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Category: Turkmenistan

  • Central Asia Leaders Must Deliver on Human Rights Pledges Made at Summit say NGOs

    Photo and copyright: European Union.

    On 10 April 2025 Civil Rights Defenders, along with seven other international human rights organizations, commend the commitments made at the EU-Central Asia Summit in Samarkand. We urge Central Asian leaders to prioritize human rights and uphold the civil and political freedoms enshrined in their national constitutions and international treaties. The commitments to peace, security, democracy, and the elevation of relations to a strategic partnership must be matched by concrete actions to protect human rights.

    On Friday, April 4, the Uzbek city of Samarkand hosted the first ever EU – Central Asia Summit where high-level officials – all five regional presidents and European Council President António Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen – discussed economic cooperation and agreed to bring their existing partnership to a new strategic level. At the end of the summit, participants issued a joint declaration that, among others, stated their commitment to freedom of expression and association, creating an enabling environment for civil society and independent media, protection of human rights defenders, as well as to respecting the rights of women and children. According to an official press release, the European Commission promised to invest €12 billion in the region to strengthen transport links and deepen cooperation on critical raw materials, digital connectivity, water, and energy.

    Paragraph 3 of the joint declaration says: “We are committed to cooperate for peace, security, and democracy, to fully respect international law, including the UN Charter and the fundamental principles of respect for the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of all States, within their internationally recognised borders. We emphasised the importance of achieving as soon as possible, a comprehensive, just, and lasting peace in Ukraine in accordance with the principles of the Charter of the United Nations. We emphasized the need to uphold the principles of the OSCE by the participating States. We reconfirmed the obligation of all States to refrain in their international relations from the threat or use of force, to respect international humanitarian law and underlined the need for peaceful resolution of conflicts.”

    In paragraph 16, the “EU and Central Asian leaders reiterated that the promotion and protection of rule of law, human rights and fundamental freedoms is a common fundamental value. Ensuring freedom of expression and association, an enabling environment for civil society and independent media, protection of human rights defenders as well as the respect for the rights of women, the rights of the child, and labor rights remain at the core of EU–Central Asia relations. The EU reiterated its readiness to support efforts in this regard at regional as well as at national level.” 

    Furthermore, in paragraph 15 the “Participants affirmed the need for their continued commitment to enhanced cooperation and the development of new approaches in the joint fight against organised crime, violent extremism, radicalisation, terrorism, drug trafficking, trafficking in human beings, migrant smuggling, cyber threats, including cybercrime and disinformationas well as addressing Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear risks whilst safeguarding human rights and media freedom [emphasis added].”

    Civil Rights Defenders, International Partnership for Human Rights (IPHR), Araminta, Freedom Now, Norwegian Helsinki Committee, People in Need, International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), and the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT) welcome these declared commitments and urge the leaders of each Central Asian nation to take immediate steps to fulfill their promises. They should start by releasing from prison all journalists, bloggers, lawyers, human rights defenders, civil society activists, and political opponents who have been prosecuted and convicted on retaliatory and unsubstantiated charges. They should also repeal legislation containing provisions that directly contradict their declared commitment to human rights standards. 

    The Central Asian governments should also end–and establish safeguards to prevent–the misuse of anti-extremism and anti-disinformation policies and security tools to restrict, persecute, and/or criminalize legitimate civil society activity. While enhanced cooperation in the joint fight against organized crime, violent extremism and terrorism, and disinformation are a welcome development, these types of laws and cooperation initiatives have been instrumentalized by the Central Asian governments against legitimate civil society actors, media and political opposition activists, including for imprisonment on lengthy sentences and transnational repression extending to the territory of the European Union. 

    In particular:

    • In Kazakhstan, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev should order the release from custody of activist Aigerim Tleuzhanova, political opposition party leader Marat Zhylanbayev, satirist blogger Temirlan Ensebek, and labor rights activist Erzhan Elshibayev among others prosecuted on politically motivated charges, We believe that these individuals were targeted in direct retaliation for exercising their civil and political rights, and authorities have failed to provide any credible evidence to support the allegations levelled against them. Kazakh authorities should repeal or thoroughly revise broadly worded criminal code provisions penalising the involvement in ‘’extremist’’ activities, ‘’incitement’’ to discord and the spread of ‘’false’’ information, which are frequently misused to target critics, including in some of the cases mentioned above. Kazakh authorities should also drop their declared plans to adopt a so-called “foreign agents’” law, cease the public attacks on the LGBTIQ community, and end reprisals against NGOs-recipients of foreign grants.
    • In Kyrgyzstan, it is welcome that President Sadyr Japarov pardoned Temirov Live associated journalist Azamat Ishenbekov this week, although he should not have been imprisoned in the first place. Authorities should also quash the charges against his colleagues convicted on similar charges, releasing Makhabat Tajibek Kyzy  and lifting the probational sentences imposed on Aike Beishekeyeva and Aktilek Kaparov. We believe all four journalists were targeted in retaliation for their critical opinions and independent journalism. Authorities should also release independent journalist Kanyshay Mamyrkulova and drop the criminal charges initiated against her and others in apparent retaliation for social media posts critical of the government. In addition, they should reverse the court ruling that ordered the liquidation of independent news organization Kloop Media and stop pressuring other independent media. They should repeal the law on so-called “foreign representatives” and revoke vaguely worded provisions that prohibit the dissemination of “false’’, defamatory or insulting information, as well as content that ‘’promotes non-traditional sexual relations’’. This legislation severely violates the fundamental freedoms of expression, association, and assembly.
    • In Tajikistan, President Emomali Rakhmon should take immediate steps to release from prison the eight independent journalists Rukhshona Hakimova, Abdusattor Pirmuhammadzoda, Ahmad Ibrohim, Abdullo Ghurbati, Daler Imomali, Khurshed Fozilov, Khushom Gulyam, and Zavqibek Saidamini. Human rights activists and lawyers Ulfatkhonim Mamadshoeva, Buzurgmehr Yorov, Manuchehr Kholiknazarov, and Faromuz Irgashov should also be freed without delay. By imprisoning these individuals the Tajik authorities have cemented a climate of fear among civil society actors – a record that must be reversed. Tajik authorities should also cease its continued crackdown in the Gorno-Badakshan Autonomous Region and its systematic use of transnational repression to target government opponents abroad, including in EU countries. Several individuals who were forcibly returned to Tajikistan in  2024 were tortured, arrested and handed lengthy prison sentences after closed trials. 
    • In Turkmenistan, President Serdar Berdimuhamedov should take concrete steps to rectify his government’s extremely poor human rights record, free political prisoners, and allow space for an independent civil society to develop. The government should publicly declare tolerance towards criticism in the media and end wide ranging internet censorship. Authorities should immediately end attacks and harassment of critics of the regime both inside the country and abroad, including veteran human rights defender and journalist Soltan Achilova, who has repeatedly been barred from leaving the country. They should also decriminalize homosexuality while adopting legislation to criminalize domestic violence.  
    • In Uzbekistan, President Shavkat Mirziyoyev should order to quash wrongful convictions and free from prison and retaliatory psychiatric ward lawyer Dauletmurat Tadzhimuratov, activists Nargiz Keldiyorova and Dildora Khakimova and blogger Valijon Kalonov. All these human rights defenders have been targeted with retaliatory prosecution and convicted on unsubstantiated charges for publicly expressing their opinions about the state of affairs in the country. The Uzbek government should also repeal the law on so-called “undesirable foreign persons,” decriminalize male homosexuality, and remove all legal provisions and bureaucratic obstructions that prevent independent civil society groups from engaging in legitimate human rights work.

    We urge the leaders of each Central Asian nation to demonstrate that they have the political will to deliver on their declared commitments made at the Samarkand summit and to respect human rights and civil and political freedoms protected by their national constitutions and international treaties ratified by them. We call on the EU to ensure that the commitments expressed in the joint declaration are followed through and that Central Asian governments are held accountable for violations of their human rights obligations under EU cooperation instruments, including bilateral partnership and cooperation agreements and preferential trade schemes. In line with the EU’s value-based partnership with the Central Asian countries, advancing connectivity, trade, and investment should go hand in hand with efforts to promote concrete progress in human rights and rule of law in these countries. The steps listed above are merely a suggested choice of actions that we urge the Central Asia governments to implement without delay. Much more needs to be done for addressing past and ongoing abuses that respect and protect citizens’ rights and freedoms.

    Signtures

    Civil Rights Defenders

    International Partnership for Human Rights (IPHR)

    Araminta,

    Freedom Now

    Norwegian Helsinki Committee

    People in Need

    International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH)

    World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT)

    Central Asia Leaders Must Deliver on Human Rights Pledges Made at Summit

    This post was originally published on Hans Thoolen on Human Rights Defenders and their awards.

  • EU urged to put human rights centre stage at first central Asia summit

    Bloc to discuss trade, security and energy with leaders of Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan

    The EU is being urged to put human rights centre stage as it begins its first summit with the leaders of central Asia.

    The president of the European Council, António Costa, and the head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, are meeting the leaders of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan on Friday.

    Continue reading…

    This post was originally published on Human rights | The Guardian.

  • Journalist Nurgeldi Halykov barred from leaving Turkmenistan

    New York, January 14, 2025—The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns Turkmen authorities’ decision to place a travel ban on Nurgeldi Halykov, a freelance correspondent for the independent Netherlands-based news website Turkmen.news, who was released from prison in June 2024 after serving a four-year sentence on retaliatory charges.

    On January 12, border guards at Ashgabat International Airport, in the country’s capital, prevented Halykov from boarding a flight to the United Arab Emirates, where he had been due to start a job outside of journalism, informing him that he was under a temporary travel ban but without providing a reason.

