| I | INTRODUCTION |
Turkmenistan, republic in the southwestern portion of
Central Asia, bordered on the north by Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, on the east by
Uzbekistan and Afghanistan, on the south by Afghanistan and Iran, and on the
west by the Caspian Sea. Ashgabat is Turkmenistan’s capital and largest
city.
In Turkmen, the official language, the name of
the republic is Turkmenistan Respublikasy (Republic of Turkmenistan).
Turkmens constitute the dominant ethnic group. Turkmenistan was formerly the
Turkmen Soviet Socialist Republic (SSR) of the Union of Soviet Socialist
Republics (USSR). It became an independent country in 1991 and adopted its first
post-Soviet constitution in 1992.
| II | LAND AND RESOURCES |
Turkmenistan covers an area of 488,100 sq km
(188,500 sq mi), making it the second largest country in Central Asia, after
Kazakhstan. The entire central part of the country is occupied by one of the
largest sand deserts in the world, the Garagum. About four-fifths of the country
is steppe (semiarid grassy plain) that is part of the southern portion of
the vast Turan lowland.
Most of Turkmenistan lies at an elevation of
500 m (1,640 ft) or less. The Akdzhakaya Depression, located in the north
central part of the country, is the lowest point in the republic at 110 m (360
ft) below sea level. The Köpetdag mountains, which are prone to violent
earthquakes, fringe the Garagum desert along the country’s southern border with
Iran. Along the mountain foothills is a belt of oases, which are fed by mountain
streams.
| A | Rivers and Lakes |
Freshwater resources are scant in
Turkmenistan, and extensive canal systems are crucial conduits for irrigation
and drinking water. The mountain streams of Turkmenistan dissipate upon reaching
the arid sands and parched clay of the Garagum, so Turkmenistan’s only
significant water sources are rivers that originate in other countries. The Amu
Darya, which originates in the mountainous Pamirs region of Tajikistan east of
Turkmenistan and forms part of the country’s border with Uzbekistan, and the
Murgap, which originates in Afghanistan, are the two largest permanent rivers.
Water from the Amu Darya and the Murgap is diverted into the Garagum Canal
(built during the Soviet period) to supply water to the arid southern portions
of Turkmenistan. Other canals divert water from the Amu Darya in the northern
part of the country. The Caspian Sea, a landlocked saltwater lake, forms
Turkmenistan’s entire western border. The most prominent feature along the
Caspian shoreline is the Garabogazköl Gulf, which occupies a sizable portion of
northwestern Turkmenistan.
| B | Plant and Animal Life |
Plant life is sparse in the vast, arid
desert, where only drought-resistant grasses and desert scrub grow. The mountain
valleys in the south support wild grapevines, fig plants, and ancient forests of
wild walnut trees. The mountain slopes are covered with forests of juniper and
pistachio trees. Dense thickets called tugai grow along riverbanks. The
wildlife in the mountains of Turkmenistan includes the caracal (or Persian
lynx), goats, cheetahs, and snow leopards. In the desert, gazelles, foxes, and
wildcats thrive. In the tugai live jackals, wild boar, and the rare pink deer.
Reptiles are abundant and include the Central Asian cobra, the desert monitor (a
large lizard), several species of gecko (a small lizard), and the tortoise.
Migratory birds, such as ducks, geese, and swans, inhabit the Caspian shore
during winter.
| C | Natural Resources |
Turkmenistan has substantial reserves of
oil and natural gas in the Caspian Sea area and in the Garagum desert. Other
natural resources include deposits of coal, sulfur, magnesium, and salt. Only 5
percent of the country’s total land area is cultivated, nearly all of which
(23,000 sq km; 8,880 sq mi) is irrigated.
| D | Climate |
The climate of Turkmenistan is desert
continental, with cold winters and very hot summers. For most of the country,
the average daily temperature in January ranges from -6° to 5°C (21° to 41°F),
while in July it is 27° to 32°C (81° to 90°F). Average annual precipitation
ranges from 80 to 400 mm (3 to 16 in), although two-thirds of the country
receives 150 mm (6 in) or less.
