Focus on press freedom

Sprouting from rooftops all over the Turkmen capital Ashgabat, thousands of satellite dishes beam the latest news and information from around the world. CNN, BBC, as well as a broad spectrum of Russian programming, is freely watched by millions of Turkmen throughout the country. But critics charge the illusion of such an open and transparent society ends there. Closer inspection reveals a media tightly controlled in this reclusive, but otherwise stable Central Asian state, they claim. "It is simply not possible to speak of free press in Turkmenistan," Emma Gray, European and Central Asian consultant of the US-based Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), a non-profit, non-partisan organisation dedicated to the global defence of press freedom, told IRIN. "Niyazov’s regime is oppressive and isolationist, and operates a monopoly on information within Turkmenistan and with the outside world," she explained. However harsh, numerous watchdog groups around the world including Human Rights Watch (HRW), Amnesty International and others share Gray’s view. Indeed, Freedom House, a US-based non-profit, non-partisan organisation promoting democracy and freedom around the world has consistently rated the landlocked nation of 5.5 million as simply not free. In a report issued by the US state department this year, Washington maintained the government severely restricts freedom of speech and does not permit freedom of the press. The government completely controlled the media, censored all newspapers, and never permitted independent criticism of government policy, it explained. In the past, those who had expressed views critical of, or different from those of the government were arrested on false charges of committing common crimes. Moreover, it added criticism of the government could lead to personal hardship, including loss of opportunities for advancement and employment. Today the Turkmen media situation has changed little since the country gained its independence following the demise of the Soviet Union in 1991. In some ways it has worsened. There is one state news agency, ten Turkmen language publications and one Russian, three state television stations and two radio stations. But Gray maintains their output is almost identical and consists of endless glorifications of the President or the Turkmen people or country. "The media focuses overwhelmingly on success stories, and negative aspects of life are taboo," she said. "There is no place for journalists to write from an alternative point of view, so they face a tough choice: either they must toe the official line, or give up their profession," she maintained. Indeed, local journalists are reluctant to talk to outsiders at all and those few who do work for foreign publications, do so under pseudonyms - less they be remanded by the authorities. Naz Nazar, a Turkmen journalist for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty maintained most people in the country live in isolation from the outside world. "Even in Central Asia, Turkmenistan is known as the most authoritarian, closed and secretive country with the fewest democratic and economic reforms," she told IRIN from the Czech capital, Prague. "Unlike most countries of the former USSR, Turkmenistan's government has openly questioned the value of democracy values and resisted reform efforts so far," she explained. Regarding RFE, one of the few media outlets that has succeeded in providing some coverage of the country, Nazar said they were unable to open a local bureau, nor establish a network of stringers, due to a repressive political climate and severe media restrictions in the country. "Many people are afraid to talk to RFE/RL journalists," she maintained. "Those local correspondents who worked for RFE/RL during the "Perestroika" and "Glastnost" years of the late eighties have either been arrested, intimidated or employed by the current government," she added. And while the Turkmen constitution provides for freedom of the press - "this does not exist in Turkmenistan," she maintained. Earlier this year, Freimut Duve, media freedom representative for the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), recently condemned Ashgabat for what he described as "an absolute lack of any freedom of expression," - a criticism the US-based World Press Freedom Committee (WFPC) would concur with. "The government funds most print media, which it then censors," WFPC representative, Marilyn Greene told IRIN. "The president does not tolerate criticism of himself or of his government, being quick to arrest critics," she explained. She added that the government controlled radio and television as well as internet access, requiring foreign correspondents to apply for accreditation, as well requiring all publishing concerns to obtain licenses and register their equipment. But while outside observers may agree in their criticism, they differ on a strategy for reform. According to Greene, there needs to be an economic incentive for a change in attitude on the part of the Niyazov administration, as it was clear that international moral outrage was insufficient to bring about change. "The West, including the US, must articulate freedom of expression and of the press as a high priority, a fundamental human right that must be respected as a condition for grants and loans to Turkmenistan," she said. Meanwhile, Human Rights Watch said as a first step to establishing freedom of the media, the Turkmen government should, as a matter of priority, disband and dismantle agencies now tasked with carrying out pre-publication censorship. "Allowing the import of