    “Journalist Nurgeldi Halykov has already suffered appalling retaliation for his reporting. It’s time Turkmen authorities let him get on with his life,” said Gulnoza Said, CPJ’s Europe and Central Asia program coordinator. “Authorities in Turkmenistan must end their relentless harassment of those who collaborate with the country’s exiled media.”

    Border guards told Halykov to contact Turkmenistan’s State Migration Service for more information about the ban. Turkmen.news Director Ruslan Myatiev told CPJ on January 14 that Halykov had yet to make an inquiry. CPJ emailed the State Migration Service for comment but did not immediately receive a reply.

    Ashgabat police arrested Halykov on July 13, 2020, the day after he forwarded to Turkmen.news a photo that he found on social media of a World Health Organization delegation at a local hotel during the COVID-19 pandemic. Turkmenistan is the only country in the world that says it has not recorded a single case of COVID-19.

    A court in September 2020 sentenced him to four years in prison on fraud charges for allegedly failing to repay a loan.

    Myatiev told CPJ  in March 2021 that he suspected that Halykov’s wider work for Turkmen.news was the reason for his imprisonment.

    The media environment in Turkmenistan is one of the most restrictive in the world, and exile-based news outlets rely on networks of correspondents who generally publish anonymously, a number of whom have previously been jailed on retaliatory charges.

    In November, Turkmen authorities prevented Soltan Achilova, a reporter for Austria-based Chronicles of Turkmenistan, from traveling abroad to collect an award for the third consecutive year.


    This content originally appeared on Committee to Protect Journalists and was authored by CPJ Staff.

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.

  • Soltan Achilova again banned from traveling to receive her award

    The undersigned human rights organisations, which together represent the Jury for the Martin Ennals Award for Human Rights Defenders, condemn the continued harassment against 2021 Martin Ennals Award Finalist and woman human rights defender from Turkmenistan, Soltan Achilova. This morning, Soltan Achilova and her daughter were once again prevented from travelling to Geneva. As in 2023, Soltan Achilova was set to be recognized for her valuable contributions to the documentation of human rights violations in Turkmenistan by the Martin Ennals Foundation.

    Soltan Achilova is a woman human rights defender and journalist, who continues to work in Turkmenistan, one of the most repressive and isolated countries in the world, ranking 176th out of 180 countries in terms of press freedom and working conditions for journalists. She has been reporting about her country for over a decade. Her pictures of daily life are one of the few sources of documentation of human rights violations occurring in Turkmenistan. As a result of this work, she remains under constant surveillance by Turkmen authorities and has suffered numerous incidents of harassment, intimidation, and threats. Despite the challenges, Soltan Achilova persists in her human rights work, regularly sending information and pictures outside the country so that government authorities can be held accountable. [see: https://humanrightsdefenders.blog/tag/soltan-achilova/]

    On the morning of 20 November 2024, Soltan Achilova and her daughter Maya Achilova were scheduled to travel from Ashgabat to Geneva, to participate in the Martin Ennals Award ceremony. At 6:30 a.m. local time, according to the information received by the Martin Ennals Foundation, a group of law enforcement officers pushed Soltan Achilova, her daughter and her daughter’s husband into an ambulance and brought them to the specialised hospital “Infectious Disease Control Centre” in the Choganly neighbourhood of Ashgabat, located near the Ashgabat International Airport. Maya Achilova reported to the Foundation that her husband, her mother and herself are being retained at the medical facility, guarded by the security forces, and that one of the security service agents is in possession of the keys to Soltan Achilova’s apartment. Thereby, Turkmen authorities have once again prevented Soltan Achilova from travelling to Geneva, Switzerland, where she would finally be recognized as a Finalist of the 2021 Martin Ennals Award for her documentation of land grabs and forced evictions of ordinary citizens in Ashgabat.

    Turkmen authorities have prevented woman human rights defender Soltan Achilova from traveling freely outside of her country on several occasions; the latest occurring as recently as November 2023. In the early hours of 18 November 2023, Soltan Achilova and her daughter were stopped by Turkmen government officials from boarding their flight to Switzerland. A customs official took their passports, wet them with a damp rag and declared the passports to be ruined, preventing Soltan and Maya Achilova from boarding the plane. Despite receiving assurances at high-level from Turkmen authorities that Soltan Achilova would not be prevented from traveling once again, the authorities continue to harass the woman human rights defender with travel restrictions and arbitrary detention.

    The human rights organisations that make up the Jury of the Martin Ennals Award, as well as the Martin Ennals Foundation, once again condemn Turkmen authorities for their continued harassment of woman human rights defender and photojournalist Soltan Achilova and her family members and call for their immediate release. The organisations jointly call upon the Turkmen authorities to provide all the necessary assistance to enable her travel outside of Turkmenistan. Finally, the organisations renew their calls for Turkmenistan to fully implement their human rights obligations, including, inter alia, allowing human rights defenders and journalists to conduct their work without fear of reprisals.

    Following the writing of this statement, an article containing further details was published by the Chronicles of Turkmenistan, an online publication of the Turkmen Initiative for Human Rights, which, according to its author, has also been in contact with Soltan Achilova’s family.

    Signatories:

    Amnesty International

    Human Rights Watch

    World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT)

    International Service for Human Rights (ISHR)

    International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH)

    HURIDOCS

    Human Rights First

    Front Line Defenders

    Brot für die Welt

    International Commission of Jurists

    The Martin Ennals Foundation

    https://www.frontlinedefenders.org/en/statement-report/turkmen-authorities-yet-again-prevent-woman-human-rights-defender-and-2021-martin

    This post was originally published on Hans Thoolen on Human Rights Defenders and their awards.

  • Turkmenistan releases journalist imprisoned for 4 years for COVID photo

    Stockholm, June 10, 2024—The Committee to Protect Journalists is relieved by the Saturday release of Nurgeldi Halykov, a freelance correspondent for independent Netherlands-based news website Turkmen.news, after he completed a four-year prison sentence on trumped-up fraud charges.

    “We are relieved that Nurgeldi Halykov is free after enduring a shockingly unjust prison term in one of the world’s most opaque and fearsome prison systems,” said Gulnoza Said, CPJ’s Europe and Central Asia program coordinator, in New York. “Turkmen authorities must ensure that no more journalists are jailed for their reporting and work to improve the country’s international reputation by liberalizing the media environment so that independent reporters do not have to work clandestinely or under fear of arrest.”

    Police arrested Halykov on July 13, 2020, in the capital, Ashgabat, the day after he forwarded to Turkmen.news a photo that he found on social media of a World Health Organization delegation at a local hotel during the COVID-19 pandemic. A court in September 2020 sentenced him to four years in prison on fraud charges for allegedly failing to repay a loan.

    Turkmen.news director Ruslan Myatiev told CPJ  in March 2021 that he suspected authorities discovered Halykov’s wider work for Turkmen.news during questioning, and that was the reason for the extended prison sentence.

    Turkmenistan is the only country in the world that says it has not recorded a single case of COVID-19.

    The media environment in Turkmenistan is one of the most restrictive in the world, and international news outlets rely on networks of correspondents who often publish anonymously, a number of whom have previously been jailed on retaliatory charges.

    The Prove They Are Alive! campaign, a coalition of human rights groups, including Human Rights Watch and the Norwegian Helsinki Committee, has recorded dozens of enforced disappearances in Turkmenistan’s prisons.

    Ogulsapar Muradova, a reporter for U.S. Congress-funded Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty’s Turkmen service, died in prison in 2006 after sustaining unexplained injuries.


    This content originally appeared on Committee to Protect Journalists and was authored by Committee to Protect Journalists.

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.

  • Soltan Achilova – finalist MEA 2021 – denied travel to Geneva Human Rights Week

    On 21 November, 2023 the Martin Ennals Foundation, joined by HRW and the ISHR, issued the following statement:

    The Martin Ennals Foundation condemns the harassment of Soltan Achilova and her daughter by government authorities at Ashgabat airport and calls for Turkmen authorities to stop their reprisals against journalists for their human rights work.

    In the early hours of November 18th, 2023, Mrs. Soltan Achilova and her daughter were stopped by Turkmen government officials from boarding their flight for Switzerland. A customs official took their passports, wet them with a damp rag and declared the passports to be ruined, effectively obstructing Soltan from traveling to Geneva where she would feature as a keynote speaker at the University of Geneva’s Human Rights Week 2023.

    This act of harassment and denial of freedom of movement is particularly reprehensible in that it comes only a few days after Turkmenistan’s 4th Universal Periodic Review, during which high-level government representatives expressed their “support for …the promotion and protection of fundamental freedoms and human rights“, giving multiple examples of their progress in terms of respect for freedom of expression.

    Soltan Achilova believes she was not allowed to leave the country because of the authorities’ fear that negative information might be heard during the Human Rights week in Geneva. Yet, the obstruction from travel of an internationally recognized human rights defender is more striking evidence of the lack of freedoms in the country and the bad faith with which the Turkmenistan government engages with the Human Rights Council.  

    Turkmenistan is one of the most repressive and isolated countries in the world, ranking 176th out of 180 countries in terms of press freedom and working conditions for journalists. Soltan has been reporting about her country for more than a decade. Her pictures of daily life are one of the few sources of documentation of human rights violations occurring in this most secretive nation. In 2021, Soltan was recognized by the Martin Ennals Award for her documentation of land grabs and forced evictions of ordinary citizens in Ashgabat.

    Soltan has not been allowed to travel freely outside of her country on several occasions. She is under constant surveillance by Turkmen authorities and has suffered numerous incidents of harassment, intimidation, and threats. Despite the challenges, Soltan persists in her human rights work, regularly sending information and pictures  outside of the country so that government authorities are held to account.