| E | Environmental Issues |
Turkmenistan suffers from a number of
serious environmental problems, many of which stem from decades of economic
mismanagement under Soviet planning. Excessive irrigation has severely degraded
soil and water quality in Turkmenistan. Irrigation of the naturally saline soil
has brought underground salts to the surface, making the soil even more saline
while also making irrigation more necessary. Thus, excessive irrigation has
contributed to desertification (a process whereby arable land becomes desert, or
arid salt flats). In addition, Turkmenistan’s soil has become heavily
contaminated with agricultural chemicals, such as pesticides and herbicides,
that are applied in large doses to cotton crops. These agricultural chemicals
also contaminate the water supply, mainly through irrigation runoff. Untreated
wastewater also pollutes groundwater, although there has been some improvement
in northern Turkmenistan since the 1995 opening of a new water-treatment plant
near Dashhowuz, constructed with aid from the United States. Since the late
1980s environmental awareness has been growing in Turkmenistan. The government
has a ministry in charge of environmental protection, but only a small portion
of the national budget is allocated for this purpose.
Turkmenistan is also involved in a
regional effort to address the problem of the Aral Sea. This saltwater lake in
Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan has shrunk to less than half of its former size since
the early 1960s. The greatest single contributor to the drying of the Aral is
Turkmenistan’s Garagum Canal, which receives more water from the Amu Darya (one
of two inflow sources for the Aral) than any other irrigation structure in the
Aral Sea basin. The drying of the Aral Sea is considered one of the worst
ecological disasters in the world.
| III | THE PEOPLE OF TURKMENISTAN |
Turkmenistan is the least populated of the
five former Soviet republics in Central Asia. In 2008 the country had an
estimated population of about 5,179,571, giving it an average population density
of 11 persons per sq km (27 per sq mi). Settlement is concentrated along rivers,
canals, and other oases; the Garagum desert and the mountains are sparsely
populated. Some 46 percent of Turkmenistan’s population lives in urban areas.
Ashgabat, the capital, is located on the Garagum Canal in south central
Turkmenistan. Other large cities are Chärjew, located on the Amu Darya in the
east, and Dashhowuz, located in the north.
| A | Ethnic Groups |
With Turkmens constituting 77 percent of
the population, Turkmenistan is the most ethnically homogeneous of the Central
Asian republics. Uzbeks make up the largest minority group, with about 9 percent
of the population. Other ethnic groups include Russians, Kazakhs, Tatars,
Ukrainians, Azeris (ethnic Azerbaijanis), Armenians, and Baluch. In 1993 a
bilateral treaty between Turkmenistan and Russia granted dual citizenship to
Russians in the republic. At the 1995 census Russians constituted about 7
percent of the population, but since then many have chosen to immigrate to
Russia. In 2003 dual citizenship was abolished, prompting many more of the
country’s remaining Russians to leave for Russia.
Turkmens have retained centuries-old
tribal allegiances that tend to be stronger than their sense of nationhood. As a
result, tribal-based hostilities are far more pronounced than interethnic
tensions. To date no tribal unrest has developed against the government, which
has carefully avoided obvious favoritism toward any one tribe and generally
worked to suppress tribal identification. The three largest Turkmen tribes are
the Tekke in the central part of the country, the Ersary in the southeast, and
the Yomud in the west.
| B | Language |
The official language of Turkmenistan is
Turkmen, a language belonging to the Southern Turkic (or Oghuz) branch of Turkic
languages. During the Soviet period, the traditional Arabic script of the
Turkmen language was replaced in the late 1920s by a modified Latin (Roman)
script, which was in turn replaced in 1940 by a modified Cyrillic script (the
script of the Russian language). In 1993 the government of independent
Turkmenistan announced that the country would officially return to a Latin
script. The new script was largely based on the alphabet used in Turkey, but
with specific modifications for the Turkmen language. Beginning in 1996 all
primary and secondary schools were required to teach the new script, and by the
early 2000s the new script was almost universally adopted. Russian is also
spoken in Turkmenistan, mainly by the Russian minority. Under Turkmenistan’s
1992 constitution, which made Turkmen the state language, Russian lost its
official status as the language of interethnic communication (a status it had
held since 1990).
