Turkmenistan

Fast Facts

Location: Central Asia

Capital: Ashgabat

Population: 6.03 million (2020)

Government Type: Parliamentary Republic*

Language: Turkmen

Climate: Arid, cold desert

GDP: USD $45.23 Billion (2020)

Human Development Index Rating: 0.715 (Moderate, 2019)

*NOTE: Turkmenistan is considered to be one of the most consolidated authoritarian regimes in the world, with Freedom House assigning it public freedom rankings similar to those of Eritrea and North Korea.

Overview

Turkmenistan is the dictatorship which, likely because it does not particularly generate headlines, the average person does not hear about. It is probably (by Western standards) also one of the strangest societies on Earth in a number of ways - to be discussed further on. For centuries, Turkmen people lived in a number of pastoral, nomadic clans, the three largest of which included the Tekke, Ersari, and Yomut. The ethnic makeup of Turkmenistan today consists largely of Turkmen, but also Russians, Uzbeks, Kazakhs, and Tatars. As with many other Central Asian states (and evident by the flag), it is also a majority Muslim country. Because the Turkmen language belongs to the Turkic language group, it (unlike Uzbek or Kazakh spoken in neighboring countries) is more similar to the Turkish language than any other. A majority of people live in the capital city of Ashgabat, as well as in other cities such as Dasoguz, Balkanabat, and Bayramaly.

History

A statue of Tamerlane, one of the warrior kings of Central Asia. Credit: Phil Bae

Following the neolithic cultural unification of modern-day southern Turkmenistan, the country fell under the control of the Parthian empire in the 4th century CE, before the Turkmen people entered the area as one of the Turkic tribes migrating westward from northern Asian steppes along the Silk Road. As with so many other modern-day countries, by the 13th century the Turkmen had become a part of the Mongol Empire, until becoming independent again in 1405 following the death of Timur. From there, Central Asia was fought over by Persian and Afghan, and later Russian and British, powers during the 17th and 18th centuries. By the mid 19th-century, the Russian Empire had completely conquered much of Central Asia, with Turkmenistan joining in the 1870s. Following the October Revolution that established the USSR, Turkmen people were encouraged to secularise, adopt European-style clothing, and (by 1948) give up nomadic lifestyles. Five decades on, Turkmenistan was one of the last countries to declare independence from a collapsing USSR as it needed the economic and political support it provided. Over the course of the 1990s, Saparmurat Niyazov was appointed Chairman, and later President for life, of Turkmenistan. Niyazov’s cult of personality has effectively crushed democracy in Turkmenistan to date, with his successor (Kurbanguly Berdymukhamedov) taking power in 2007 to this day - with no opposition candidates allowed in his election campaign. Today, however, Niyazov is still known as “Turkmenbashi”, a title which approximately translates to “Father of the Turkmen People”.

Economy

Due to Turkmenistan’s largely arid desert climate, the national economy is based on agricultural production around irrigated oases and the production of fossil fuels. The country’s top exports include crude and refined petroleum, as well as fertilisers, primarily to Uzbekistan, China, Russia, Turkey, and Italy. Since 2000, the Turkmen GDP has steadily risen, with the World Bank indicating that it has grown by USD $43 billion in the past two decades. However, in addition to a reliance on natural resources leaving the economy vulnerable to market shocks, FDI opportunities and business regulation in Turkmenistan remain severely limited. Doing so would allow the economy to grow by privatising state-owned enterprises and putting wealth towards human capitol, particularly outside of Ashgabat. Unfortunately, however, Turkmenistan is believed to be one of the most corrupt countries in the world - a practice which heavily restricts the possibility for finance-generating enterprises to be separated from the state. With civil society (the relationship between the state government and its citizens) being tightly controlled and censored, it is currently unlikely that such changes will come in the near future.

The Personality Cult

A statue of Niyazov in Ashgabat, which rotates to always face the sun. Credit: Martijn Munneke

As previously mentioned throughout this profile, Turkmenistan is one of the most autocratic countries in the world. Freedom House, a Washington DC-based think tank studying social freedom around the world, assigns a freedom score of 2/100, with a political rights score of 0/100, to Turkmenistan (for comparison, the United Kingdom is granted a score of 93/100) - a ranking which places it at the same approximate level as North Korea. Media and civil society are heavily controlled, and dissidents are often imprisoned and tortured - with reports of threats being made even to the relatives of dissidents. The national laws enforced by Berdymukhamedov are as strange as they are strict. Rumors swirl that days and months have been renamed to honour Niyazov and his family, car radios, cigarettes (outside of designated spaces), beards, and opera have been banned, and Ashgabat has completely banned dogs. Hospitals outside of Ashgabat have even been ordered to close down - it is unclear exactly why.

Perhaps the most central part of Niyazov’s and Berdymukhamedov’s regime is the Ruhnama - a book written by Niyazov that forms the cornerstone of post-Soviet Turkmen society. This book contains everything from moral teachings, history, and folklore to constitutional law, religion, and even praises for national symbols such as melons and carpets. Its teachings are mandatory in schools, mosques, and even driving tests. An enormous statue of the book - as well as many other symbols of Turkmen identity - exist in Ashgabat. This statue even opens its pages and plays an audio recording every day at 8PM.

Trivia

-The Darzava Gas Crater, or Gates of Hell, is a 70-meter wide hole that has been on fire for over 50 years due to a Soviet drilling machine accidentally puncturing a natural gas pipeline, then being set alight in order to burn the poisonous fumes out in a project believed to take only a few weeks.

-Turkmenistan is one of the least visited countries in the world, with an estimated tourist count of less than 10,000 people per year. This is due to an extremely difficult visa acquisition situation.

-Turkmenistan holds a variety of rather strange Guinness world records, including (but not limited to) the world’s largest indoor Ferris wheel, the fastest 10m on hind legs by a horse, and the world’s largest cycling awareness lesson.