    We renew calls for Turkmenistan to fully implement their human rights obligations, including, inter alia, allowing human rights defenders and journalists to conduct their work peacefully. We invite Member States accompanying the 4th Universal Periodic Review of Turkmenistan to strongly sanction the silencing of Soltan Achilova and other Turkmen journalists.

    For more on Soltan: https://youtu.be/7xkSvMXaZUU?si=JhWOrMxs4yQQ2wz8

    Soltan Achilova MEA2021 denied travel to Geneva Human Rights Week

    https://www.hrw.org/news/2023/11/21/turkmenistan-journalist-prevented-travelling-abroad

    https://www.frontlinedefenders.org/en/statement-report/turkmenistan-whrd-soltan-achilova-denied-travel-geneva-human-rights-week

    This post was originally published on Hans Thoolen on Human Rights Defenders and their awards.

  • Turkmenistan through the eyes of photojournalist Soltan Achilova, master class 21 November

    Turkmenistan through the eyes of photojournalist Soltan Achilova
    Join us for a Master Class on Turkemnistan at UNIGE Human Rights Week, Tuesday Nov. 21 @12h30-14h !

    The World Press Freedom Index ranked Turkmenistan one of the five most repressive regimes globally in 2023.
    Martin Ennals Award Finalist Soltan Achilova is a 74 years-old photojournalist who captures the lives of ordinary people in Turkmenistan with her camera. Soltan’s pictures describing food insecurity, forced and illegal evictions, lack of adequate healthcare and the discrimination faced by people with disabilities, are an invaluable source of information on human rights violations endured by the people of Turkmenistan. In collaboration with the University of Geneva Human Rights Week this event will explore how independent journalism can push back on the denial of freedom of expression in the toughest authoritarian contexts.


    Free Entry
    Tuesday Nov    . 21, 2023
    12h30-14h
    Unimail Salle MS150

    see also: https://humanrightsdefenders.blog/2021/02/23/soltan-achilova-has-issued-a-rare-rebuke-of-the-turkmen-president-on-youtube/

    https://mailchi.mp/martinennalsaward.org/invitation-turkmenistan-master-class-unige-9415682?e=2898c3ec1a

    This post was originally published on Hans Thoolen on Human Rights Defenders and their awards.

  • Internet Censorship 2021: A Global Map of Internet Restrictions

    On October 12 I referred the report Freedom on the Net [see: https://humanrightsdefenders.blog/2021/10/12/report-freedom-on-the-net-2021/ and on 24 April to the latest RSF report [see: https://humanrightsdefenders.blog/2021/04/24/world-press-freedom-index-2021-is-out/]. Now my attention was drawn to another tool to measure internet censorship:

    Nearly 60 percent of the world’s population (4.66 billion people) uses the internet. It’s our source of instant information, entertainment, news, and social interactions.

    But where in the world can citizens enjoy equal and open internet access – if anywhere?

    In this exploratory study, our researchers have conducted a country-by-country comparison to see which countries impose the harshest internet restrictions and where citizens can enjoy the most online freedom. This includes restrictions or bans for torrenting, pornography, social media, and VPNs, and restrictions or heavy censorship of political media. This year, we have also added the restriction of messaging/VoIP apps.

    Although the usual culprits take the top spots, a few seemingly free countries rank surprisingly high. With ongoing restrictions and pending laws, our online freedom is at more risk than ever.

    We scored each country on six criteria. Each of these is worth two points aside from messaging/VoIP apps which is worth one (this is due to many countries banning or restricting certain apps but allowing ones run by the government/telecoms providers within the country). The country receives one point if the content—torrents, pornography, news media, social media, VPNs, messaging/VoIP apps—is restricted but accessible, and two points if it is banned entirely. The higher the score, the more censorship. https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/IBnNS/3/

    The worst countries for internet censorship

    1. North Korea and China (11/11) – No map of online censorship would be complete without these two at the top of the list. There isn’t anything either of them doesn’t heavily censor thanks to their iron grip over the entire internet. Users are unable to use western social media, watch porn, or use torrents or VPNs*. And all of the political media published in the country is heavily censored and influenced by the government. Both also shut down messaging apps from abroad, forcing residents to use ones that have been made (and are likely controlled) within the country, e.g. WeChat in China. Not only does WeChat have no form of end-to-end encryption, the app also has backdoors that enable third parties to access messages.
    2. Iran (10/11): Iran blocks VPNs (only government-approved ones are permitted, which renders them almost useless) but doesn’t completely ban torrenting. Pornography is also banned and social media is under increasing restrictions. Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube are all blocked with increasing pressures to block other popular social media sites. Many messaging apps are also banned with authorities pushing domestic apps and services as an alternative. Political media is heavily censored.
    3. Belarus, Qatar, Syria, Thailand, Turkmenistan, and the UAE (8/11): Turkmenistan, Belarus, and the UAE all featured in our “worst countries” breakdown in 2020.  But this year they are joined by Qatar, Syria, and Thailand. All of these countries ban pornography, have heavily censored political media, restrict social media (bans have also been seen in Turkmenistan), and restrict the use of VPNs. Thailand saw the biggest increase in censorship, including the introduction of an online porn ban which saw 190 adult websites being taken down. This included Pornhub (which featured as one of the top 20 most visited websites in the country in 2019).

    https://comparite.ch/internetcensorshipmap

    This post was originally published on Hans Thoolen on Human Rights Defenders and their awards.

  • Has Interpol become the long arm of oppressive regimes?

    Once used in the hunt for fugitive criminals, the global police agency’s most-wanted ‘red notice’ list now includes political refugees and dissidents

    Flicking through the news one day in early 2015, Alexey Kharis, a California-based businessman and father of two, came across a startling announcement: Russia would request a global call for his arrest through the International Criminal Police Organization, known as Interpol.

    “Oh, wow,” Kharis thought, shocked. All the 46-year-old knew about Interpol and its pursuit of the world’s most-wanted criminals was from novels and films. He tried to reassure himself that things would be OK and it was just an intimidatory tactic of the Russian authorities. Surely, he reasoned, the world’s largest police organisation had no reason to launch a hunt for him.

    Continue reading…

    This post was originally published on Human rights | The Guardian.

  • Neighbors Stake Out Positions After Deadly Kyrgyz-Tajik Border Conflict

    When hostilities broke out along the Kyrgyz-Tajik border at the end of April, many countries and organizations were quick to call for an end to the fighting and a peaceful resolution to the long-running border conflict.

    No one wanted to openly side with either Kyrgyzstan or Tajikistan, let alone comment on the violence that left more than 50 people dead.

    But in the days following an agreement between Kyrgyz and Tajik officials that halted the fighting, there have been hints of the positions of some leaders through their statements and actions.

    Tajik President Emomali Rahmon was fortunate to have accepted an invitation months ago to make an official visit to Moscow for the May 9 Victory Day celebrations. Rahmon was the only head of state to attend the Moscow ceremonies but the trip allowed him an opportunity to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin on May 8 and again the next day during the parade on Red Square.

    Reports on the meetings of the two presidents did not mention any discussion of the April 28-30 fighting on the border, though Putin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said days earlier it would be on the agenda, and Putin had offered on April 30 to act as a mediator in the conflict.

    Where Moscow Stands

    Putin’s comments were interesting, as they seemed to indirectly address the problem between Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan.

    The topic of Russia’s bases in Tajikistan, where Russia’s 201st Division has been stationed since shortly after the end of World War II, is a perennial whenever Putin and Rahmon meet and with U.S. and other foreign forces withdrawing from Afghanistan. Putin said Russia would “work on strengthening [the bases] and on strengthening the armed forces of Tajikistan.”

    The part about strengthening Tajikistan’s military was certainly noticed in Kyrgyzstan, even if Putin said the strengthening was needed because of increased fighting in Afghanistan. Though both sides in the border fighting took substantial losses, the casualty figures show that Kyrgyz took a worse beating in the fighting with the Tajiks.

    The Kremlin has made many statements about the need for stability in Kyrgyzstan, where Russia also has a military base and where there have been three revolutions since 2005.

    In July 2019, then-Kyrgyz President Almazbek Atambaev met with Putin in Moscow. Atambaev was in the midst of a feud with his successor, President Sooronbai Jeenbekov, but despite technically being under house arrest, Atambaev left Kyrgyzstan on a plane that departed from the Russian military base in Kant.

    At the end of the meeting with Atambaev, Putin referred to the 2005 and 2010 revolutions in Kyrgyzstan: “Kyrgyzstan has endured several serious internal political shocks…at least two,” adding, “the country needs political stability.”

    Putin also said that as part of achieving stability, the people in Kyrgyzstan should “unite around the current president and help him in developing the state.”

    The feud between Atambaev and Jeenbekov did not end and barely two weeks later, elite troops of Kyrgyzstan’s Interior Ministry raided Atambaev’s compound outside Bishkek. After a deadly standoff, Atambaev surrendered and was eventually put in prison.

    Then in October 2020, protests over the results of rigged parliamentary elections ousted Jeenbekov. But Moscow’s relations with the new government of President Sadyr Japarov have been icy.

    Rahmon, on the other hand, has been in power in Tajikistan for nearly 29 years and, for the Kremlin, he represents stability in a country that borders Afghanistan. Russia has put a lot of effort and money into making Tajikistan a country that could hold the line against spillover from Afghanistan.

    However, in his meeting with Rahmon on May 8, Putin also spoke about Tajik migrant laborers in Russia. “I know this is a sensitive issue for Tajikistan,” he said. “A significant volume of support for the families [of migrant laborers] is sent from Russia back home [to Tajikistan].”