| C | Religion |
The predominant religion in Turkmenistan
is Islam, which was introduced in the area by Arab invaders in the 7th and 8th
centuries. Turkmens and other Central Asian peoples are traditionally Sunni
Muslims of the Hanafi school (see Sunni Islam). The officially atheistic
Communist regime of the Soviet period sought to suppress religion in general,
but Islam especially, because of its potential for creating coherent resistance
to Soviet rule. Since Turkmenistan gained independence in 1991, many Turkmens
and other Central Asians have revived their Islamic heritage. Today, Sunni
Muslims account for about 85 percent of Turkmenistan’s population. Sufism, or
Islamic mysticism, is also prevalent in the republic. Some of the country’s
ethnic minorities—notably Russians, Ukrainians, and Armenians—are Eastern
Orthodox Christians. The Azeri minority stands alone as Turkmenistan’s only Shia
Muslim community.
| D | Education |
Turkmenistan has a literacy rate of 99.7
percent, a holdover from the Soviet period when the government implemented a
system of compulsory and tuition-free education. Under the Soviet system,
education was the primary mode of Communist indoctrination. Reforms implemented
since the late 1980s, and especially since independence, have provided for
changes in curricula and teaching materials. Education is compulsory in
Turkmenistan until the age of 14. Most students also complete secondary school,
which lasts until the age of 17. Turkmen State University (founded in 1950),
located in Ashgabat, is the country’s largest university. Turkmenistan also has
a number of specialized institutes that train students for careers in
agriculture, economics, medicine, and fine arts.
| E | Culture |
The Turkmens have an oral literary
tradition that dates from ancient times. The oral epics are sung to this day by
revered poets and composers called bakhshi. Written Turkmen literature
dates most notably from the 18th century, when poet Makhdumquli Azadi-oghli
Pyraghy produced poems held in high esteem by the Turkmens. His poetry pioneered
a somber motif known as akhir zamana (fatal time), which expresses the
misery caused by intertribal wars and attacks by foreign armies.
At about the time of the Russian
Revolution of 1917 a reformist-nationalist literary movement emerged among the
Turkmens. Among the intellectuals who led this movement were Abdulhakim
Qulmuhammad-oghli and Berdi Kerbabay-oghli. Qulmuhammad-oghli organized a
literary society of Turkmen writers. Many of these intellectuals became
prominent figures in the local Communist party after Turkmenistan became part of
the Soviet Union in the 1920s.
During the Great Purge of the 1930s,
however, the Soviet regime summarily imprisoned and executed the Turkmen
intelligentsia, including Qulmuhammad-oghli, ostensibly because they expressed
nationalist ideas. Kerbabay-oghli survived the purges and went on to achieve
recognition for his writings, which include the novel Nebit-Dag
(published in 1957). The regime did not tolerate literary dissent throughout
most of the Soviet period. Turkmen poet Annasultan Kekilova, for example, was
locked away in a mental asylum in 1971 for daring to criticize local party
officials in her poetry.
Folk arts are an important part
Turkmenistan’s cultural heritage. Turkmens are especially renowned for their
expertise in traditional rug-weaving techniques. Museums in the republic include
the Turkmen State Museum of Fine Arts and the National Museum of History and
Ethnography of Turkmenistan, both located in Ashgabat.
| IV | ECONOMY |
Turkmenistan was the poorest republic of the
former USSR. The Soviet regime developed the republic to supply the raw
materials of natural gas, oil, and cotton. The focus on raw materials left other
sectors of the economy underdeveloped, as most of the materials were shipped to
processing and manufacturing plants located in other Soviet republics. Because
of the emphasis on raw material production, Turkmenistan did not experience a
collapse of the industrial sector following the breakup of the USSR, unlike many
other former Soviet republics. This initially cushioned Turkmenistan from severe
economic disruption.
