Turkmen Independence Day Reflects Political Shift

When Turkmenistan celebrated the 19th anniversary of its independence from the Soviet Union on October 27, there was the usual display of military might and happy citizens. The only difference was that the event did not take place in the central square in Ashgabat, because workers were still busy putting up a new monument to replace a giant golden statue of the late president Saparmurat Niazov, which was removed in August.

The 63-metre statue, which revolved with the turning of the sun, was part of the personality cult built up around Niazov, the Communist leader who turned nationalist president after independence in 1991 and ruled until his death in late 2006. His successor Gurbanguly Berdymuhammedov has proved to be from the same authoritarian mould, but has moved to efface some of the more excessive aspects of the Niazov cult. 

Berdymuhammedov and other top leaders attended the independence day parade in Berzengi, a southern district of the capital, as armoured vehicles and artillery rumbled past and aircraft flew overhead, followed by 19 horses of the famous Ahal Teke breed, and columns of marching workers and students holding banners and coloured balloons.

A richly caparisoned Ahal Teke thoroughbred was presented to the president as a token of the nation’s appreciation for his “Herculean labours for the prosperity and happiness of the motherland and the Turkmen people”.

The marchers were not there entirely of their own free will.

"People are forced to take part in this massive performance so as not to lose their opportunities to study or work and keep their families," a historian who watched the event on television said.

This article was produced as part of IWPR’s News Briefing Central Asia output, funded by the National Endowment for Democracy.