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Turkmenbashi Votes Against Himself
// The president for life is looking for worthy successor
Democracy
Yesterday, Saparmurat Niyazov, life-time Turkmen President announced that by the year 2009 there will be elections for a new head of the state. He also promised “to grow a worthy successor within four-five years.” It is not a first time, when Turkmenbashi (official local title of the President of Turkmenistan) promises to bring democracy to his country – usually these promises end up with big repressions.
Failed Initiative of the President
Yesterday XVI session of Khalk Maskhalat (People’s Council) under the chairmanship of President Saparmurat Niyazov in Ashgabat turned out to be the most shocking in the history of the existence of this bizarre organ. Even before this session, the actions of People’s Council were making specialists bewildered. It is mostly for the reason that nobody can comprehend a legitimacy of this state body. All 2507 members of this highest Turkmen power organ are not elected, but according to the law, they represent all the regions and districts of the country. Besides, the People’s Council co-exists with elected parliament of Turkmenia –Mejlis. However, in recent years all the powers of Mejlis gradually went to Khalk Maskhalat.
Yesterday, mysterious Khalk Maskhalat made unprecedented decision. For a first time in the history of Turkmenistan the project of the law proposed by the president himself was rejected. Moreover, 2506 out of 2507 members of the People’s Council voted against the project of the law. Only one vote went for the law – the vote of the life-time Chairman of Khalk Maskhalat Saparmurat Niyazov.
The scandalous project of the law was about the presidential elections in Turkmenia. “Nothing is forever. Nobody is forever,” Turkmenbashi said, while presenting to the members of the council the newly born project of the law. Using this philosophical statement, Niyazov suggested having elections in 2009 – right before his 70th Birthday. “In 2009 we will elect new president. Before that time, within four –five years, we will grow a worthy successor,” the president promised.
In response the members of Khalk Maskhalat started to chant “People! Motherland! Great Turkmenbashi!” and many times interrupted the president’s speech. When the time came to vote, the project of the law was decisively rejected. However, the president was still disagree with the opinion of the People’s Council and offered just to postpone the adoption of this law until December of 2009. “In the project of the law there is an article, which says that the president can ask about unscheduled elections, for instance, for the health reason. The health is not getting better with the years and after 70 it is hard to rule the country,” Turkmenbashi complained.
Unstoppable Drive to Democracy
The suggestion about having the presidential elections in Turkmenia was made by Niyazov already for several times. He started to insist on this idea right after Khalk Maskhalat appointed him as the life-time president, which has right to be re-elected as many times as Niyazov wishes.
In 2001, on the day of his 61st Birthday, Niyazov announced that it is difficult to rule the country after reaching age of 70. It was then, when he mentioned the date of his departure –2010. This announcement was made after the series of cadres shuffle. Within one year of 2000, Turkmenbashi changed the content of his government and presidential administration by nearly 70 percent. About ten Vice Prime Ministers (the position of the Prime Minister is also held by Saparmurat Niyazov and the Vice Prime Minister is the #2 official in the country after Turkmenbashi) were changed. The large scale sweeps were conducted in Central Bank, Foreign Ministry, Agriculture Ministry, Education Ministry and law-enforcements.
After the President’s statement about his unavoidable departure, the quiet time has settled in Turkmenia for about six months. During this time Niyazov was able to correct his plans: Turkmenbashi said that he might leave already in 2008. However, as soon as Turkmenbashi said that, the highest authorities of the country were submerged again into the purge. The head of the railroads lost his position first – he was run over by a train. His successor was able to hold on to the chair only for couple more months. Within few months the heads of the law-enforcements, Central Bank, Customs and several Vice Prime Ministers were replaced. The logical end for this power shuffle was another session of Khalk Maskhalat in August of 2002, which announced Niyazov as life-time President of Turkmenistan. The members of the council also decided to rename the months of the year and days of the week. January was called Turkmenbashi and April, for instance, was re-named after the President’s mother.
Simultaneously, there was another new rule introduced – the age divisions. A human life was divided by 12 cycles. The youth and young adulthood was coming after 30, and the “age of inspiration” was coming between 61 and 73. Coincidently, President Niyazov was 62 in that period.
The further development of the democracy happened in Turkmenia according to already tested screen-play. In November of 2002 new series of the brutal repressions started again. According to the official theory, on November 25 several foreign terrorists (Chechens, Uzbeks, Azerbaijanis, and few treacherous Turkmen officials) made an assassination attempt on Turkmenbashi. His armored Mercedes was shot at from a carbine and pistol. The court process of the century has started, during of which the police broom swept Speaker of the Parliament, heads of the Foreign Ministry, law-enforcements’ Generals, and several governors. The process was over with new promise from Turkmenbashi to leave his post. Right before his 63rd Birthday, Saparmurat Niyazov announced about the presidential elections in 2008 -2010, “if there would be the will of Allah.” In the same time, he asked his associates to reinforce their authority among the people and start to compete for the right to be called a successor.
The overachieving competitors were fired after several months and ended up in jail for a long time. By December of 2003 all the heads of law-enforcements lost their jobs. The Prosecution officers, who were purging the Turkmen organs of power “from the terrorists”, soon also found themselves under the giant sweeping broom.
So, the current promise of Turkmenbashi about the approaching departure was followed by the same logic. He finished the massive wave of the repressions with a fresh statement about the elections, thus promising again to survived officials that they would be the ones who would receive the power from Niyazov’s weakening hands. The traditional purges were conducted this summer as well: such well established figures as Redjep Saparov, former head of the presidential administration, and Elly Gurbanmuradov, Vice Prime Minister (both of them were considered as possible successors) lost their positions. Turkmenbashi sent a signal to new people, who came to replace Saparov and Gurbanmuradov. The president hinted that everyone from the newly arrived replacements has a chance to become a successor one day.
The Power Guarding Service
According to the Turkmen law, if the president is unable to perform his duties, the highest post in the state goes to the Deputy Chairman of Khalk Maskhalat. However, during the last purge the most potential candidate for the top position -- Deputy Chairman of the People’s Council Rejep Saparov -- was sentenced to 20 years in prison.
It would be safe to bet that before 2009 Saparmurat Niyazov would perform many his classic purges of the officials, who came too close to the throne. According to the opinion of some experts, Niyazov does that just to clear up the room for his own son Murad. Until now, Murad was only involved in business –he controls all oil-gas industry of Turkmenistan. However, according to the sources in Ashgabat, the son is not against the idea to become soon Turkmenbashi II.
The situation in Ashgabat could develop not only by the tested screen-plays of life-time President. Starting recently, the presidential bodyguards are taking the leading places in the ruling elite. Turkmenbashi’s former personal bodyguard Aganiyaz Akyev already took the position of Vice Prime Minister – it was him, who represented the country during the recent CIS summit in Kazan, where he officially announced about Turkmenistan’s quitting the Confederation. Another presidential bodyguard – Iklymberdy Paromov – already has a post of Deputy Foreign Minister. Finally, despite all the purges, the Chief of the Presidential Guard Akmurad Rejepov, was able to keep all his influence on the President Niyazov. The role of the bodyguards increased so much that experts cannot exclude the possibility of their participation in the final power sharing. So, it is not a fact, that Turkmenbashi will be successful in purging his close surrounding before his another democratic drive.
Mikhail Zygar
All the Article in Russian as of Oct. 25, 2005
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