However, Turkmenistan remained highly
dependent on imports of food and consumer goods, which were provided on a
subsidized basis during the Soviet period. Due to price deregulation throughout
the former USSR, prices for imported goods increased substantially. The country
was therefore even more dependent on its export revenues, which were
inconsistent from year to year due to sharp fluctuations in world prices,
especially for natural gas. In addition, Turkmenistan’s largest purchasers of
natural gas were often unable to make timely payments, leading to production
cuts and decreased revenue.
The country’s gross domestic product (GDP),
which measures the value of goods and services produced, declined through most
of the 1990s. However, the country reported strong economic growth in 1999 and
the early 2000s, mainly as a result of increased natural-gas exports. Exports of
fossil fuels and cotton continue to form the foundation of the economy. In 2006
GDP was an estimated $10.5 billion.
The government of Turkmenistan has been slow
to reform the economic structures it inherited from the Soviet system. Although
some state-owned enterprises have been transferred to the private sector,
progress has been limited and slow. The government continues to control the
production and export of gas, oil, and cotton, as well as some other industries.
It also dictates prices and production quotas for agricultural products such as
wheat. The government justifies its control through large subsidies that provide
gas, water, and bread to the population free of charge.
Pervasive government intervention has
hampered the development of a free-market economy. The lack of reform has
discouraged foreign investment, which the government has sought to help upgrade
the country’s deteriorating infrastructure and diversify its industrial base. In
addition, almost all international financial institutions, including the
International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (World Bank) and the
International Monetary Fund (IMF), have suspended relations with Turkmenistan,
citing the country’s poor progress in instituting economic and political
reforms.
| A | Agriculture |
Turkmenistan’s economy is predominately
agricultural, with more than 40 percent of the labor force employed in the
sector. Cotton is the primary crop, and Turkmenistan is one of the world’s
leading producers of the fiber. However, Turkmenistan’s hot, dry climate and
scarcity of water resources make it ill-suited for cotton production. Great
amounts of water must be diverted to cotton crops through outdated and
inefficient irrigation canals, such as the Garagum Canal, which were built
during the Soviet period.
Turkmenistan’s government has encouraged
some shift away from cotton cultivation, with the goal of diversifying crops and
achieving self-sufficiency in food production. Although the principal food crop
is wheat, Turkmenistan must import large quantities of the grain. Other cereal
grains, vegetables, and fruit are also grown in the country. Livestock raising
is also important, especially of Karakul sheep, horses, and camels. Although the
collective (state-run) farms of the Soviet period have been reorganized into
farmer-operated associations, the government continues to intervene in the
sector. For example, it imposes production targets for wheat and cotton harvests
and requires farms to supply state orders for those crops at low prices.
| B | Mining and Manufacturing |
The principal industry in Turkmenistan is
the extraction of natural gas and oil. The country also produces important
industrial minerals, including gypsum, iodine, bromine, sulfur, and salt. Energy
products, primarily natural gas, are the largest export item. Turkmenistan is
the second largest producer of natural gas among the former Soviet republics
(after Russia). The gas deposits are located along the Caspian Sea coast and in
the northern and eastern sections of the country. In the early 1990s the
Turkmenistan government launched several large-scale ventures involving foreign
partnerships to explore, develop, and export natural gas. Foreign investment was
especially needed for the construction of new export pipelines, which the
government sought as a way of achieving economic independence. In 1997 the first
new pipeline opened, connecting gas fields in Turkmenistan with northern Iran.
By the early 2000s, however, foreign interest in additional development had
waned, mostly due to better prospects in Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan. Most of
Turkmenistan’s gas and oil continued to be exported through pipelines controlled
by Russia, which imposed transit fees and quantity limitations. Aside from the
production of fuels, industry in Turkmenistan is limited mainly to food
processing and textile production.
| C | Currency and Trade |
Turkmenistan remains dependent on trade
with former Soviet republics, most of which now belong to the Commonwealth of
Independent States (CIS). The export of fossil fuels drives the country’s
foreign trade, and Turkmenistan has secured long-term gas-export agreements with
Russia, Ukraine, and Iran. Besides other members of the CIS, Turkmenistan’s
important trading partners include Turkey, Italy, and the United States.
