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TURKMENISTAN: The Making of a Failed State Geneva/Vienna, 2 April 2004. On the occasion of the 60th Session of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights, which convenes currently in Geneva, the International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights (IHF) stresses the need to exert further pressure on Turkmenistan, where the human rights situation is dramatically deteriorating. In April 2003, the 59th Session of the UN Commission on Human Rights adopted a resolution on Turkmenistan's human rights record. The resolution, among other things, deplored the treatment of individuals accused of participation in the alleged assassination attempt against President Saparmurat Niyazov on 25 November 2002. It referred to arbitrary arrests and detentions, the absence of the observation of minimum rules of due process, the use of torture or the threat of torture, and closed court proceedings. It also deplored the reluctance of the Turkmen government to cooperate with the OSCE "Moscow Mechanism" that was invoked in order to investigate and collect information on human rights violations in Turkmenistan. The UN Commission inter alia called upon the government to ensure full respect of all basic human rights; to immediately release all prisoners of conscience and bring to justice those responsible for human rights violations; and to fully cooperate with international organizations on human rights questions. In December, the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution on Turkmenistan by an overwhelming majority, reiterating the same concerns. It also urged the government to implement fully the measures set out in Commission on Human Rights resolution and to inform the Commission before its 60th session of the steps being taken in this regard. "Regrettably, the Turkmen government has failed to address any of the concerns raised by the UN Commission on Human Rights. What is more, in 2003 and the first months of 2004, Turkmenistan's human rights record has deteriorated markedly, " said Aaron Rhodes, executive director of the IHF. The new IHF report "Turkmenistan: The Making of a Failed State" describes theses developments.2 The brutal dictatorship in Turkmenistan creates not only a crisis of human rights, but the potential for a humanitarian crisis because of the social problems it has brought with it, including the deterioration of educational standards, drug addiction, the use of child labor, and other problems. In the wake of the alleged assassination attempt against President Niyazov, a massive wave of human rights abuses swept the country, resulting in the arrests of 200-700 opposition activists. Following blatantly arbitrary judicial proceedings (reminiscent of the Stalin era), eight "conspirators" were sentenced to life imprisonment and 51 received sentences ranging from 5 to 25 years. Any political opposition has been excluded from the political process. Turkmenistan has a history of flawed elections and referenda, which have fallen short of all international standards for free and fair elections. Power is concentrated in the hands of President Niyazov, "President for Life, " who nurtures a powerful personality cult that has reached grotesque proportions. The August 2003 constitutional amendments were the latest step to erode any democratic principles. They stripped the National Assembly completely of the little power it still had as the country 's supreme permanent authority. All branches of power -- executive, legislative and judicial --were to be subordinated to the president-led body, the People's Council. The Turkmen government has been restricting free and independent reporting by totally controlling the mass media and through censorship. The police force and the Committee on National Security (KNB, formerly KGB) serve as the authorities' tools to curtail the rights of individuals and their political and civil liberties. The arrest, investigation and trial of those suspected of participation in the alleged assassination attempt of the president in 2002 was accompanied by serious violations of almost all international due process standards: individuals were arrested arbitrarily with no access to legal counsel of their own choice, family members or medical doctor, presumption of innocence was violated, investigations were carried out under pressure from the executive and the presidential administration, suspects were tortured and ill-treated and they neither had access to their case file nor were given the right to an open trial. In many cases television shows were organized presenting the suspects publicly "confessing" their guilt. These shows were obtained by means of torture, humiliation and ill-treatment. Torture and ill-treatment of detainees is more the rule than an exception. The next step was a crackdown on the NGO sector with arrests of civil society activists. In the fall of 2003, a new repressive government campaign was started against both registered civil organizations and initiative groups that had not been officially registered. Turkmenistan is one of the world's most restrictive countries in terms of freedom of religion. Only the Sunni Muslim Board and the Russian Orthodox Church are registered. On 21 October 2003, a new Law On Freedom of Conscience and Religious Organizations was adopted. The educational system of Turkmenistan has markedly deteriorated and has become overtly politicized over the past few years. The goal of education seems to be primarily a means for the government to politically influence individuals. The education system lacks investment on numerous levels: the educational time has been shortened to nine years; new, up-to-date textbooks are unavailable; the teachers' wages have been either drastically reduced or their payment delayed; and there have been mass layouts of non-Turkmen teachers on various grounds. Constitutional rights and freedoms of national minorities are grossly violated. For example, members of national minorities are not allowed to apply for positions at financial and military structures, in the judicial system, or police and security agencies. On 22 April 2003, Turkmenistan repealed the bilateral agreement between Russia and Turkmenistan on dual citizenship giving those who preferred Russian citizenship officially two months time to leave the country. For more information please contact: 1 UN Commission on Human Rights, "Situation of human rights in Turkmenistan, "Commission on Human Rights resolution 2003/11, 51st meeting, 16 April 2003, at http: //www.unhchr.ch/Huridoca.nsf/(Symbol)/E. CN. RES.2003.11. En? Opendocument 2 The report is available at the IHF website: www.ihf-hr.org |
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