Category Archives: Uncategorised

Berdymukhamedov says to allow demonstrations

MARCH 12 2015 (The Bulletin) – Starting on June 1, Turkmen citizens, organisations, and parties will be allowed to organise public demonstrations, a law signed by president Kurbanguly Berdymukhamedov stated.

This unexpected relaxation of oppressive laws governing demonstrations, took observers by surprise. It may be linked to worsening economic conditions across the country. It may be a ruse to appear more relaxed while changing very little.Turkmenistan is, after all, interested in pulling in the EU as a client for its gas.

Demonstrations in Turkmenistan are extremely rare with only a couple of small protests linked to housing in the past few years.

And the law has caveats. Any party or organisation which has been banned by the government will not be allowed to set up public action. The law also appears to be subjective stating that “individuals declared incompetent or of limited competence by a court or those who are facing legal charges” are not eligible to organise others.

All public rallies must take place at a distance from government buildings and should be aimed at the “peaceful gathering” of Turkmen citizens.

Importantly, demonstrations funded by foreign subjects will not be allowed. This echoes the country’s attitude towards NGO activities, which are strictly regulated to contain international influence.

The new demonstrations will likely be organised by pro-presidential organisations to burnish Mr Berdymukhamedov’s image at home and abroad.
ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 223, published on March 18 2015)

Kazakh court convicts 3 policemen of torture

MARCH 18 2015 (The Bulletin) – A court in Aktobe, west Kazakhstan, convicted three police officers of torturing a robbery suspect, media reported. The sentence is a rare victory for rights activists who say torture is used by Kazakh police to extract confessions.
ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 223, published on March 18 2015)

Turkmenistan Airlines sign maintenance deal

MARCH 17 2015 (The Bulletin) – Turkmenistan airlines have signed a deal with Lithuania’s FL Technics to provide maintenance for its fleet of five Boeing passenger jets, media reported. Turkmenistan Airlines has been trying to boost its fleet and international image.
ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 223, published on March 18 2015)

Hyatt says it expects to open a hotel in Tbilisi

MARCH 17 2015 (The Bulletin) – Hyatt Hotels said that it expects to open a new hotel in Tbilisi by 2017. The announcement will be a boost to Georgia’s tourist and foreign business sectors.
ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 223, published on March 18 2015)

Garment production drops by 50% in Kyrgyzstan

MARCH 13 2015 (The Bulletin) – Garment production in Kyrgyzstan dropped by 50% in the first two months of the year, media quoted the Kyrgyz national statistics agency as saying. The agency did not say why clothing output had plummeted but it may be linked to the regional economic downturn.
ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 223, published on March 18 2015)

Georgians relish rugby win over Russia

TBILISI, March 14 2015 (The Bulletin) – “We love rugby. We love Lelos!” a crowd of almost 30,000 roared when Georgia scored yet another try in the final minutes of this Georgia-Russia rugby match.

The final score against Russia was a crushing 33-0 win. Georgia’s Lelos — named after lelo, a Georgian folk sport similar to rugby — haven’t lost to Russia’s Bears since 1993, a run of wins that their fans will gleefully tell you about.

Georgia has a strong rugby team and will play against New Zealand, Argentina, Tonga and Namibia in this year’s World Cup in England.

Although the head coach of the Lelos, New Zealander Milton Haig, has said there is no difference who the opponent is, it is clear for the crowd that it matters. They want to see Georgia beat, smash even, the Russian team.

For the match against Russia, Tbilisi’s Mikheil Meskhi stadium was packed with Georgian fans, waiting for Georgia to crush Russia in front of their eyes. People also waved Ukrainian blue and yellow flags, underlining the anti-Russian feeling in the crowd.

On the rugby pitch, at least, Georgia and Ukraine can get their own back at Russia.

Last year Russia annexed Crimea from Ukraine and has been sponsoring rebels in the east of the country in an ongoing civil war. In 2008, Russia defeated Georgia in a small war which concreted its control over the breakaway regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia.

“It’s solidarity,” explained a young Georgian fan, before joining the crowd shouting “Putin khuylo!” and “Abkhazia is ours!”. The Kremlin has tighten its grip over parts of Georgia this year but Georgian rugby fans can still relish in their superiority over Russia.
ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 223, published on March 18 2015)

EBRD opens office in Khujand, Tajikistan

MARCH 12 2015 (The Bulletin) – The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has opened up an office in the town of Khujand in north Tajikistan to help support small business, media reported. The EBRD has been extending its Tajik projects.
ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 223, published on March 18 2015)

Aliyev launches TANAP pipeline

MARCH 17 2015 (The Bulletin) – Azerbaijani president Ilham Aliyev flew to Kars in Turkey to launch construction of the $10b Trans-Anatolian Pipeline (TANAP) which will pump gas from the Caspian to Europe. Also present were Turkish president Tayyip Erdogan and Georgian president Giorgi Margvelashvili.
ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 223, published on March 18 2015)

Lukoil says Uzbek projects are on target

MARCH 17 2015 (The Bulletin) – In a statement on its global oil and gas output, Russia’s Lukoil said although there were pressures on its downstream production sites, its projects in Uzbekistan were on target. Lukoil is a major investor in Uzbekistan.
ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 223, published on March 18 2015)

Air Armenia delays restarting services

MARCH 17 2015 (The Bulletin) – Air Armenia, Armenia’s only major passenger airline, has delayed re-starting services, media quoted head of marketing, Sirakan Hambardzumyan, as saying. Air Armenia’s suspended flights in October last year because of a cash flow problem. It had been due to resume flights in March.
ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 223, published on March 18 2015)