Turkmenistan’s involvement in international trade has been limited by the
country’s geographic isolation, as well as its limited range of products. Its
landlocked location poses significant problems in transporting products to and
from world ports. It gained a new route to international markets in 1996 by the
opening of a new railroad connecting Turkmenistan with Iran, and thereby the
Indian Ocean. Because the new railroad connects with the former Soviet railway
grid, it also significantly reduces travel time by rail between Europe and
Southeast Asia.
The currency of Turkmenistan is the
manat, which was introduced in 1993 to replace the Russian ruble. The
government maintains a fixed exchange rate on the manat, rather than allowing
market forces to determine its value. The official rate of exchange in 2001 was
5,200 manats per U.S.$1.
| V | GOVERNMENT |
Turkmenistan promulgated its first
constitution as an independent republic in May 1992, replacing the constitution
of the Soviet period. The republic does not yet have a multiparty system in
place, and most candidates have run unopposed in elections. All citizens aged 18
and older may vote.
| A | Executive |
The president of Turkmenistan is head of
state, head of government, and supreme commander of the armed forces. The office
of president was established in Turkmenistan in 1990 shortly before the
republic’s independence from the Soviet Union. The 1992 constitution increased
the powers of the president and made the president head of the Council of
Ministers with the option of appointing a prime minister at any time. The
president appoints the members of the council, which administers the daily
operations of government. Under the constitution, the president is directly
elected to a five-year term and may be elected for no more than two consecutive
terms. However, in 1999 the Khalk Maslakhaty (People’s Council), the most
powerful government body in the country, removed all limits to the term of
President Saparmurad Niyazov, effectively making him president for life.
| B | Legislature |
Turkmenistan has a 50-member legislature
called the Majlis (Assembly). Members of the Majlis are directly elected to
serve five-year terms. A body called the Khalk Maslakhaty (People's Council),
which is headed by the president, is the 'supreme representative body of popular
authority.' It has more than 2,500 members, including the Majlis deputies, the
members of the Council of Ministers, the chairperson of the Supreme Court,
regional governors, district representatives, trade unions, and chairpersons of
public organizations. The decisions of the Khalk Maslakhaty supersede those of
both the Majlis and the president. The Khalk Maslakhaty was originally
established as a supervisory organ, but constitutional amendments passed in 2003
required it to remain in continuous session and empowered it to pass
constitutional laws. These changes effectively made it the country's leading
legislative body.
| C | Judiciary |
The judicial system of Turkmenistan
includes a Supreme Court, which is the highest court in the nation, and a
Supreme Economic Court. The Supreme Economic Court rules on contract disputes,
conflicts between businesses, and other commercial and taxation issues. Under
the 1992 constitution, the president of Turkmenistan appoints and removes all
judges.
| D | Local Government |
For purposes of local government,
Turkmenistan is divided into five velayets (regions). The velayets are
further subdivided into ils (districts), which may be either counties or
cities. Each of the velayets is ruled by a veli (governor), who is
appointed by the president. The veli in turn appoints the heads of the ils
within his velayet, who are known as hekims.
| E | Political Parties |
Turkmenistan is a one-party state. The
Communist Party of Turkmenistan was renamed the Democratic Party of Turkmenistan
(DPT) in December 1991, when the Soviet Union collapsed. The party retained its
position as the country’s only legal party, whereas in most other former Soviet
republics the Communist Party was suspended or dissolved. President Niyazov
headed the DPT. Several opposition groups have been officially banned, including
a popular front organization called Agzybirlik, founded in 1989.
| F | Defense |
Before Turkmenistan became an independent
country, its armed forces were part of the centrally controlled Soviet security
system. In 1992 the government of Turkmenistan began developing a national
defense force. The government based the new armed forces on former Soviet
military units that were still stationed in the country. Under an agreement with
Russia and Turkey, Turkmenistan’s armed forces are to operate under joint
Turkmen-Russian command, with Turkish military advisers, until they are fully
developed. The republic has an army of 21,000 troops and an air force of 4,300.