    That is true also for Kyrgyzstan. Hundreds of thousands of citizens of Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan work in Russia and send money back to their families. Without these funds the economies of both countries would collapse, and the resulting economic decline would fuel social unrest.

    By promising to lend further help to Tajikistan’s military, Putin might be sending a message to Kyrgyz authorities to forget about any thoughts of renewing aggression along the border with Tajikistan, and by mentioning the billions of dollars migrant laborers send back, he sends a message to both countries about the potential leverage Russia can employ against Tajikistan — or Kyrgyzstan — if either side takes measures along their common border that destabilize the situation.

    Offering Condolences, Aid

    While the Kremlin needs to maintain some sort of balancing act, other countries do not. Again, no country or international organization has come out on the side of either Kyrgyzstan or Tajikistan. But some have sent messages of sympathy over losses from the fighting.

    Kazakh President Qasym-Zhomart Toqaev phoned President Japarov on May 1 to express his condolences to the victims of the fighting in the southern Batken Province, and to say Kazakhstan was ready to render humanitarian aid to Kyrgyzstan.

    Toqaev also spoke with Rahmon, who reportedly “informed [Toqaev] in detail” about the history of the border conflict and the current situation. Toqaev also offered to help mediate between Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan and is scheduled to visit Dushanbe on May 19-20.

    On May 4, Turkmen Foreign Minister Rashid Meredov phoned Kyrgyz counterpart Ruslan Kazakbaev to offer Turkmenistan’s condolences “to family and friends of the deceased citizens of Kyrgyzstan.”

    That same day, Armenian Foreign Minister Ara Ayvazyan phoned Kazakbekov with the same message. Ayvazyan also spoke with Tajik Foreign Minister Sirojiddin Muhriddin on May 4, but reports did not mention if Ayvazyan expressed any condolences for Tajik losses.

    Japarov spoke with Putin on May 10 and the two reportedly discussed the recent fighting.

    Putin promised to provide humanitarian aid for Kyrgyzstan, but a phone call is not the same as two days of meetings in Moscow, even though many of the details of the Putin-Rahmon talks — particularly their discussion of the fighting along the border — remain unknown.

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.

  • Turkmen Leader Pardons Hundreds Of Inmates, Including Jehovah’s Wintesses

    Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov has pardoned hundreds of inmates on the occasion of a religious holiday, including jailed Jehovah’s Witnesses.

    Berdymukhammedov was quoted on May 9 as saying that the pardons marked the Night of Revelation, an important stage during the holy month of Ramadan which is currently being observed by Muslims around the world.

    State media outlets reported that 1,035 inmates were released from prisons around the country on May 9, including 982 Turkmen nationals and 53 foreigners.

    A spokesman for the Jehovah’s Witnesses, Jarrod Lopes, told RFE/RL that 16 followers of the denomination, who had been sentenced to prison terms for refusing to serve in the Turkmen armed forces due to their faith, were among the released inmates.

    Turkmenistan’s laws oblige all men between 18 and 27 years of age to serve in the armed forces for two years. Failing to serve is punishable by up to two years in prison.

    Berdymukhammedov’s predecessor, Saparmurat Niyazov, issued similar amnesty decrees once a year during Ramadan.

    Berdymukhammedov, an authoritarian ruler who controls all aspects of Turkmen society, has issued such decrees several times a year, usually on the eve of state holidays.

    Such acts usually do not cover political prisoners.

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.

  • Turkmen WWII Veterans ‘Must Pay For Gifts’ They’ll Receive From President On Victory Day

    ASHGABAT — World War II veterans in the isolated Central Asian nation of Turkmenistan have been ordered to pay for the gifts they are scheduled to receive on behalf of the authoritarian President Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov at a Victory Day commemoration marked annually on May 9 in a majority of former Soviet republics.

    RFE/RL correspondents report from the eastern region of Lebap that local authorities ordered the war veterans and the veterans of labor during the war to collect money for their own gifts.

    Last year, authorities in the tightly controlled former Soviet republic ordered the veterans to pay for gifts from the president and medals they received for the 75th anniversary of victory in World War II.

    Several people told RFE/RL on condition of anonymity that the amounts requested by the authorities were much higher than the price of the gifts the veterans received from the president last year.

    The amount of money and the prices of the gifts for this year remain unclear.

    Before 2020, the government gave the veterans 200 manats ($55 at the current official exchange rate and $5.5 at the black market rate) each year on Victory Day as a mark of appreciation for their WWII service.

    Authorities in neighboring Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan said earlier that war veterans and veterans of labor during the war will receive equivalents of $950 and $2,350 respectively on May 9.

    Russian authorities announced this week that war veterans will receive 10,000 rubles ($135) each on Victory Day this year.


    Turkmenistan has been caught up in an economic crisis in recent years despite being home to the world’s fourth-largest proven natural gas resources.

    The coronavirus pandemic has worsened the situation, though the Turkmen government has denied both the economic crisis and the presence of COVID-19 in the country despite substantial evidence otherwise.

    According to Human Rights Watch, Berdymukhammedov, “his relatives and their associates control all aspects of public life, and the authorities encroach on private life.”

    Turkmen regional authorities recently issued an order saying that lines at state stores could be no longer than four people long after the president’s son publicly said that “crowds near stores discredit” his father.

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.

  • Majlis Podcast: From Gas Riches To Food Lines In Turkmenistan

    Turkmenistan has the fourth-largest reserves of natural gas in the world and many years ago was touted by its first president as being destined to become a second Kuwait.

    Turkmenistan has now become a country where people stand in long lines for rations of bread, dig through garbage for scraps and things they might possibly be able to sell, while the government celebrates horses and dogs.

    Turkmenistan’s economy has been in dire shape for more than half a decade now and the standard of living for the country’s people continues to drop.

    And recently, current President Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov has been guiding his son Serdar up the hierarchy of the government leading to speculation the presidency will be passed from father to son and the mismanagement that characterizes the Turkmen government will continue for another generation.

    On this week’s Majlis Podcast, RFE/RL Media-Relations Manager Muhammad Tahir moderates a discussion that looks at the deterioration of Turkmenistan.

    This week’s guests are: from the Netherlands, Ruslan Myatiev, the head of the Turkmen.news website; from Prague, Farruh Yusupov, the director of RFE/RL’s Turkmen Service, known locally as Azatlyk; and Bruce Pannier, the author of RFE/RL’s Qishloq Ovozi blog.

    Listen to the podcast above or subscribe to the Majlis on iTunes or on Google Podcasts.

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.

  • Majlis Podcast: From Gas Riches To Food Lines In Turkmenistan

    Turkmenistan has the fourth-largest reserves of natural gas in the world and many years ago was touted by its first president as being destined to become a second Kuwait.

    Turkmenistan has now become a country where people stand in long lines for rations of bread, dig through garbage for scraps and things they might possibly be able to sell, while the government celebrates horses and dogs.

    Turkmenistan’s economy has been in dire shape for more than half a decade now and the standard of living for the country’s people continues to drop.

    And recently, current President Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov has been guiding his son Serdar up the hierarchy of the government leading to speculation the presidency will be passed from father to son and the mismanagement that characterizes the Turkmen government will continue for another generation.

    On this week’s Majlis Podcast, RFE/RL Media-Relations Manager Muhammad Tahir moderates a discussion that looks at the deterioration of Turkmenistan.

    This week’s guests are: from the Netherlands, Ruslan Myatiev, the head of the Turkmen.news website; from Prague, Farruh Yusupov, the director of RFE/RL’s Turkmen Service, known locally as Azatlyk; and Bruce Pannier, the author of RFE/RL’s Qishloq Ovozi blog.

    Listen to the podcast above or subscribe to the Majlis on iTunes or on Google Podcasts.

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.

  • The Steepest Declines In Democracy

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.

  • Turkmen President Extends Penchant For White To Car Detailing

    ASHGABAT — Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov’s penchant for white is well known among drivers in the Central Asian nation.

    For years exporters have been told to ship white automobiles only, while those who already had cars that weren’t white were told to paint them in the color that has long been a feature of the carefully constructed personality cult of Berdymukhammedov.

    Now, RFE/RL correspondents say, Berdymukhammedov wants all detailing on cars — including radiator grilles and light frames — in the tightly controlled Central Asian nation to be painted white as well.

    The correspondents said that local authorities in the eastern Lebap region began demanding the new requirement a week ago, prompting locals to complain that the changes have given traffic police yet another reason to demand bribes.

    Under Berdymukhammedov’s rule, the isolated nation’s capital, Ashgabat, has been draped in white marble. He is often seen in public or shown on television riding white stallions, dressed in white amid white carpets, holding white doves or white flowers.

    The official explanation for the request, however, is that dark colors attract and absorb more sun and heat in Turkmenistan’s subtropical desert climate.

    Government critics and human rights groups say Berdymukhammedov has suppressed dissent and made few changes in the secretive country since he came to power after the death of autocrat Saparmurat Niyazov in 2006.

    Like his late predecessor, Berdymukhammedov has relied on subsidized prices for basic goods and utilities to help maintain his grip on power.

    According to Human Rights Watch, Berdymukhammedov, “his relatives and their associates control all aspects of public life, and the authorities encroach on private life.”

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.

  • Turkmen Succession Speculation As Son Of Leader Takes The Reins For National Horse Day

    The 39-year-old son of Turkmenistan’s autocratic leader oversaw festivities surrounding a national holiday celebrating local horse and dog breeds, as speculation grows over potential hereditary succession in the secretive Central Asian state.

    President Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov, 66, has appointed his son Serdar to a number of top positions this year, making him the second-most powerful figure in the country.

    In a symbolic move earlier this month, Serdar replaced his father as head of the national horse association and was named “honored dog breeder of Turkmenistan.”

