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30 September, 2019 / turkmenistan
Slight Relief for Teachers in Eastern Turkmenistan over Cotton Campaign

Slight Relief for Teachers in Eastern Turkmenistan over Cotton Campaign

At least two secondary schools in Turkmenabat are easing up on compulsory participation in the annual cotton campaign, according to teachers at the schools. The teachers used to have to pay three times a week or more to hire cotton pickers, but this season they have to hand over money only once a week. The weekend routine remains the same, though: either the teachers go to pick cotton themselves two Sundays a month, or they give money to hire someone else. Overall teachers shell out between 60 and 90 manats a month ($3.3-5)
07 September, 2019 / turkmenistan
Turkmen activist Gaspar Matalaev released

Turkmen activist Gaspar Matalaev released

Turkmen labor rights activist Gaspar Matalaev walked free from prison on September 6, having served a spurious three-year sentence in full. He is now back home with his family.
07 September, 2019 / turkmenistan
Turkmen Teachers Sent Early to Pick Cotton

Turkmen Teachers Sent Early to Pick Cotton

On Sunday September 1 schoolteachers from Turkmenabat in northeast Turkmenistan were sent to pick cotton. They assembled outside their schools at 6.30 in the morning, having received the instructions from the deputy principals on Friday evening (turkmen.news has screenshots of the messages).
14 August, 2019 / turkmenistan
A hermit nation ruled by an egomaniac: Is Turkmenistan on the brink of collapse?

A hermit nation ruled by an egomaniac: Is Turkmenistan on the brink of collapse?

Men in white fur caps proudly ride horses across the steppe, rows of modern machinery glisten, Barbie-pink flamingos strut before clear blue skies and a white yacht cuts through the turquoise waters of the Caspian Sea.
These are idyllic scenes from a one-minute video promoting the inaugural Caspian Economic Forum, which between August 11 and 12 will see heads of state from Iran, Russia, Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan descend on Awaza, a new resort town that has been touted by Turkmenistan's Foreign Ministry as the country's Las Vegas
01 August, 2019 / turkmenistan
Turkmen Get By on Piecemeal Sales and Cash Withdrawals in Uzbekistan

Turkmen Get By on Piecemeal Sales and Cash Withdrawals in Uzbekistan

The economic crisis in Turkmenistan, caused by the fall in hard currency revenue from gas sales, is forcing residents of the “Motherland of Prosperity” — this is the country’s slogan for 2019 — to keep finding new ways to earn money. Turkmen.news has already written about Turkmen citizens travelling abroad as shuttle traders. Our fellow countrymen have taken crockery and household items to Zhanaozen (Kazakhstan), domestic appliances to Urgench (Uzbekistan), and foodstuffs to Istanbul, while huge bags of Turkmen textiles caused a malfunction in the baggage system at Almaty airport.
22 June, 2019 / turkmenistan

Turkmenistan Remains at Lowest Possible Ranking in US Trafficking in Persons Report

For the fourth year in a row, the Government of Turkmenistan failed to meet the minimum standards to address human trafficking outlined in the 2019 US Trafficking in Persons (TIP) report, resulting in a Tier 3 ranking – the lowest possible ranking.
08 June, 2019 / turkmenistan
Turkmen Struggle to Access their Money as Economic Crisis Bites

Turkmen Struggle to Access their Money as Economic Crisis Bites

It claims to be the Motherland of Prosperity but Turkmenistan’s economy is in chaos and its financial system isn’t working. Many Turkmen begin their day not with a cup of coffee or journey to work, but with a trip to the shops at 6 a.m. to buy a kilo of sugar, as it may disappear from the shelves later, or to stand in line outside the bank.
29 May, 2019 / turkmenistan
The World’s Worst Country for Journalists

The World’s Worst Country for Journalists

Last month the Central Asian nation of Turkmenistan overtook North Korea to become most repressive media environment in the world, according to the Reporters Without Borders annual Press Freedom Index. The media watchdog described the Central Asian nation as a news “black hole” where all media is controlled by the government and where the few independent journalists working for foreign-based news sites have been harassed, arrested, and tortured. Just 15 percent of the country can get online, and even then the version of the internet they have access to is highly censored.
17 March, 2019 / turkmenistan

Independent Journalists Under Pressure in Turkmenistan

The few independent journalists living in Turkmenistan are coming under continuing pressure from the country’s special services. On March 11 Soltan Achilova was detained at passport control at Ashgabat airport and told she does not have the right to leave the country, Chronicles of Turkmenistan reported. The journalist was flying via Istanbul to Tbilisi to take part in a seminar
30 January, 2019 / turkmenistan
Turkmen Cotton Harvest Still Relies on Forced Labor – 2018 Campaign Review

Turkmen Cotton Harvest Still Relies on Forced Labor – 2018 Campaign Review

The production and harvesting of cotton in Turkmenistan remains heavily reliant on a system of forced labor despite the use of mechanical cotton harvesters on some farms and attempts by local authorities to prevent the use of child labor in the cotton fields. Farmers put the problem down to the rigidly centralized agricultural system. It’s the government that tells the farmers what to grow; it’s the government that provides seeds, fertilizers and other supplies. The state even sets dates for the start and finish of the cotton harvest, instead of allowing farmers to decide for themselves when the crop is actually ready.