the first chapter is interspersed with witty, or perhaps wry, remarks. I wasn't sure what tone Mr Murray was going for. But the author's amusing similes, and indeed the soap opera of his personal life, kept me engaged for all 400 pages.

Murder in Samarkand should appeal to anyone interested in the 21st century version of The Great Game which is still being played out in Central Asia. And I would say that this book would be a must for anyone considering doing business or investing in any country with poor democratic credentials as Mr Murray's account has many examples of the pitfalls of carrying out trade in a massively corrupt state.

Apparently this boozed up randy Scott was 'a deep embarrassment to the entire Foreign Office'? I think we could do with a few more chaps like Mr Murray in the Diplomatic Corps. And this book could easily become a fine TV drama staring David Mitchell and Robert Webb.

5 people found this helpful

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Elimb

Fantastic book, would recommend

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 13 March 2011

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I read this book when it first came out, loved it and have recommended it to lots of people. Am now re-reading it. The only problem I have with it is that I did go through it not particularly liking Craig Murray because of his womanising. I guess he put this in as this is what he was accused of when he was sacked, and had to explain himself. But in a way this also made it more real and believeable if he was being this honest.
It was great to get in depth knowledge of what was going on in Uzbekistan at this time. As well as doing his ambassador work and smoozing with government types, he was also talking to 'normal' people there.

What he witnesses there makes you extremely angry and frustrated at the Uzbekistan and the British governments. Opens your eyes as to how corrupt out own government is.

What he says he does in the book is amazing and is what every ambassador should be doing. I can't help but think it's a little biased, but I hope that its all true. The fact he got sacked for the work he did there says something.

I went to see Craig Murray talk a couple of times after reading this book too. He is very passionate about Uzbekistan and the work he did there.

4 people found this helpful

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JC Wiltshire

Multilayered, thought provoking book.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 16 December 2010

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Very honest, "Warts and all" account of this gifted, selfless and brave man who does a great job and stands up strongly for his principles in the face of huge international pressure, even at times when in great personal physical danger. BUT.......

Confusingly, at the same time, he shows incredible lack of judgment by behaving in a most unprincipled, selfish, sleezy and "undiplomatic" manner in his private life. The ultimate loose ambassadorial cannon. How on earth did someone so flawed ever became a fast track Ambassador?

Add to this a fascinating account of what an Ambassador actually does for a living, of how despots operate in the former soviet states and of how hypocritical and unprincipled the Blair and Bush governments were (Jack Straw, gets a special mention for spinlessness and Clare short the opposite.)

A great read and a great book for a book club. Lots to talk about.

2 people found this helpful

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Malcolm Bush

Not just another book among many

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 3 January 2013

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I purchased three copies of this book; one of which I speed read myself. The importance of this book is simply the fact that those it authority were, and still are, well prepared to sacrifice all of the principles they demand others live by. Reading this book should encourage one to seek out and read other books that tell an interrelated story in some way. This book tells the story of the authors encounter with the 'war on terror' via his posting to Uzbekistan; there are many books that tell of various authors encounters with the war on terror, directly or indirectly. Degrees of knowledge, type of knowledge and opinion vary a very great deal. All this tends to make it extremely difficult to understand how different books from different authors; seemingly about completely different subjects fit together.

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lif

tolles Buch

Reviewed in Germany on 20 September 2016

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Ein wunderbarer Erzählstil, man kann sich richtig reinempfinden in alles was Craig Murray in Usbekistan erlebt hat. Ich schätze Ehrlichkeit sehr und er nimmt kein Blatt vor den Mund. Zudem ist er teilweise zynisch und sarkastisch. Was mir aber am meisten Gefallen hat, ist dass er nichts beschönigt, auch seine eigene Person nicht, er weiß wie er ist und steht dazu. Zudem bezieht er keine Seiten, nicht die Britische, nicht die Usbekische und auch nicht die Amerikanische, sondern nimmt Partei für die usbekische Bevölkerung, die mit großem Leid umgehen muss.
Man spürt förmlich die Ohnmacht, nichts tun zu können, auch wenn man Recht hat und nur Gutes möchte. Die Welt ist nicht nur schwarz/weiß, nicht nur böse/gut, sondern sehr viel komplexer, etwas was viele Menschen heutzutage nicht verstehen wollen.
Ein sehr empfehlenswertes Buch!

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sonne

Highly recommendable read

Reviewed in Germany on 19 February 2016

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I found this book to be a profoundly interesting first-hand read about contemporary politics. I do not at all agree with the critic found in the reviews here on Amazon that Murray should have been loyal to his employer no matter what. That is precisely how dictatorships function - enough people obeying the power they are subject to no matter what. If you suggest such a thing, don't come back asking me how the Third Reich was possible.