    The local Akhal-Teke horse and Alabai sheepdog play a prominent role in state propaganda, with monuments in the capital Ashgabat devoted to them and untold funds spent on promoting their breeding.

    Earlier this year, Berdymukhammedov ordered a national holiday for the Alabai to be celebrated on the last Sunday in April when the country marks the day of the Akhal-Teke horse.

    In the past, President Berdymukhammedov led events surrounding the holiday at an elaborate horse track in Ashgabat, in some years participating in races, showing off his horseback skills, and handing out awards to breeders.

    The Alabai sheepdog is revered in Turkmenistan.


    The Alabai sheepdog is revered in Turkmenistan.

    For the first time on April 25, state television showed Serdar replace his father’s role in celebrating the Turkmen horse, which the media used in previous years to glorify the president.

    It comes just days after Serdar topped the evening news for the first time as media showed him opening a state building housing associations that he heads promoting the Akhal-Teke horse and Alabai sheepdog.

    Usually Turkmenistan’s evening news is entirely devoted to the latest activities of the president.

    It’s unclear why the elder Berdymukhammedov has been taking a back seat in recent days, but it comes as he is mourning the death of his 89-year-old father, a former policeman and educator. That has added an additional layer of speculation that the autocratic leader may be thinking more about his legacy and succession.

    In February, the younger Berdymukhammedov received three promotions, becoming deputy premier, a member of the powerful security council, and the auditor general.

    Turkmenistan does not have a prime minister, with the elder Berdymukhammedov already president, speaker of the upper house of parliament, and head of government of a state built around his cult of personality.

    With reporting by RFE/RL’s Turkmen Service and AFP

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.

  • Majlis Podcast: The Threat To Religious Freedom In Central Asia

    The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) just released its annual report that named Tajikistan and Turkmenistan as “countries of particular concern” and recommended Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan be placed on the U.S. State Department’s Special Watch List, a list Uzbekistan was removed from in December 2020.

    Governments in Central Asia have worked since independence to increase control over religion in their countries and many groups and members of different faiths have been persecuted and denied registration. Some believers have been imprisoned, particularly Muslims, whom the governments of these countries seem to fear the most.

    On this week’s Majlis podcast, RFE/RL Media-Relations Manager Muhammad Tahir moderates a discussion about religious freedom and the lack thereof in Central Asia.

    This week’s guests are: from Washington, Nury Turkel, commissioner at the USCIRF and also a senior fellow at the Hudson Institute; from Oslo, Norway, Felix Corley, the editor of the Forum 18 News Service, an agency monitoring religious freedom in the former Soviet republics and Eastern Europe; from Warsaw, Poland, Muhamadjon Kabirov, the president of the Foundation for Intercultural Integration, the chief editor at Azda TV, and formerly the personal assistant of the chairman of the Islamic Renaissance Party of Tajikstan; and Bruce Pannier, the author of RFE/RL’s Qishloq Ovozi blog.

    Listen to the podcast above or subscribe to the Majlis on iTunes or on Google Podcasts.

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.

  • Majlis Podcast: The Threat To Religious Freedom In Central Asia

    The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) just released its annual report that named Tajikistan and Turkmenistan as “countries of particular concern” and recommended Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan be placed on the U.S. State Department’s Special Watch List, a list Uzbekistan was removed from in December 2020.

    Governments in Central Asia have worked since independence to increase control over religion in their countries and many groups and members of different faiths have been persecuted and denied registration. Some believers have been imprisoned, particularly Muslims, whom the governments of these countries seem to fear the most.

    On this week’s Majlis podcast, RFE/RL Media-Relations Manager Muhammad Tahir moderates a discussion about religious freedom and the lack thereof in Central Asia.

    This week’s guests are: from Washington, Nury Turkel, commissioner at the USCIRF and also a senior fellow at the Hudson Institute; from Oslo, Norway, Felix Corley, the editor of the Forum 18 News Service, an agency monitoring religious freedom in the former Soviet republics and Eastern Europe; from Warsaw, Poland, Muhamadjon Kabirov, the president of the Foundation for Intercultural Integration, the chief editor at Azda TV, and formerly the personal assistant of the chairman of the Islamic Renaissance Party of Tajikstan; and Bruce Pannier, the author of RFE/RL’s Qishloq Ovozi blog.

    Listen to the podcast above or subscribe to the Majlis on iTunes or on Google Podcasts.

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.

  • U.S. Report Says Russia Among ‘Worst Violators’ Of Religious Freedom

    An independent, bipartisan advisory body has reiterated its call for the U.S. State Department to add Russia to its register of the world’s “worst violators” of religious freedom, a blacklist that already includes Iran, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and six other countries.

    The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), created by Congress to make recommendations about global religious freedom, proposes in its annual report released on April 21 that Russia, India, Syria, and Vietnam be put on the “countries of particular concern” list, a category reserved for those that carry out “systematic, ongoing, and egregious” violations of religious freedoms.

    The blacklisting paves the way for sanctions if the countries included do not improve their records.

    Countries recommended for the State Department’s special watch list, meaning there are still “severe” violations of religious freedom there, include Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, and Uzbekistan.

    The USCIRF report says that “religious freedom conditions in Russia deteriorated” last year, with the government targeting religious minorities deemed to be “nontraditional” with fines, detentions, and criminal charges.

    A total of 188 criminal cases alone were brought against the banned Jehovah’s Witnesses, while there were 477 searches of members’ homes, with raids and interrogations including “instances of torture that continue to go uninvestigated and unpunished.”

    For decades, the Jehovah’s Witnesses have been viewed with suspicion in Russia, where the dominant Orthodox Church is championed by President Vladimir Putin.

    In 2017, Russia outlawed the religious group and labeled it “extremist,” a designation the State Department has called “wrongful.”

    ‘Made-Up Charges’

    Russia’s anti-extremism law was also used to “persecute religious minorities, particularly Muslims,” the report added.

    In Russia’s region of the North Caucasus, “security forces acted with impunity, arresting or kidnapping persons suspected of even tangential links to Islamist militancy as well as for secular political opposition,” it said.

    In occupied Crimea, the enforcement of Russia’s “repressive” laws and policies on religion resulted in the prosecution of peaceful religious activity and bans on groups that were legal in the peninsula under Ukrainian law. At least 16 Crimean Muslims were sentenced to prison terms on “made-up charges of extremism and terrorism,” the report said.

    In Iran, the government escalated its “severe repression”” of religious minorities and continued to “export religious extremism and intolerance abroad,” according to the report, which cites “scores” of Christians being “arrested, assaulted, and unjustly sentenced to years in prison.”

    The government also continued to arrest Baha’is and impose lengthy prison sentences on them, with between 50 and 100 followers of the Baha’i sect reported to be in prisons in Iran during the past year.

    The USCIRF says religious freedom conditions also worsened in Pakistan, with the government “systematically” enforcing blasphemy laws and failing to protect religious minorities from “abuses by nonstate actors.”

    It cites a “sharp rise in targeted killings, blasphemy cases, forced conversions, and hate speech targeting religious minorities” including Ahmadis, Shi’a, Hindus, Christians, and Sikhs.

    Abduction, forced conversion to Islam, rape, and forced marriage “remained an imminent threat for religious minority women and children,” particularly among the Hindu and Christian faiths.

    In Turkmenistan, religious freedom conditions “remained among the worst in the world and showed no signs of improvement,” according to the report.

    The government continued to “treat all independent religious activity with suspicion, maintaining a large surveillance apparatus that monitors believers at home and abroad.”

    “Restrictive state policies have ‘virtually extinguished’ the free practice of religion in the country, where the government appoints Muslim clerics, surveils and dictates religious practice, and punishes nonconformity through imprisonment, torture, and administrative harassment,” the report said.

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.

  • Outspoken Critic Of Turkmen Government Says She Is Under Pressure In Turkey

    A Turkmen activist and outspoken critic of the tightly controlled Central Asian nation’s government who resides in Istanbul says she has come under pressure in Turkey ahead of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s visit to Ashgabat.

    Dursoltan Taganova told the Moscow-based Memorial human rights group on April 20 that she was summoned to Turkey’s immigration service last week, where she was warned that she may face problems with her residency unless she stops her political activities.

    According to Taganova, during the questioning on April 15, a Turkish immigration official asked her about her relatives, permanent address, her request for political asylum, and the reasons for her being critical of the Turkmen government.

    “They told me: ‘Stop your presentations on the Internet. That is what the Turkish government needs. We do not want you to have problems with your residency here’,” Memorial cited Taganova as saying.

    Taganova also said that Turkish officials made it clear that they were monitoring her correspondence with other bloggers and their online presentations criticizing the Turkmen government.

    She added that several days ago her TikTok account was blocked after she used it for her blog about economic problems in Turkmenistan.

    Last July, Taganova, along with dozens of other Turkmen, mostly migrant workers, was arrested in Istanbul on charges of violating coronavirus restrictions.

    She and others were detained just hours before they planned to hold a rally in front of the Turkmen Consulate in Istanbul to criticize Ashgabat’s inadequate response to the pandemic and to call for President Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov’s resignation.

    Most of the detainees were released about five hours later, but Taganova was remanded in custody as Turkish authorities wanted to deport her back to Turkmenistan.

    She was released in October after a group of 11 human rights organizations urged Turkish authorities not deport her, saying she would face arbitrary arrest and torture if she was returned to Turkmenistan.

    Protests against Berdymukhammedov were staged for several months last year by Turkmen citizens residing in Turkey, the United States, and Northern Cyprus.

    Government critics and human rights groups say Berdymukhammedov has suppressed dissent and made few changes in the restrictive country since he came to power after the death of autocrat Saparmurat Niyazov in 2006.

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.