The Caspian Sea Flotilla, a former Soviet force now based at the Russian port of
Astrakhan’ (except for a portion ceded to Azerbaijan), operates under the joint
command of Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan, and Russia. However, the government of
Turkmenistan plans to develop its own navy. All males in Turkmenistan must
perform 18 months of military service beginning at the age of 18.
| G | International Organizations |
In 1991 Turkmenistan joined the
Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), a loose political and economic
alliance of 12 former Soviet republics. In 1992 it became a member of the
Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO), which promotes economic and cultural
cooperation between Islamic states. In 1994 Turkmenistan became the first of the
Central Asian states to join the Partnership for Peace program of the North
Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), a program designed to strengthen relations
between NATO and non-NATO states. The republic is also a member of the United
Nations (UN), the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC), and the
Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE).
| VI | HISTORY |
Throughout its history, the expansive,
barren area between the Caspian Sea and the Amu Darya river—the area of
present-day Turkmenistan—has been subject to conquests by foreign powers. It
became part of the Persian Empire of Cyrus the Great in the 500s bc and was conquered by Macedonian
leader Alexander the Great in the 300s bc. Arabs invaded the area in the 7th
and 8th centuries ad, introducing
the local population to Islam. In the 11th century the Seljuk Turks appropriated
Merv, an ancient city near Ashgabat, as the center of a dominion that stretched
from Afghanistan to Egypt. Merv became one of the most important Muslim cities
in the world. The land of present-day Turkmenistan was included in the vast
empires of the Mongol Genghis Khan in the 13th century and the Turkic leader
Tamerlane in the 14th century.
The ancestors of the Turkmens, believed to
be Oghuz tribes from the foothills of the Altay Mountains to the northeast,
migrated to the area in about the 10th century. The Turkmens, a nomadic
Turkic-speaking people, were a distinct ethnic group by the 15th century. From
the 15th century to the 17th century, the southern portion of present-day
Turkmenistan was under Persian rule. Meanwhile, the northern portion fell under
the suzerainty of Khiva and Bukhara, which both became Uzbek-ruled states in the
16th century. The Persians ruled Khiva and Bukhara from the early to the
mid-1700s, when Uzbek dynasties regained control.
| A | Russian Conquest |
By the mid-1800s the Russian Empire, which
sought to expand its frontier into Central Asia, had gained control of the
Kazakh lands in the northern part of the region. In the 1860s Russia began a
systematic military conquest of the remainder of Central Asia. By 1876 the
Russians had subjugated the entire region, except for the bulk of Turkmen
territory. Russian military outposts were by then established in the north near
Khiva and along the Caspian Sea coast. In 1877 Russian forces began a military
campaign against the Turkmens. The Turkmens, particularly the Tekke tribe,
proved to be a formidable force, putting forth the greatest resistance the
Russians had encountered in their military advance into Central Asia. The Tekke
in Gökdepe, near Ashgabat, soundly defeated Russian forces in 1879. However, in
1881 Gökdepe finally fell to the Russians, with the loss of about 150,000
Turkmen lives. Russia’s successful conquest of this Turkmen stronghold brought
an end to any effective resistance among the Turkmen people. Russian control
over all of Central Asia was completed in 1884 with the annexation of Merv. In
1887 and 1895 Russia and Britain (which was contending with Russia for control
in Central Asia) signed border-delimitation agreements that fixed Russia’s
southern frontier, thereby formalizing Russia’s annexation of its vast new
territory in Central Asia.
In the first years after the Russian
conquest, Central Asian nomads dispossessed of their traditional grazing lands
waged sporadic revolts against Russian rule. In June 1916, during World War I,
the Russian government issued a decree drafting the Central Asian peoples for
noncombatant duties, igniting a revolt that spread throughout the entire region.
Among the Turkmens, the Yomud tribe was especially fierce in its refusal to
submit to the draft. The subjugation of the Yomud, accomplished by the end of
the year, required heavily armed Russian troops.
The Russian monarchy was overthrown in the
Russian Revolutions of 1917, and Bolsheviks (Communists) seized power in Russia.