People who feel the urge to admonish Murray might rather focus on his naivete towards a power he had no sensible reason to believe would be more benevolent than any power over people can be. They could remind him to reconsider his ideas of privatisation and to drop for good this notorious comparison to state privatism. To, hm, meditate a bit over the very concept of privatism and its manifestations/exertions/consequences around the globe.

Special thanks to Jack Straw for his hilarious way of knighting Murray on the back cover :)

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Saidabad2010

Unterhaltsam - und ärgerlich...

Reviewed in Germany on 5 April 2016

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Das Buch ist sehr gut geschrieben und thematisiert beklemmend anschaulich Menschenrechtsverletzungen in Usbekistan sowie die letztlich nicht überzeugende Haltung auch westlicher Staaten. Dennoch fragt man sich nicht selten, ob der Verfasser noch bei Groschen ist. Die Verquickung von zutiefst privaten Themen wie Eheproblemen, Alkoholexzessen und den Amouren des Verfassers ( Das will man alles nicht wirklich wissen...) entwertet damit auf weite Stecken seine politischen Statements.

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Susan Wilks

Follow your beliefs

Reviewed in Canada on 25 July 2018

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I was very impressed by Craig Murray’s bravery against overwhelming odds and health problems.

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Lee Van Der Heiden

Great book, bought it at a great price

Reviewed in Canada on 3 January 2017

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Arrived on time and well packed. I'm reading it right now. Great book, bought it at a great price.

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Ezio Bronzino

Tutto perfetto

Reviewed in Italy on 3 March 2020

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libro ben tenuto

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PATENERE

Murder in Samarkand

Reviewed in France on 9 December 2013

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Excellent livre qui donne un aperçu saisissant des stratégies internationationales en Ouzbékistan, pays méconnu en Europe occidentale. Craig Murray est mon nouveau héros. Son expérience et son courage sont à découvrir dans ce livre que je recommande à quiconque s'intéresse à la géopolitique internationale.

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Alexander

Interesting to read.

Reviewed in Canada on 24 May 2014

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A British Ambassador's point of view about Uzbekistan, Islam Karimov and Uzbek government. However, this is a bit specific reading material.

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Constantin

Great Story!

Reviewed in the United States on 22 February 2008

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The book details the real-life story of Craig Murray, a successful British career diplomat that became a pawn in the Great Game. Assigned to become Ambassador to Uzbekistan, he took over a very small embassy with all the attendant issues (morale, support, etc.) He also very quickly became aware of horrific human rights abuses in Uzbekistan that have been substantiated by other NGOs like Human Rights Watch.

His subsequent attempt to stand up against a regime that enjoyed boiling people alive, executing real or perceived enemies of the state in extra-judicial killings, etc. subsequently got Mr. Murray into trouble with the Blair administration since he was stirring the pot with one of their erstwhile allies in the "War on Terror". However, as Mr. Murray so eloquently lays out, it is precisely this type of tyrannical regime that leads to the rise of fundamentalist, extremist groups in the first place.

Mr. Murray went to extraordinary lengths to represent British interests in Uzbekistan and traveled the whole nation to get to know it better. Along the way, he tried his best to encourage Democracy and Rule of Law, a novelty in Uzbekistan. Some of his more dangerous and coloful confrontations included standing up to various local government officials, thugs, etc. and are recounted in gripping detail. It is evident that Mr. Murray risked considerable harm to himself.

Like most other diplomats in Uzbekistan, Mr. Murray could have simply looked the other way, just as the British government instructed him to when he reported human rights abuses and other issues with the regime that the Blair and Bush administrations wanted to cozy up to. That is not to say that he is a knight in shining armor, but he seems to be pretty honest about his personal flaws.

When one of his internal Memos to the Foreign Office decrying the human rights abuses in Uzbekistan was leaked to the press, the British government took extraordinary steps to kick him out of the Foreign Service. With his departure, the British Foreign Service lost one of their more courageous and competent ambassadors, though perhaps he was a bit too honest and outspoken for the diplomatic club.

The US version of this book ("Dirty Diplomacy") names more names regarding the folk working behind the scenes to kick Mr. Murray out of the Foreign Service, thanks to US freedom of speech laws. The British paperback version has more pictures, however. Either book is a very interesting read, and I highly recommend them.

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No45

A well-written work of narrative non-fiction on an under-covered region.

Reviewed in the United States on 13 July 2013

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A mistress for anyone studying UK or US foreign policy in Central Asia. Describes the cold, calculating, cynical sublimation of fundamental human rights principles to the West's desire for expediency in it's terror. Note to Purchasers: U.S & U.K. Editions have different titles & covers but are theexact same book. I wound up buying two editions of the same book. :-(

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Micah Lund

Compelling account

Reviewed in the United States on 5 April 2013

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Couldn't put the book down at times. But maybe that's cuz it's more relevant for me as I'm in Uzbekistan.

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