Iron Curtain for Turkmens: why residents of Turkmenistan were banned from leaving the country

A former Soviet republic, Turkmenistan has long been one of the most closed states in the world. Now the country, rich in gas and oil, is experiencing the worst economic crisis in the last 27 years. And if earlier many residents tried to go abroad to work, now the Turkmen authorities have banned all citizens under the age of 40 from leaving the country.

Strict censorship and authoritarian regime — the most closed country in Central Asia can surpass North Korea in many ways. Turkmen leader, former dentist Gurbanguly Myalikkuliyevich Berdimuhammedov (pictured above) is famous for his unusual decrees. So, in Turkmenistan, it was forbidden to paint cars in all colors except white, and then there was a ban on women getting behind the wheel. In addition, Turkmen women are forbidden to dye their hair in light shades and wear tight-fitting clothes.

Gurbanguly Berdimuhammedov actually canceled benefits for the population

And by 2017, the government of the country had to cancel all social benefits for the population: the utopian project of the "golden age" was closed, in which millions of citizens of the republic who did not pay utility bills and received free gasoline already practically lived.

Turkmen border guards

Now, the Turkmen authorities have banned most of the population from leaving the country: all citizens under the age of 40 are prohibited from leaving the country. Thus, the state is fighting for the preservation of workers in the regions.

Ashgabat International Airport

The ban is not officially announced. But according to Radio Azatlyk (the local service of Radio Liberty), the country's migration services refuse to issue the necessary documents, explaining this by some kind of "order from above" on the ban on departure for persons under 40 years of age. And this is despite the fact that in recent years migration has become widespread: people leave for work (mainly to Turkey) and after a few years take their families with them.

According to the Migration Service of Turkey, only in 2016-2017 about 25 thousand Turkmen migrants were officially registered in this country. According to some reports, at least 200 thousand citizens of Turkmenistan lived in Turkey, most of them illegally.

The Turkmen authorities hide data on the population of the country: the last census was conducted here in 2012, but its results have not been published. According to various resources, about 6 million people now live in Turkmenistan, while only a third of the population are people over 40.