  • Turkmenistan’s Authoritarian Leader Expands Grip On Power

    ASHGABAT — Turkmenistan’s authoritarian president, Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov, who is also the head of the government in the tightly controlled state, has added another title to his name: the speaker of the newly established upper chamber of parliament, the Halk Maslahaty (People’s Council).

    State media in the extremely isolated former Soviet republic reported on April 14 that Berdymukhammedov was “elected to the post by secret ballot” by the chamber’s members.

    During the session, Berdymukhammedov appointed eight additional members to the Halk Maslahaty, bringing the total number of members to 56.

    The other 48 members of the upper chamber were “elected” in late March.

    With a cult of personality around the 63-year-old authoritarian ruler, dissent is not tolerated in the Central Asian state and all media is under strict state control.

    With the exception of turning the parliament into a two-chamber institution, other details of the constitutional changes that Berdymukhammedov signed into the law in September 2020 remain largely unknown.

    Berdymukhammedov initiated the constitutional changes in 2019 and led a commission he established that prepared a bill of amendments.

    The Halk Maslahaty was created in 2017 as a separate entity on the basis of the Council of Elders. Berdymukhammedov was the body’s chairman.

    Critics have said that Berdymukhammedov plans to use the constitutional amendments to secure his lifetime presidency and to pass it on to his son and grandchildren.

    Before the bill was signed into law last year, dozens of Turkmen citizens held rallies in Washington, as well as in the cities of Houston and Pittsburgh, protesting the plan.

    Government critics and human rights groups say Berdymukhammedov has suppressed dissent and made few changes in the restrictive country since he came to power after the death of autocrat Saparmurat Niyazov in 2006.

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.

  • Currency Collapse Mirrors Turkmenistan’s Extreme Economic Woes

    When the exchange rate of Turkmenistan’s national currency, the manat, fell to 40 to the dollar on the black market on April 3, it was more than 11 times the long-standing official rate of 3.5 manats per dollar.

    It was also an all-time low for the troubled Central Asian country’s beleaguered currency.

    The manat’s weak rate on the black market — reported by RFE/RL’s Turkmen Service (known locally as Azatlyk) — parallels the dire economic situation in Turkmenistan — a situation that has severely deteriorated compared to January 2015, when the government originally devalued the manat from 2.85 to 3.5 to the dollar, but also gotten noticeably worse this year.

    The exchange rate on March 26 was between 33 to 33.5 manats, so in roughly one week it had lost more than 20 percent of its value on the black market, an exchange rate that is generally seen as a far more accurate reflection of the manat’s real value.

    It is illegal to trade money on the black market in Turkmenistan and during the last few years government restrictions have made it increasingly more difficult to acquire hard currency.

    Despite The Resources…

    Turkmenistan is rich in natural gas, with the fourth-largest reserves in the world, and has a relatively small population generously estimated to amount to 6 million people.

    But Turkmen authorities put too much faith in the sale of gas as a reliable source of revenue for the country and discovered too late that simply having the gas does not guarantee a bright financial future: it still has to be effectively exploited and sold.

    Officially, the government says the average monthly salary in the country is 1,200 to 1,400 manats ($350-$400 at the official rate), which would make it one of the highest in all of Central Asia, behind only Kazakhstan. But that’s at the artificial official exchange rate that hasn’t changed in more than six years. Instead, Turkmen are among the poorest people in the region.

    The government offers many basic goods at subsidized prices in state stores, which should make it easier for people to buy enough food.

    Explosion In Food Prices

    But on February 25 the cost of sugar in state stores suddenly increased from seven to nine manats per kilogram. Cooking oil went from 13 to 19 manats and chicken legs from 10 to 16 manats per kilogram.

    Those lower, subsidized prices were in place for several years, going back to when the black-market rate was about 4 manats to the dollar. The sudden, sharp inflation in prices was a shock to many who have seen other unexplained price increases in recent years.

    Such food staples are also usually available in private stores where sugar, for example, reportedly sells for about 23 manats per kilogram, which is difficult for many Turkmen to afford. And the high inflation in recent weeks has hit virtually all food staples in the country.

    People line up outside a grocery in the Lebap region.


    People line up outside a grocery in the Lebap region.

    The Turkmen.news website reported on March 23 that the price of 1 kilogram of beef at private stores in Mary Province was 75 manats, in Turkmenabad — the provincial capital of the eastern Lebap Province — the price was 70 manats. In the western Balkan Province, beef cost 65 manats, and in the northern Dashoguz Province a kilogram cost between 55 and 60 manats.

    Turkmen.news reported on February 1 that two bazaars in the capital, Ashgabat, appeared to be out of potatoes, which usually sell for a state-regulated price of between 15 to 17 manats per kilogram.

    Such outages are no longer unusual in Turkmenistan, as people have learned to go without certain foods for periods of time. But Turkmen.news added that merchants kept potatoes behind the counter that they were willing to sell in unlimited quantities for 25 manats per kilo.

    Since January 12, state stores in Mary Province have required customers to show documents that prove the number of family members before selling them bread. In order to obtain such documents, people had to go to their local administrations, where officials demanded that all utility bills were paid before issuing the necessary documents.

    Residents of the eastern city of Turkmenabat wait to buy flour from state shops.


    Residents of the eastern city of Turkmenabat wait to buy flour from state shops.

    In Lebap Province in late January, state stores were reportedly limiting customers to two loaves of bread per family, per visit.

    Azatlyk reported in early April that state stores in Ashgabat were out of flour and often had no bread, with some state stores in Mary Province having no bread for sale for three weeks at a time.

    Long, Long Lines

    Lines have formed outside many state stores in recent years, especially those selling bread, which begin hours before the shops open, as people who cannot afford to buy at private stores try to purchase subsidized goods before they run out.

    Even before the long lines for food, there were queues snaking out from automated bank machines, the only place people can get cash using their bank cards. Unfortunately, just as with the goods at state stores, there is a very limited supply of money that usually runs out quickly, with strict limits placed on the amount one person is allowed to withdraw.

    The authorities tried years ago to transform Turkmenistan into a cashless society, but many stores and nearly all bazaars still don’t have the equipment needed to conduct transactions using bank cards.

    People wait for an ATM to start working in Baharden in August 2020.


    People wait for an ATM to start working in Baharden in August 2020.

    None of the shortages and associated lines for scarce goods existed in Turkmenistan before 2015 and they appear to concern the authorities. Police routinely disperse people forming lines and generally discourage citizens from waiting in them.

    Officials never provide unemployment figures, but several analysts believe it was at least 50 percent of the workforce before the economic problems started six year ago and, after dismissals and layoffs in recent years due to the ailing economy, the unemployment rate is thought to be much higher.

    Garbage Picking To Survive

    Some people are now so poor that they have resorted to rummaging through garbage in the hopes of finding food scraps or something that might be sold for small change, like paper or plastic that can be recycled.

    Such activity would have been unthinkable just two or three years ago.

    Azatlyk reported in January that in the city of Mary, women and children are increasingly seen digging through the trash or, in some cases, intercepting people about to dump their garbage and asking if they can have it with the promise they will properly dispose of everything they do not take.

    A woman picks through garbage cans in Ashgabat.


    A woman picks through garbage cans in Ashgabat.

    By March, police in Mary seemed to have accepted that they could not hold back the tide and, according to Azatlyk, lectured people digging through the trash, photographed them, and took down their personal details. Some even advised people searching through garbage to buy vests like city workers wear to be less conspicuous.

    Azatlyk also reported an increase in the number of children with water buckets and towels waiting along roadsides to wash stopped cars in the hope of receiving small change in return.

    An Azatlyk correspondent noted that there were children of kindergarten age who, when asked why they were not in school, replied that they had never gone to kindergarten. Some older siblings explained that their families did not have the money needed to send them to school.

    One 12-year-old girl said she and others “go every day to the Green Bazaar and beg for money. Last week police chased us away and yelled at our mom.”

    “They told [our mother] that if they ever saw us again they would put us in a jail for minors…and [she] told them to put us in jail and her too, because at least we would be fed in jail,” the girl continued.

    No Virus Here

    The global spread of the coronavirus has only made the economic situation in Turkmenistan worse, compounded by the government’s laughable insistence that the virus has not infected a single person in the country.

    Though a national vaccination program has recently started, officials have taken few real measures to protect the population from COVID-19.

    Nonetheless, medical workers have quietly and without any special recognition continued to carry out their duties that included the increasing hospitalization of patients.

    Some health-care workers expected they might receive some compensation for their difficult, longer work, and for staying quiet about those with coronavirus-like symptoms in their care. Instead, their salaries were reportedly cut by almost 20 percent at the start of 2021.

    Despite the grim first months of this year, authoritarian President Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov and his government have continued to do what they have been doing since economic problems started to bite in 2015: claim that the country’s economy is forging ahead and drawing their attention somewhere else, often something insipid.

    For example, Berdymukhammedov in recent weeks has been checking up on preparations for upcoming beauty contests — for horses and the Turkmen alabai dog. Both competitions are scheduled for late April, with state employees being forced to volunteer their time and donate money from their salaries for the events.

    Diminishing Value

    Tracking the value of the “gift” the president gives women every year to mark International Women’s Day on March 8 is a monitor of how bad the manat is doing on the black market.

    In 2015, Berdymukhammedov presented each woman in the country with 40 manats, about $11.50 at the official rate and, in 2015, it would have still been worth more than $10 on the black market.

    In 2016, the same 40 manats would have traded for about $8 on the black market.

    In 2017, 40 manats was worth about $6. A year later it would get you about $3.

    The president decided in 2019 to increase the International Women’s Day gift to 60 manats, about $17 at the official rate, but only $3.5 on the black market then.

