Turkmen Authorities Arrest Civic Activist

(New York, December 26, 2002) — Turkmen authorities should release Farid Tukhbatullin, an environmental activist arrested Monday, Human Rights Watch said today.

Tukbatullin was detained on December 23 in his hometown of Dashauz in northeastern Turkmenistan, and brought to Ashgabat, where he is being held at the Ministry of National Security headquarters. He is a member of the Dashauz Ecological Guardians, a local initiative dedicated to improving the environment in Dashauz and stimulating civic initiatives.

Turkmenistan is one of the most repressive countries in the world. A severe crackdown has been under way since a November 25 assassination attempt on President Saparmurat Niazov.

According to a reliable source, Tukbatullin stands accused of illegally crossing the border into Uzbekistan. Human Rights Watch believes that he is being persecuted for his participation in an early November Moscow conference on the human rights situation in Turkmenistan.

“Farid Tukhbatullin is a dedicated environmentalist. He has done nothing wrong,” said Elizabeth Andersen, executive director of Human Rights Watch’s Europe and Central Asia division. “Only a government as repressive as Turkmenistan’s would arrest an individual for attending a conference.”

Pressure had mounted on Tukhbatullin in the weeks following the Moscow conference. The general crackdown following the assassination attempt may have emboldened the authorities to chase down conference participants.

More than any other post-Soviet country, Turkmenistan resembles the darkest days of the Soviet era. The government tolerates no opposition and crushes critical thinking. Niazov is president for life. There is no free media, and the government has banned opera, ballet, circus and the philharmonic orchestra. The government even closed the Academy of Sciences. Russian orthodoxy and government-approved Sunni Islam are the only religions that may operate houses of worship. Non-Turkmen cultural organizations are banned.

“This is the overwhelmingly hostile atmosphere in which Tukhbatullin worked to improve the environment,” said Andersen. “He is a man of tremendous integrity and courage, and the diplomatic community should work together to ensure that he is not harmed and released immediately.”