Category : Turkmenistan
Turkmenistan: Reporter gets five years in prison
A Radio Free Europe correspondent in Turkmenistan has been sentenced to five years in prison. Dovletmurad Yazguliyev was sentenced yesterday on charges of inciting his sister-in-law to attempt to commit suicide. Yazguliyev was detained on 27 September and his family were pressured to sign a statement backing up the charges against him. Yazguliyev and his colleagues believe that the […]
Free Microsoft licences to help combat censorship
Microsoft is extending its program of giving free software licences to non-profit organisations. The initiative was first applied to Russia, after it was discovered that authorities were using software piracy inquiries as a method of suppressing independent media outlets and advocacy groups. The program will now include 500,000 NGOs in Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, […]
Circus reopens in Turkmenistan, but ballet still banned
The circus has finally returned to Ashgabat after a nine-year long absence, following the legacy of previous President Niyazov, who banned the cinema, opera, ballet, lip-synching, gold teeth, long hair and beards for men, as well as renaming all the days of the week and month after members of his family. On Friday, the first circus […]
News staff sacked after insect invasion
Turkmenistan President Kurbanguly Berdymukhamedov fired 30 employees of the main state television channel after a cockroach crawled across the studio desk during the 9pm news programme, Vatan, the news website Kronika Turkmenistan reported on 21 February.