    Last year, 60 manats on Women’s Day was worth about $3 on the black market and this year it was not quite $2 and, by month’s end, was closer to $1.5.

    In October 2020, the government increased the minimum monthly wage to 957 manats, which at the black-market rate as of April 3 this year is some $24.

    For those making the official monthly 1,400-manat average salary, it is worth about $35, which would make Turkmen the poorest people in Central Asia.

    Radio Azatlyk contributed to this report

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.

  • Governments In Europe, Central Asia Used Pandemic To Clamp Down On Human Rights, Amnesty International Report Says

    Amnesty International says some measures to tackle the coronavirus pandemic have aggravated existing patterns of abuses and inequalities in Europe and Central Asia, where a number of governments used the crisis “as a smokescreen for power grabs, clampdowns on freedoms, and a pretext to ignore human rights obligations.”

    Government responses to COVID-19 “exposed the human cost of social exclusion, inequality, and state overreach,” the London-based watchdog said in its annual report released on April 7.

    According to the report, The State of the World’s Human Rights, close to half of all countries in the region have imposed states of emergency related to COVID-19, with governments restricting rights such as freedom of movement, expression, and peaceful assembly.

    The enforcement of lockdowns and other public health measures “disproportionately” hit marginalized individuals and groups who were targeted with violence, identity checks, quarantines, and fines.

    Roma and people on the move, including refugees and asylum seekers, were placed under discriminatory “forced quarantines” in Bulgaria, Cyprus, France, Greece, Hungary, Russia, Serbia, and Slovakia.

    Law enforcement officials unlawfully used force along with other violations in Belgium, France, Georgia, Greece, Italy, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Poland, Romania, and Spain.

    In Azerbaijan, arrests on politically motivated charges intensified “under the pretext” of containing the pandemic.

    In countries where freedoms were already severely circumscribed, last year saw further restrictions.

    Russian authorities “moved beyond organizations, stigmatizing individuals also as ‘foreign agents’ and clamped down further on single person pickets.”

    Meanwhile, authorities in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan adopted or proposed new restrictive laws on assembly.

    Belarusian police responded to mass protests triggered by allegations of election fraud with “massive and unprecedented violence, torture and other ill-treatment.”

    “Independent voices were brutally suppressed as arbitrary arrests, politically motivated prosecutions and other reprisals escalated against opposition candidates and their supporters, political and civil society activists and independent media,” the report said.

    Across the region, governments in Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bosnia-Herzegovina, France, Hungary, Kazakhstan, Poland, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Tajikistan, Turkey, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan “misused existing and new legislation to curtail freedom of expression.”

    Governments also took insufficient measures to protect journalists and whistle-blowers, including health workers, and sometimes targeted those who criticized government responses to the pandemic. This was the case in Albania, Armenia, Belarus, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Hungary, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, Poland, Russia, Serbia, Turkey, Ukraine, and Uzbekistan.

    In Tajikistan and Turkmenistan, medical workers “did not dare speak out against already egregious freedom of expression restrictions.”

    Erosion Of Judicial Independence

    Amnesty International said that governments in Poland, Hungary, Turkey, and elsewhere continued to take steps in 2020 that eroded the independence of the judiciary. This included disciplining judges or interfering with their appointment for demonstrating independence, criticizing the authorities, or passing judgments that went against the wishes of the government.

    In Russia and in “much” of Eastern Europe and Central Asia, violations of the right to a fair trial remained “widespread” and the authorities cited the pandemic to deny detainees meetings with lawyers and prohibit public observation of trials.

    In Belarus, “all semblance of adherence to the right to a fair trial and accountability was eroded.”

    “Not only were killings and torture of peaceful protesters not investigated, but authorities made every effort to halt or obstruct attempts by victims of violations to file complaints against perpetrators,” the report said.

    Human Rights In Conflict Zones

    According to Amnesty International, conflicts in countries that made up the former Soviet Union continued to “hold back” human development and regional cooperation.

    In Georgia, Russia and the breakaway regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia continued to restrict freedom of movement with the rest of the county, including through the further installation of physical barriers.

    The de facto authorities in Moldova’s breakaway Transdniester region introduced restrictions on travel from government-controlled territory, which affected medical provisions to the local population.

    And in eastern Ukraine, both Ukrainian government forces and Russia-backed separatists also imposed restrictions on travel across the contact line, with scores of people suffering lack of access to health care, pensions, and workplaces.

    Last fall’s armed conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan resulted in more than 5,000 deaths and saw all sides using cluster munitions banned under international humanitarian law, as well as heavy explosive weapons with wide-area effects in densely populated civilian areas.

    Both Azerbaijani and Armenian forces also “committed war crimes including extrajudicial execution, torture of captives and desecration of corpses of opposing forces.”

    Shrinking of Human Rights Defenders’ Space

    Amnesty International’s report said some governments in Europe and Central Asia further limited the space for human rights defenders and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) through “restrictive laws and policies, and stigmatizing rhetoric.”

    This “thinned the ranks of civil society through financial attrition, as funding streams from individuals, foundations, businesses and governments dried up as a consequence of COVID-19-related economic hardship.”

    The Kazakh and Russian governments continued moves to silence NGOs through smear campaigns.

    Authorities in Kazakhstan threatened over a dozen human rights NGOs with suspension based on alleged reporting violations around foreign income.

    Peaceful protesters, human rights defenders, and civic and political activists in Russia faced arrests and prosecution.

    In Kyrgyzstan, proposed amendments to NGO legislation created “onerous” financial reporting requirements, while “restrictive new NGO legislation was mooted” in Bulgaria, Greece, Poland, and Serbia.

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.

  • Uzbek Officials Scramble To Spruce Up Neighborhoods, Fearing A Surprise Presidential Visit

    Preparations are in full swing for a presidential visit in the Uzbek city of Jizzakh and its suburbs, where roads are being repaired and walls are being repainted.

    The Jizzakh provincial government has ordered all neighborhood committees to prepare for a “possible” visit by President Shavkat Mirziyoev. “The governor’s office said, ‘The president can arrive at any moment, so be ready,’” one neighborhood committee member told RFE/RL’s Uzbek Service on condition of anonymity.

    Similar preparations for presidential visits have been under way since late March in several other provinces, with the authorities paying particular attention to renovation work in less prosperous residential neighborhoods.

    The work is going on even though there have not been any imminent visits announced by Mirziyoev to Jizzakh or other regions in the days ahead.

    Regional officials have been scrambling to spruce up neighborhoods after Mirziyoev made several unannounced trips to residential neighborhoods — known as “mahallas” — in recent weeks. Some trips resulted in local officials being fired over problems the president reportedly discovered during his visits.

    Mirziyoev has absolute and unchecked power in Uzbekistan, controlling all spheres from politics to business. He can fire local officials or appoint new ones as he pleases.

    During an unannounced visit to a working-class neighborhood in the town of Chirchiq on March 18, video posted online by the president’s office showed Mirziyoev speaking to several residents who were surprised to see him walking through the area.

    Some complained about problems they have in their daily lives such as an aging central heating system, inadequate public transport, and problems with the resident-registration office.

    During an official visit to Ferghana in February, Mirziyoev randomly turned his entourage to the Shodiyona mahalla in a less affluent part of the city, disappointing local officials who had elaborately prepared another area for the president to see.

    His surprise visit to Shodiyona included meetings with residents there and a firsthand inspection of the area’s shoddy infrastructure and dilapidated roads. What Mirziyoev learned from that visit reportedly contributed to his decision to fire the local governor, the chief of police, and the head of the tax office.

    Mirziyoev has said he wants to break from the notorious tradition of excessive preparations ahead of his official visits to regions, where host governors create a facade of prosperity to hide the reality of ordinary residents’ lives.

    Extensive preparations often include refurbishing buildings where the president is scheduled to hold meetings. Trees and flowers are often planted along sidewalks, even during the middle of the winter. Local authorities also mobilize teachers, students, and others to sweep the roads where the president’s motorcade is expected to pass.

    Officials fear being fired by the president if he sees the real state of affairs.


    Officials fear being fired by the president if he sees the real state of affairs.

    Residents of neighborhoods where a presidential visit has been announced are also told to dress appropriately and say all the right words to flatter the guest. Criticism is out of question.

    Instead of trying to tackle problems and address people’s grievances, local authorities often choose the easier option of simply hiding problems.

    ‘I Feel Guilty’

    Mirziyoev first criticized such elaborate preparations in 2018 after a 23-year-old teacher in Samarkand Province was struck and killed by a truck while cleaning a road ahead of a presidential visit.

    The teacher, Diana Yenikeeva, and her colleagues had been ordered by the local government to clear rubbish alongside the highway in Samarkand’s Kattaqurghon district, where Mirziyoev’s motorcade was expected to pass.

    Mirziyoev said he “felt guilty” for the death of the young teacher, who left behind a 2-year-old child. He demanded that local officials put an end to the practice of using public-sector employees as a free labor force.

    Mirziyoev has also warned regional governments against trying to impress him with a Potemkin village, saying he does his homework before each trip. “I come fully informed about the situation on the ground,” Mirziyoev said during a visit to Syrdaryo Province. “But in many places, they create a false show. It makes me sick and very uncomfortable.”

    Central Asian Norm

    In fact, it’s a common practice across Central Asia for local authorities to try to impress a visiting president by concealing the true state of affairs.

    In Tajikistan, ahead of President Emomali Rahmon’s trip to the southern city of Bokhar in March, trees alongside the roads were wrapped with locally produced silk and cotton fabrics at a cost of $4.40 a meter. The average salary of a teacher in Tajikistan is about $100 a month.

    Two men known for criticizing local authorities in the town of Kulob say police keep them locked away whenever Rahmon visits to prevent them from speaking out.

