Turkmenistan: New report slams "˜corrupt dictatorship"

On 1 June 2021, human rights NGO Crude Accountability published a report entitled "Turkmenistan: A Model Kleptocracy". The concluding paragraphs are very outspoken (p.114): "Turkmenistan is not a normal country by any standard. It is a corrupt dictatorship, which treats its citizens with contempt, curtailing their human rights and suppressing any meaningful information about government activities. Meanwhile, the president"s family continues to get richer. - The fact that, in his 15 years in power, President Berdymukhamedov has only entrenched the corrupt system created by his predecessor demonstrates that he has little interest in opening up the country or improving the conditions for its citizens. This is because he and his family rely on this system of predation, nepotism, and the capture of state resources. He has no reason to dismantle it because his maintenance of power depends on it. The international community should keep this in mind when dealing with Turkmenistan. It is not an emerging market, transitioning toward an open market-oriented economy, and has no interest in moving towards democracy and the rule of law. It should be treated at arms" length for what it is: one of the very worst regimes in modern history, a model kleptocracy." World Watch Research analyst Rolf Zeegers was not at all surprised by the report"s findings: "Particularly significant are the remarks about the regime treating its citizens with contempt and curtailing their human rights. Freedom of religion fares no better, as the estimated 68,000 Christians in the country know full well (see: WWR"s Full Country Dossier on Turkmenistan, March 2021). The problem is that very little is likely to change in the (near) future since there are no political bodies in existence to challenge the regime and bring an end to its inhuman behavior."