Case of Ecological Activist Exposes Rift Between Turkmenistan and International Observers
A criminal case against a leading ecological activist has exposed a deep rift between Turkmenistan and other member states of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe. Some experts say Turkmenistan in the wake of the November 2002 assassination attempt against President Saparmurat Niyazov has developed into an "unapologetic bad boy" that now poses a threat to Central Asian stability.
Farid Tukhbatullin was tried, convicted and sentenced within a 4-hour span in a local court in the Turkmen capital of Ashgabat on March 4. The co-chair of the Dashouz Ecological Club, received a three-year jail term in a courtroom that trial observers were prevented from attending. The charges against him stemmed from his participation in an international conference on human rights and democracy in Turkmenistan, which took place in November, prior to the assassination attempt on President Niyozov. [For background see the Eurasia Insight archive].
Some human rights observers say Tukhbatullin's trial and conviction was intended as a slap against the OSCE. The organization's chairman in office (CiO), Dutch Foreign Minister Jaap de Hoop Scheffer, paid a special visit to Ashgabat on March 3, during which he raised human rights concerns with Niyazov and other Turkmen officials. Authorities have carried out a ruthless clampdown since November, including mass arrests, increased surveillance of foreigners and restrictions of foreign travel for Turkmen citizens.
Prior to the visit, ten OSCE member states invoked the "Moscow Mechanism", which is designed to review the human rights practices of a member state. Niyazov has so far declined to cooperate, refusing to appoint a rapporteur who, under Moscow-Mechanism auspices, would help prepare a report on the Turkmen government's post-assassination-attempt crackdown and the denying of visas to the rapportuer nominated by the ten-member coalition.
The timing of the CiO's visit may have been designed to show support for Tukhbatullin, said Erika Dailey, director of the Turkmenistan Project of the New York-based Open Society Institute.
"If there was any inclination to bridge the growing rift, the Turkmen government could have done it with Farid's trial. But it didn't," Dailey said. The conviction is all the more galling because Niyazov offered de Hoop Scheffer assurances during their meeting that Tukhbatullin would "be released soon," according to an OSCE statement.
"Farid's conviction makes it clear that Turkmenistan is the unapologetic bad boy of the OSCE," Dailey added. "Farid's conviction confirms Turkmenistan's status as the unapologetic bad boy of the OSCE. The implications are enormous. President Niyazov's readiness to disregard international opinion on civil society issues is consistant with his unreliability in other spheres, like the development of Caspian Basin energy resources and the campaign against terrorism. Ultimately, Turkmenistan's self-destructive policies will threaten its international alliances at precisely the time when the west needs to rely on them most."
In coverage of de Hoop Scheffer's visit, Turkmen government-controlled media ignored the concerns raised about Ashgabat's human rights behavior. A statement released March 3 by the Turkmen Foreign Ministry assailed foreign coverage of the visit, describing it as "fabrications based on conjectures and apparent falsehoods."
Dailey described Tukhbatullin's conviction as the latest event in a "whole string of retrograde measures." To date he is the only independent non-governmental activist to be jailed as part of the post-assassination-attempt crackdown. Others arrested in the massive security sweep have been either members of opposition organizations, or their direct relatives and associates.
Tukhbatullin was charged with violating two counts of the country's criminal code: article 210, which pertains to illegal border crossing; and article 214, which covers punishment for citizens who do not inform authorities about knowledge of a serious crime. The article 214 charge is connected with his participation at a Moscow conference in early November -- weeks before the assassination attempt, at which Turkmen political, economic and social developments were the main focus of discussion. Two human rights groups sponsored the meeting -- the Memorial Human Rights Center and the International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights.
Prominent Niyazov opponents in exile participated in the Moscow conference, but according to Dailey, who participated in the conference, no one broached the topic of attempting Niyazov's violent overthrow. Turkmen officials claim that participants talked about the assassination attempt during the conference, adding that Tukhbatullin should have been obligated to warn authorities about the conspiracy upon his return to Turkmenistan.
The Attorneys for Tukhbatullin plan to appeal the verdict. A joint statement released March 5 by five prominent Western rights organizations Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, The International Helsinki Federation, The Memorial Human Rights Center and the International League for Human Rights denounced the conviction. The groups said they would contact the UN Deputy High Commissioner on Human Rights, Bertrand Ramcharan, who is scheduled to visit Ashgabat on March 10, and urge him to raise Tukhbatullin's case with Turkmen officials.
"We believe the charges against him were brought solely to punish him for exercising his internationally recognized right to freedom of expression and for his peaceful work as a civil society activist," the joint human rights group statement said.
Sign up for Eurasianet's free weekly newsletter. Support Eurasianet: Help keep our journalism open to all, and influenced by none.