Everyone who keeps upwith the events occuring in Turkmenistan, know about those interdictions which exist here on reception of the information. In particular, there is an interdiction on a subscription of the Russian printed mass-media, the announcement of Russian radio station " Beacon " is switched - off and display of programs of the First channel (ORT) of the Russian TV till 2 o'clock in day is reduced.

 On this last fact it would be desirable to stop in more detail because very few people outside Turkmenistan knows about that absurdity which the censors who are releasing this or that program in an ether reach.

 First, the announcement of the channel of ORT is carried out not on the air, and in record. Second, the choice of programs offered to televiewers is completely unpredictable. Usually, in the beginning there are 10-minute day time "News", then - one - two entertaining not political transfers and in the end, cut down under the discretion all the same censors the next series of the next Brazilian serial. 

From such programs as, for example, " Wait for me " in which should empathize heroes and even to cry, Turkmen television editors protect spectators. Various scandalous currents - shows in general do not have a place on telescreens. However it appears, even in completely harmless, at first sight, programs happen, in opinion of the television censors, unforeseen incidents, from which Turkmen citizens it is necessary, by all means to relieve. Also it is made easily and simply - by scissors. 

Recently documentary film " the Birth of a legend " in which director Vladimir Menshov and involved in creation of favourite in millions televiewers of a film " Moscow does not trust tears " has been shown told about the unknown facts and the moments of shootings. It was necessary to see result of how in sweat of the person censors worked at Turkmen TV that, God forbid! - spectators have not heard such words, as "Soviet", "Lenin", "reorganization", a thawing weather ", "Brejnev"... From lips of participants of film the following phrases were cut out and replaced with emptiness: " the fan of drinking ", " a bottle of vodka ", " library of a name of Lenin ", " Brejnev has found out " and so on. At times because of rough work of censors the sense of an event on the screen was completely lost, and it was not clear, about what in general there is a speech! And then it would be desirable to ask misters of editors: why do you in general show such film or such program from which ruthlessly cut the whole pieces?! 

Even such phrases are cut out from the Brazilian serials, as " the idle woman ", "abortion", " a cancer of a uterus ". And can leave neutral words, like "woman" or "cancer", and that heroes actually speak, it is necessary to guess only. 

Sometimes comic programs are offered to the televiewers. To look similar it is simply impossible, for the performance of humorists and satirists are reduced so, that at all up to laughter. Can it be that because in Turkmenistan it is already the satire for a long time is forgotten? 

So whom and against what television officials preserve? First of all, certainly, the youth, new generation of turkmenies that in their consciousness never were places to such concepts, as " the epoch of Soviet ", " Komsomol construction ", " the first Soviet cosmonaut "; that they to know did not know figures of this epoch... In the second turn, erasing the words close to each representatives of average and senior generation, well remembering both times in Brejnev, and reorganization, censors probably try to etch them from consciousness of people. 

Bashfully muffling words about the relation of floors, mercilessly cutting out from feature films of a stage of kisses or - about, horror! - intimate relations of heroes, holding back about prostitution, drunkenness, narcotisms if heroes argue on these negative phenomena, officials from TV only show thus the sanctimonious essence, but at all do not bring up televiewers. 

It is necessary to add, that work of employees on protection of state secrets in a seal, on radio and in a teleether it is considered as one of the highly paid, and staff reductions in the ranks of censors it is not observed during all last years. 

Besides self-censorship which sits inside at each Turkmen journalist, besides managing departments and each edition supervises editors through which censorship passes each material, not less than two employees of committee on protection of state secrets in a seal. It is possible for itself to present, how many they on national TV observe morals and cleanliness of consciousness of inhabitants of "Golden Age" which has stepped in the country.

Source: Turkment Initiative for Human Rights, *284, 17.05.2006