The International Helsinki Federation (IHF) has appealed to
the 15 member states of the EU for their support for a resolution in the United
Nations General Assembly condemning Turkmenistan for committing human rights
abuses.
"There should be a broader expression of the international community's
rejection of the regime's practices," Aaron Rhodes, the IHF executive
director, told IRIN from the Polish capital, Warsaw. "This is necessary to
mobilise all countries to examine their bilateral
relationships and to encourage business enterprises to examine their
relationships in view of their social responsibilities."
His comments follow a statement from the Vienna-based group on Tuesday, stating
that as EU members had played a strong role in mobilising
the UN Human Rights Commission on behalf of human rights in Turkmenistan, they
should now sponsor a resolution in the General Assembly to commit the world
community more strongly to improving the human rights situation in what has
been described as one of the most repressive dictatorships on earth.
"The human rights situation in Turkmenistan is extremely threatening to
its citizens and all who inhabit the country, and indeed, a threat to regional
and international security," Rhodes asserted.
Comparing the regime of Turkmen President Saparmurat Niyazov to that of North Korea's Kim Yong-tae and Iraq's
Saddam Hussein, he explained that the social and spiritual foundations of
Turkmen society had been brutally debased by the dictatorial regime that
polluted all spheres of life, imposing conformity and obedience with the threat
of violent reprisals. "Children are at particular risk, especially now as
they are forced to work at harvesting cotton," the activist said.
Such a call is just the latest from a number of prominent international rights
activists following an increasingly dire human rights situation in the reclusive
Central Asian state, after an alleged assassination attempt on Niyazov's life in November.
According to a report last month by Amnesty International, Ashgabat was
extremely intolerant of dissent and had severely curtailed civil and political
liberties. Opponents of the regime had been forced into exile or faced
imprisonment and persecution, and no independent political parties could openly
operate in Turkmenistan.
The report went on to note that civil society activists had also faced
persecution and imprisonment, and no independent rights groups had been able to
function in the country, adding: "Religious freedom has been severely
curtailed, and the authorities in this virtually closed country have retained
tight control of the media."
Emphasising the need for a resolution now, Rhodes
maintained that countries that engaged in heavy economic cooperation with
energy-rich nation - particularly the Russian Federation - could play a role,
but it was a role that would require sacrifices. "It is worth sacrificing
temporary economic advantages to take a moral and principled stand and to save
the people of this unfortunate country," he said.
[For a complete copy of the IHF report on Turkmenistan see:
http://www.ihf-hr.org/documents/doc_summary.php?sec_id=3&d_id=1322]