24.05.2018

Boris Shikhmuradov Jr.

Starting from May 18th 2018 the import of cotton or products produced with it in whole or in part from Turkmenistan to the United States is halted. The corresponding Withhold Release Order has been published on the U.S.Customs and Border Protection website.

The decision to place such ban was made after the contemplation of the information regarding forced labor in cotton hand-picking in Turkmenistan, provided by Cotton Campaign — an international coalition of human rights and trade union organizations, as well as entrepreneurs and investors who advocate the eradication of child and forced labor in the production of cotton around the world.

“Forced labor in the cotton sector of Turkmenistan is particularly harmful given that it is managed and used by the Government,” Ruslan Myatiev, the head of the Alternative Turkmenistan News project,… >> подробнее

22.05.2018

The Prove They Are Alive campaign

Statement on the International Week of the Disappeared

May 21 to 27 marks the International Week of the Disappeared. On this solemn occasion, the human rights campaign “Prove They Are Alive!” calls upon the government of Turkmenistan to restore the rights of the numerous detainees serving long-term sentences in Turkmenistan’s prisons, about whom no information is available since their imprisonment.

We also call upon the international community to put additional pressure on the government of Turkmenistan to immediately stop this crime. The denial by the Turkmen authorities of its continued heinous practice of disappearing people in prisons and their unwillingness to take any real actions to address this massive humanitarian crisis can no longer be tolerated.

“Prove They Are Alive!” has documented 113 cases of enforced disappearances in Turkmenistan. The total number is likely to be several times higher. Excluding conflict-related disappearances, this is the largest number of enforced… >> подробнее

30.04.2018

Naz Nazar

In this highly isolated Central Asian state, “Turkish schools” guaranteed good education and a relationship with the outside world. But now, they’re the target of attention and repression from the authorities.

An old Turkmen proverb says that if two horses fight, it is the donkey in the middle that will die. This aptly describes the fate of Turkish-Turkmen schools in Turkmenistan, a Central Asian country which has been ruled by an autocratic regime since it gained independence from the Soviet Union in 1991. A few years back, the Turkish schools fell victim to the bitter enmity between Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and US-based Muslim cleric Fethullah Gulen, two former allies turned bitter enemies. The implications of the feud have reached far beyond Turkey’s borders and continue to this day,… >> подробнее