foreign newspapers and publications into the country, irregardless of their possible criticisms of the Turkmen government, would also go far to improve press freedoms," Shields said. "The pervasive and intrusive surveillance carried out by the Turkmen security services also serves as an impediment to independent thought and expression," she added. Such agencies should be instructed to cease any intimidating and intrusive surveillance of citizens and, in particular, to allow journalists and broadcasters the freedom to pursue and report on stories free of harassment, she explained. In the future, once these steps were taken, they would look to the Turkmen government to allow for the establishment of a truly independent printing press in the country, she said. Gray, however, maintained it was not a question of what needed to be done, but what could be done. "There is a real danger of getting journalists into trouble if they are seen to be communicating with foreign organisations. Our support has to be strong, but no so open that it invites the suspicion of the KNB [Turkmen security office]," she said. "Those courageous journalists have taken the decision to write about their country outside the state media mechanism are running big risks," she warned. She added that there were a number of foreign organisations including the OSCE and the Institute of War and Peace Reporting that work with journalists in Turkmenistan on a regular basis. "Their quiet work with individual journalists may be a way forward," she said. According to Internews, an international non-profit organisation working to foster independent media in emerging democracies by training journalists and station managers, Turkmenistan remains the only newly independent Central Asian country where they weren't working. "We would be open to establishing a presence there if conditions on the ground were right," regional director for Central Asia, Oleg Katsiyev told IRIN from the southern Kazakh city of Almaty. However, while rights groups outside the country appear united in their criticism, western diplomats based in Ashgabat are more cautious, advocating for engagement rather than condemnation. "The Turkmen are very open to dialogue, but in a country that officially has no problems - the approach one takes is critical," one diplomat told IRIN. "Certain things must be taken into consideration in the context of the situation. This country has only been independent for 10 years and has worked hard to stand on its own two feet. Sure there are problems - but attacking them with all barrels blazing is not the answer," he maintained. Still another told IRIN he wished more rights groups were allowed into the country so that they could see first hand what the people themselves sought. In comparison, Turkmenistan was probably one of the most stable countries in Central Asia, he said. There was no ethnic conflict in Turkmenistan like in some of the other newly independent Soviet states. Moreover, there was a general feeling of complacency among the population, he explained. "Yes, people's wages are very low, and yes there are problems, but walk down any street in Ashgabat and you will find it to be one of the safest cities in the world. You won't even see a policeman carrying a gun," he said. He noted that like it or not, as a sovereign nation, the Turkmen government had chosen their own path to development and many on the outside didn't want to accept that. In an earlier speech to the nation, President Saparmurat Niyazov remarked that the fate of each country, as well as each human being, was highly individual. "There is hardly a ready-made prescription," he said. "We have chosen our own way taking into consideration the national peculiarities," he explained. So with such a bleak portrayal of the press and adamant rhetoric from the government, one wonders how to reconcile the two. Is there really any room for change? Fortunately, closer examination gives reason for optimism. Although the window of opportunity is open only slightly, the fact that it is open at all is cause for hope. According to the US state department report, unlike in the past year, there were no reports of the government subjecting those responsible for critical foreign press items to threats and harassment. Secondly, the fact that so many Turkmen tune into international programming demonstrates a desire for more information. And the fact that the government permits it, and has done little to curtail the widespread domestic usage of satellite television dishes, demonstrates a small degree of political acceptance. And, while there has been no change in policy of total state control of the media, in April, 150 foreign journalists were allowed into Turkmenistan to report on the Caspian Summit - a major opportunity for the President to host a leading regional event involving neighbouring countries. Remarkably, the question and answer session with the President was broadcast in its entirety on Turkmen television. This degree of openness contrasts dramatically with Turkmenistan’s reluctance to allow foreign journalists to cover the setting up and functioning of the humanitarian aid corridor to Afghanistan, thereby missing a chance to show itself to the world in a more positive light. But with such a small glimmer of hope - and it does exist - one wonders what should be done. Some analysts suggest international agencies need to work harder now with the Turkmen authorities on building dialogue and mutual trust. One diplomat put it best. "Engagement, engagement, engagement," he repeated. "The opportunity is there - but the challenge belongs to them both," he said.