Turkmen Media Workers Thirst for Freedom
Turkmen Media Workers Thirst for Freedom
Despite the removal of Turkmenistan’s official censor, journalists are still waiting for signs of real change to the present repressive media environment.
On April 17, state media in Turkmenistan reported that Begli Aliev, the head of the Altyn Asyr (Golden Age) TV channel hasd been dismissed for the “gross errors and professional incompetence”. His removal came only a few days after Annamurad Poladov, head of the government newspaper Turkmenistan, stepped down – in this case, officially on health grounds
Poladov was widely regarded as fulfilling another role – that of Turkmenistan’s chief media censor.
NBCentral Asia observers believe the resignations of these key officials could be a step towards liberalisation of the media.
After he was elected president two years ago, Gurbanguly Berdymuhammedov promised to create greater freedom in all areas. Since then, he has repeatedly criticised state-run media, television in particular, for failing to change with the times. He has also dismissed journalists and managers from a few TV channels and newspapers.
Journalists in the country say they have observed some limited changes, for example two training workshops held in Ashgabat this year.
In Turkmenistan, all media are controlled by the state and are subject to strict censorship, and journalists are arrested and jailed for expressing their opinions.
Reporters working for TV, radio and newspaper have to spend a lot of time seeking approval from managers and other officials for material in the planning stage, and then send the completed programme or article to censors who decide whether it can go out.
“A lot of time goes on material on harmless themes like culture and the environment because of the lengthy censorship procedures,” said a journalist in the Balkan region of western Turkmenistan. “They destroy one’s will to write.”
The 2008 ranking produced by the international watchdog group Reporters Without Borders placed Turkmenistan at the bottom of the list for freedom of speech, together with North Korea and Eritrea.
The two resignations have raised hopes that the government is about to embark on a change of policy.
Commentators say that since the authorities are critical of the media and are dismissing top officials, they should take more radical steps and allow true media freedom.
“I would like to work in a normal newspaper, where we could write freely about any topic, without having it imposed on us by the authorities; a newspaper which people would want to buy and read,” said a journalist who works for the government paper Neytralny Turkmenistan.
Like other newspapers in the country, Neytralny Turkmenistan is full of articles praising the authorities and hailing the successes Turkmenistan has achieved.
An observer in Ashgabat says the policy of keeping the media in a state of submission has plainly not worked, and the government will be unable to make the progress it wants unless it fundamentally changes its relationship with journalism.
At the moment, he points, no one can even start up a media outlet – that is the sole prerogative of the president. Nor can a journalist can be hired without the prior consent of the Ministry for National Security.
“The time has come to change this situation,” said the observer.
(NBCentralAsia is an IWPR-funded project to create a multilingual news analysis and comment service for Central Asia, drawing on the expertise of a broad range of political observers across the region. The project ran from August 2006 to September 2007, covering all five regional states. With new funding, the service has resumed, covering Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan.)
On April 17, state media in Turkmenistan reported that Begli Aliev, the head of the Altyn Asyr (Golden Age) TV channel hasd been dismissed for the “gross errors and professional incompetence”. His removal came only a few days after Annamurad Poladov, head of the government newspaper Turkmenistan, stepped down – in this case, officially on health grounds
Poladov was widely regarded as fulfilling another role – that of Turkmenistan’s chief media censor.
NBCentral Asia observers believe the resignations of these key officials could be a step towards liberalisation of the media.
After he was elected president two years ago, Gurbanguly Berdymuhammedov promised to create greater freedom in all areas. Since then, he has repeatedly criticised state-run media, television in particular, for failing to change with the times. He has also dismissed journalists and managers from a few TV channels and newspapers.
Journalists in the country say they have observed some limited changes, for example two training workshops held in Ashgabat this year.
In Turkmenistan, all media are controlled by the state and are subject to strict censorship, and journalists are arrested and jailed for expressing their opinions.
Reporters working for TV, radio and newspaper have to spend a lot of time seeking approval from managers and other officials for material in the planning stage, and then send the completed programme or article to censors who decide whether it can go out.
“A lot of time goes on material on harmless themes like culture and the environment because of the lengthy censorship procedures,” said a journalist in the Balkan region of western Turkmenistan. “They destroy one’s will to write.”
The 2008 ranking produced by the international watchdog group Reporters Without Borders placed Turkmenistan at the bottom of the list for freedom of speech, together with North Korea and Eritrea.
The two resignations have raised hopes that the government is about to embark on a change of policy.
Commentators say that since the authorities are critical of the media and are dismissing top officials, they should take more radical steps and allow true media freedom.
“I would like to work in a normal newspaper, where we could write freely about any topic, without having it imposed on us by the authorities; a newspaper which people would want to buy and read,” said a journalist who works for the government paper Neytralny Turkmenistan.
Like other newspapers in the country, Neytralny Turkmenistan is full of articles praising the authorities and hailing the successes Turkmenistan has achieved.
An observer in Ashgabat says the policy of keeping the media in a state of submission has plainly not worked, and the government will be unable to make the progress it wants unless it fundamentally changes its relationship with journalism.
At the moment, he points, no one can even start up a media outlet – that is the sole prerogative of the president. Nor can a journalist can be hired without the prior consent of the Ministry for National Security.
“The time has come to change this situation,” said the observer.
(NBCentralAsia is an IWPR-funded project to create a multilingual news analysis and comment service for Central Asia, drawing on the expertise of a broad range of political observers across the region. The project ran from August 2006 to September 2007, covering all five regional states. With new funding, the service has resumed, covering Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan.)
