From 1991 until his death in 2016, Islam Karimov ruled Uzbekistan in a typically austere authoritarian style. But while Karimov remains a somewhat respected figure in the country, his daughters have a more ambiguous place in the nation’s history.
For a period, Karimov’s eldest daughter Gulnara Karimova was one of Uzbekistan’s most well known celebrities. She sang duets with Gerard Depardieu, rubbed shoulders with Bill Clinton, patronised the arts, ran a fashion empire, and wrote poetry that, on one occasion, left her presumably sponsored interviewer sobbing.
But in ten short years, Karimova took over swathes of industry, and was seen as a principal gateway for any investor seeking access to Uzbekistan’s markets.
