DAY OF THE IMPRISONED WRITER November 15, 2004
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TURKMENISTAN: RAKHIM ESENOV
The Writers in Prison Committee of International PEN is deeply concerned that journalist Rakhim Esenov remains under investigation in Turkmenistan and that charges against him are still pending, despite his release by the Turkmenistan authorities in March 2004.
Esenov, a freelance correspondent for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, was questioned by agents from the National Security Ministry (MNB) on 23 February 2004. He was initially accused of smuggling 800 copies of his novel Ventsenosny Skitalets (The Crowned Wanderer) into Turkmenistan from Russia. The book had been banned from publication in Turkmenistan for 10 years by President Saparmyrat Atayevich Niyazov, who had publicly criticized it in 1997 on the grounds that it contained ‘historical errors’. Despite Niyazov’s demands that corrections be made to the book, Esenov refused. The book was finally published in Russia in 2003.
Already in poor health apparently due to a heart attack prior to his detention, Esenov suffered a stroke following the interrogation and was taken to hospital. Two days later, he was interrogated again, and was put in an intensive care unit at the hospital, under the strict control of the Security Service. Esenov was then arrested on 26 February 2004, and taken to an MNB prison.
On 2 March 2004, Esenov was charged by the MNB with ‘inciting social, national and religious hatred’ using mass media, an offence which carries a four year jail sentence under Article 177 of the Criminal Code. Esenov reportedly believed that this charge referred to statements made by characters in The Crowned Wanderer, a historical account of the Mogul Empire founded in the 16th century. The book features the character Bayram Khan as a Turkmen poet, philosopher and army general who saved the Empire from falling apart.
Turkmenistan has long been criticized by international organizations for its lack of press freedom. The government controls both television and the press, and there are no independent media. Other than sporadic broadcasts in Russia, the only alternative source of information in the Turkmen language to the official media is Radio Liberty (RL). However, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) reports that RL journalists have been routinely harassed, beaten and forced into exile in recent years.
President Niyazov has developed a personality cult in Turkmenistan and, as ‘President for life’, does not face any significant opposition within Turkmenistan. A book written by the President, Ruhman, which mixes history, myth and philosophy to promote a spirit of national consciousness among ethnic Turkmen, has become required reading for all school and University students, and dominates bookshops and places of work. Public criticism of it is unthinkable.
Although Esenov was released by the authorities on 10 March 2004, the charges against him were not dropped, and the results of an investigation are still pending. All restrictions placed on him are still in place: he is unable to leave the capital Ashgabat, has been ordered to cease working for RFE/RL, and remains under surveillance. He is in dire need of medical attention that is not available in Turkmenistan. The travel restrictions against him mean that he is unable to go to Moscow for treatment.
International PEN considers the restrictions against Rakhim Esenov to be in blatant disregard of his right to freedom of expression. It is calling for all charges against him to be dropped, that he be allowed to return to his profession as a journalist, that the banning order against his book be withdrawn, and that he be returned his right to freedom of movement, thus enabling him to receive essential medical treatment abroad.
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