    A Tajik neighborhood gets the presidential pre-treatment.


    A Tajik neighborhood gets the presidential pre-treatment.

    The practice was seen in Turkmenistan when President Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov officially opened a newly constructed village called Berkarar Zaman.

    State TV showed hundreds of people, including many children, claiming they were happy residents of the village and greeting the president with a red carpet ceremony, a concert, and a displays of freshly harvested fruits and vegetables.

    But that turned out to be a fake show with participants bussed in from other regions.

    RFE/RL’s Turkmen Service reported that as soon as Berdymukhammedov left the village, participants in the charade were sent away along with the carpets, the fruit and vegetables, and even a sign containing the name of the village.

    Across Central Asia, similar performances are even put on when relatives of the president visit. In January, journalists in Uzbekistan’s southern city of Qarshi criticized what they described as a week of preparation for a one-day visit by Mirziyoev’s eldest daughter, Saida Mirziyoeva.

    Words Vs Reality

    Since coming to power in 2016, Mirziyoev has been credited with bringing some positive changes to an authoritarian country that had been strictly ruled for 27 years by his predecessor, Islam Karimov.

    Mirziyoev freed hundreds of people who’d been jailed by Karimov’s regime on trumped-up charges of religious extremism. He also removed thousands of people from a Karimov-era blacklist of potential extremists — including journalists, opposition figures, and government critics.

    However, Uzbekistan still doesn’t allow genuine political opposition and the press remains severely restricted.

    On March 31, the newly established Truth And Development opposition party said its activists were attacked by unidentified people as they tried to gather signatures required for the party’s official registration by the Justice Ministry.

    On March 27, Uzbek singer-turned-politician Jahongir Otajonov said he was threatened with bodily harm by three unidentified men after announcing plans to run for president in the October election.

    The Justice Ministry also recently made it a crime to “insult and slander” the president in digital form or online, saying offenders could face up to five years in prison.

    So although the Uzbek president has said he is “tired” of false flattery, Mirziyoev has yet to tolerate genuine criticism of his administration or real political competition.

    RFE/RL’s Uzbek Service contributed to this report

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.

  • Turkmen Currency Slides Sharply To New Lows

    ASHGABAT — Turkmenistan’s already battered currency slid sharply, as black market rates reached 40 manats to the U.S. dollar, down nearly 50 percent since January.

    The manat has been under pressure for months now, a slide blamed in part on a decrease in remittances sent by Turkmen migrant workers from Turkey to their families.

    In mid-January, the manat was trading on the black market for around 27 or 28 to the dollar.

    In recent weeks, however, the currency has slid further, and on April 3, RFE/RL correspondents in the capital Ashgabat reported that the manat had reached 38 to the dollar by midday, and 40 by day’s end.

    The decline has been blamed by experts in part on the recent opening of the Turkmen-Iranian border, which was closed last year due to the coronavirus pandemic.

    The Turkmen government has denied the existence of COVID-19 in the country, despite substantial evidence otherwise.

    The central bank established an official rate of 3.5 manats per dollar in 2015 and has not changed it since. All currency exchange in cash has been banned since January 2016.

    Turkmenistan’s tightly controlled economy has been struggling for some time, with government revenues depleted partly due to unsuccessful energy deals and low global prices for natural gas.

    The Central Asian country sits on some of the world’s largest proven reserves of gas.

    The currency crunch began in March 2020, when the government tightened control over foreign currency after China, the main buyer of Turkmen gas, slashed imports and global energy prices plunged.

    At the time, the central bank ordered banks to pay salaries of employees of foreign companies, organizations, and entities operating in the country, only in manats.

    Last month, President Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov demanded that officials ensure “strict control over the implementation of regulations when converting manat funds into foreign currency at the official rate.”

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.

  • Amid COVID-19 Surge, Kazakhstan Admits First Patients To Sports Arena Converted Into Hospital

    ALMATY, Kazakhstan — Health authorities in Kazakhstan’s largest city have admitted the first patients into a sports stadium that has been converted into a COVID-19 hospital as infection cases have multiplied, officials in Almaty said on March 31.

    The transformed Halyq Arena has 1,000 beds. It is hoped it can alleviate overcrowding spurred by the recent surge in cases.

    It opened as a 3,000-seat, double-domed arena for ice hockey and other events in 2016.

    More than 1,000 new COVID-19 cases have been registered in the past two days in the city, which fell into “red zone” status of the national coronavirus task force.

    Kazakhstan embarked last month on its vaccine campaign, using Russia’s Sputnik V injection, with plans to introduce a nationally produced vaccine later.

    By March 31, the number of registered coronavirus cases in Kazakhstan had reached 244,981, including 3,046 deaths, making it the worst-hit country in Central Asia, according to official figures.

    But the statistics among some of its neighbors strain credulity, including Turkmenistan’s claim that it has had zero COVID-19 cases even as suspicious deaths mount and local health facilities show signs of overcrowding in the tightly controlled country.

    National vaccination programs have begun in Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan in the past week, both with Chinese vaccines.

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.

  • Turkmen Exile Group Says Activists Arrested Over Anti-Government Leaflets

    A foreign-based Turkmen opposition group says security officers in that Central Asian nation have arrested at least two activists over leaflets calling for the resignation of President Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov.

    Murat Gurbanov, the leader of the Democratic Choice of Turkmenistan (DWT), which was founded abroad to avoid repressive policies in the authoritarian former Soviet republic, said in a video statement on YouTube on March 30 that an unspecified number of activist detentions included those of two men: Didar Ashirov and Dovran Gylyjov.

    Gurbanov condemned the arrests, saying the distribution of leaflets criticizing the government is not a crime in Turkmenistan.

    The anti-Berdymukhammedov leaflets and posters had reportedly appeared in the former Soviet republic’s capital, Ashgabat, and other towns and cities in recent weeks.

    RFE/RL correspondents in the northeastern Lebap region reported that police and security forces in the regional capital, Turkmenabat, began interrogating local residents involved in printing businesses in an effort to learn where the posters and leaflets had been printed.

    Meanwhile, in several cities across the country, local authorities have begun installing additional security cameras to monitor streets amid the anti-leaflet campaign.

    Turkmenistan has been facing rising economic problems.

    Despite being rich in natural gas, the country has faced shortages of cash, food, and other necessities in recent years.

    Berdymukhammedov has kept a tight lid on dissent and made few changes in the restrictive country since he came to power following the death of autocrat Saparmurat Niyazov in 2006.

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.

  • Turkmen Parliament’s Upper Chamber Elected First Time After Constituional Reform

    ASHGABAT — Citizens in Turkmenistan have voted in members of the parliament’s upper chamber, the People’s Council, for the first time since constitutional amendments in September 2020 made parliament bicameral.

    State media outlets in the tightly controlled and extremely isolated former Soviet republic said that 112 registered candidates vied for the 48 seats available in the newly established parliamentary chamber, stressing that the elections were “fair” and monitored by “independent” domestic observers.

    With a cult of personality around the 63-year-old authoritarian ruler, dissent is not tolerated in Turkmenistan and all media is under strict state control.

    Voters on March 28 had only two hours to cast ballots, between the hours of 10 a.m. and noon, at six polling stations across the country — one in the capital Ashgabat and five in other regions.

    Turkmen authorities declared within hours of the vote that turnout in the country of 5.8 million people was 98.7 percent of eligible voters.

    Foreign observers were not allowed to monitor the polling stations and no opposition candidates were on the ballot in the Central Asian former Soviet republic, which is considered one of the most repressive countries in the world.

    Results from the balloting have yet to be released.

    With the exception of turning the parliament into the two-chamber institution, other details of the constitutional changes that the Central Asian nation’s authoritarian leader, Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov, signed into law in September remain largely unknown.

    Berdymukhammedov initiated the constitutional changes in 2019 and led a commission he established that prepared a bill of amendments.

    The People’s Council was created in 2017 on the basis of the Council of Elders. Berdymukhammedov was the body’s chairman.

    Critics have said that Berdymukhammedov plans to use the constitutional amendments to secure his lifetime presidency — and for the eventual succession of his son and grandchildren.

    Before the bill was signed into law last year, dozens of Turkmen citizens held rallies in Washington, as well as in the cities of Houston and Pittsburgh, protesting the plan.

    Government critics and human rights groups say Berdymukhammedov has suppressed dissent and made few changes in the restrictive country since he came to power after the death of autocrat Saparmurat Niyazov in 2006.

    Like his late predecessor, Berdymukhammedov has relied on subsidized prices for basic goods and utilities to help maintain his grip on power.

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.

  • China Ships More Goods Via Russian, Central Asian Land Routes As Sea Costs Rise

    Chinese companies have been sending more goods by rail through Russia and Central Asia in recent months as the cost of shipping by sea increases.

    China sent more than 2,000 freight trains to Europe during the first two months of 2021, double the rate a year earlier when the coronavirus first hit, the Financial Times reported.

    An equipment manufacturer in the Yiwu in eastern China told the paper that prices for sea transport have “skyrocketed” since last year as the coronavirus spurred demand in Europe for electronics and other home appliances.

    Meanwhile, sea transportation times have doubled, the manufacturer said.

    An agent providing export services in Shenzhen said that between 20 and 30 percent of her clients had switched from sea to rail.

    Sea transport has become the focus of international attention after a ship became stuck in the Suez Canal, blocking all traffic. The Suez Canal offers the shortest route by sea from Asia to Europe.

    Despite the jump in the use of rail transport, it still accounts for a small fraction of total goods exported from China to Europe. And it may not last.

    The Shenzhen agent said she expected clients to return to shipping routes when the pandemic eased.

    With reporting by the Financial Times

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.