The Turkmens resisted Bolshevik domination, fighting against Bolshevik forces
during the Russian Civil War (1918-1921). In April 1918, following Bolshevik
military gains in southern Central Asia, the Bolsheviks proclaimed the Turkistan
Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic (ASSR), which included the bulk of Turkmen
territory and other parts of southern Central Asia. In July Turkmens led by
Junayd Khan reversed the Bolshevik gain in Turkmen territory with the aid of
British forces. An independent Turkmen administration was set up in Ashgabat
with the protection of a British garrison. The war-weary British subsequently
withdrew, however, and by 1920 Bolshevik forces had regained control. The bulk
of Turkmen territory was reincorporated into the Turkistan ASSR. The Bolsheviks
also conquered the emirate of Bukhara and the khanate of Khiva, which included
the eastern and northern portions of present-day Turkmenistan; these two states
were designated People’s Soviet Republics (Khiva was renamed Khorezm, as it had
been known prior to the 16th century). Many Turkmens continued to fight against
Bolshevik rule as guerrillas in the basmachi movement, Central Asian
resistance that was widespread among the Muslim peoples of Central Asia until
the early 1920s. In 1922 the Bolsheviks founded the Union of Soviet Socialist
Republics (USSR), and in 1924 Turkmen territory was designated the Turkmen
Soviet Socialist Republic (SSR). The Turkmen SSR included portions of the
Khorezmian and Bukharan People’s Soviet Republics, which were abolished as
political entities.
| B | Soviet Period |
In the late 1920s the Soviet authorities
began to take land and set up state-owned farms, forcing the local population to
settle in one place in order to work in agriculture. Many Turkmens fought
fiercely against this directive, as it threatened their traditional nomadic way
of life. A number of Turkmen intellectuals became leading figures in the Turkmen
Communist Party, a branch of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU) and
the only legal party in the republic. These Communist Turkmen leaders were
denounced as nationalists and executed in the 1930s as part of Soviet dictator
Joseph Stalin’s violent and extensive purges of Soviet society (see Great
Purge).
In contrast to the massive
industrialization taking place in most other Soviet republics, the industrial
sector in the Turkmen SSR received little development. Instead, the republic was
an important provider of raw materials, mainly natural gas and cotton, to the
more developed Soviet republics. In the 1960s the Soviet government devised a
scheme to make the southern part of Central Asia the USSR’s primary base for
cotton production. As a result of the strong emphasis on cotton growing, the
Turkmen republic was unable to supply itself with basic food commodities and
became increasingly dependent on the central government. The Soviet government’s
demands for intensive cotton cultivation also led to the extravagant overuse of
scarce water resources. The need for water for agriculture prompted construction
of the Garagum Canal in the southern portion of the Turkmen republic beginning
in 1954. This canal, the largest in the Soviet Union, diverted more water from
the Amu Darya than any other irrigation works in the region. As such, it was the
single greatest contributor to the drying of the Aral Sea. The canal also
supplied polluted drinking water to the local population, contributing to the
Turkmen SSR’s extremely high infant mortality rate.
Beginning in the mid-1980s Soviet leader
Mikhail Gorbachev promoted major economic and political reforms in the USSR. The
reforms fostered movements for greater local autonomy in most of the Soviet
republics. However, no mass movement occurred in the Turkmen SSR, in part
because of long-standing tribal divisions. Then in September 1989 Turkmen
intellectuals formed a popular front organization called Agzybirlik. The Turkmen
Communist Party banned Agzybirlik in January 1990. Elections to the Supreme
Soviet were held later that month, and the Turkmen Communist Party won a
majority of seats. The new legislature appointed Saparmurad Niyazov, the first
secretary of the Turkmen Communist Party since 1985, as chairperson of the
Supreme Soviet (the highest government office in the republic at that time).
Conceding to popular pressure, the Supreme Soviet accorded official status to
the Turkmen language in May and adopted a declaration of sovereignty in August.
Niyazov was directly elected to the newly created post of president in
October.
