following independence from the soviet union in the 1990s, the new leaders of central asia tried to?

The leaders of Central Asia tried to gain full power of the countries in this region when they gained independence.

Once the countries of Central Asia, popularly called the Stans, gained independence from the Soviet Union, the new leaders quickly tried to establish themselves as absolute leaders in their respective countries. The methods were actually very similar to those used in the Soviet Union, which was weird as they tried to get out of that political system.

The leaders of Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan, all continued to rule in a socialist manner, and the leaders that got power when they got independence are still in power.

While Kazakhstan is somewhat changing its direction gradually and becomes more modern country little by little, the likes of Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan are very similar to North Korea in many ways.