In August 1991 Communist hard-liners, who
were opposed to the democratic reforms taking place in the USSR, staged an
unsuccessful coup attempt in Moscow. Although the CPSU was officially banned
after the coup attempt, Niyazov announced that the Turkmen Communist Party would
remain the ruling party in the Turkmen republic. In October the Turkmen SSR
formally declared independence, and the name of the republic was changed to the
Republic of Turkmenistan. In December Gorbachev resigned, and the Soviet Union
officially ceased to exist. That month Turkmenistan joined the Commonwealth of
Independent States (CIS), a loose alliance of most of the former Soviet
republics. Meanwhile, the Turkmen Communist Party changed its name to the
Democratic Party of Turkmenistan, retaining Niyazov as chairperson.
| C | Turkmenistan After Independence |
In May 1992 Turkmenistan adopted a new
constitution to replace the one of the Soviet period. The new constitution
enhanced the powers of the president. Among other provisions, it made the
president head of government as well as head of state and gave the president the
option to appoint a prime minister at any time. Niyazov ran unopposed in an
election held in June and was reelected president by direct popular vote.
| C1 | Foreign Relations |
In December the governments of
Turkmenistan and Russia granted Turkmenistan’s Russian minority dual
citizenship—the first such agreement between any of the former Soviet
republics—in a move to prevent a large-scale emigration of Russians from
Turkmenistan. The government of Turkmenistan also agreed to allow Russian troops
to be stationed indefinitely along Turkmenistan’s southern borders with Iran and
Afghanistan.
In May, meanwhile, Turkmenistan was the
only CIS member that refused to sign a declaration of intent to form a CIS
economic union. Although Turkmenistan subsequently agreed to join the economic
union, it resisted further integration within the CIS. Turkmenistan was the only
CIS member state in Central Asia to remain neutral regarding the civil war
between government and Islamic rebel forces in Tajikistan, and it did not
contribute troops to the CIS peacekeeping force that was deployed to that
war-torn country in 1993.
Turkmenistan sought to strengthen
regional trade relations with other Central Asian states as well as Turkey and
Iran. In January 1996 Turkmenistan eased tense relations with neighboring
Uzbekistan by signing a package of agreements on border disputes and the sharing
of the waters of the Amu Darya. Relations with Iran received a boost from the
opening of a cross-border rail line in 1996 and an oil pipeline in 1997. Until
then, the only existing pipeline from Turkmenistan passed through Russia, which
maintained monopoly control over the pipeline. Turkmenistan has continued to
seek ways to develop its rich oil and gas reserves.
| C2 | Niyazov’s Authoritarian Regime |
In a national referendum held in January
1994, voters approved extending Niyazov’s term until 2002 without the need for a
presidential election. Elections to the country’s new legislature, the
Majlis, were held in December 1994. The only legal party was the DPT, and
nearly all seats were filled by candidates who ran unopposed.
Niyazov’s style of leadership became
increasingly authoritarian, and he developed a cult of personality. He was
officially known as Turkmenbashi (Leader of the Turkmens). Numerous
streets, buildings, and institutions were named after him, and his portrait was
displayed prominently in public places . In December 1999 the Khalk Maslakhaty,
the nation’s most powerful government body, removed all term limits on Niyazov’s
presidency, effectively making him president for life.
Niyazov’s government became known as one
of the most authoritarian regimes in the world. Niyazov maintained a one-party
state and tolerated no political dissent. His government completely controlled
the media, and censorship was widespread. Political freedoms were routinely
suppressed. Following an alleged assassination attempt against Niyazov in late
2002, the government imposed strict laws to regulate public gatherings and
broadened the definition of treason. The government also maintained strict
control over the Islamic hierarchy, which publicly supported Niyazov, to prevent
the development of a fundamentalist Islamic movement that could undermine the
absolute authority of the state.
Niyazov’s sudden death in December 2006
from a heart attack plunged Turkmenistan into unprecedented political
uncertainty. Two decades of dictatorship under Niyazov had not prepared
Turkmenistan for a sudden change in leadership, and Niyazov had not designated a
successor. A deputy prime minister, Kurbanguly Berdymukhamedov, was named acting
president pending a presidential election. The election, held in February 2007,
was the country’s first to be contested, but no opposition parties were allowed
to participate. The field of candidates included Berdymukhamedov and five other
politicians, all from the ruling Democratic Party of Turkmenistan.
Berdymukhamedov won the election with an overwhelming 89 percent of the vote.
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