Turkmenistan
Country in central Asia, bounded N by Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, W
by the Caspian Sea, and S by Iran and Afghanistan.
Government
Under the 1992 constitution there is a directly elected 50-member working
parliament, the Majlis, and a supervisory 110-member supreme national
assembly, the People's Council (Khalk Maslakhaty), comprising
60 directly elected representatives from the districts, the 50
Majlis members, members of the council of ministers, and local
council and judicial heads. Both chambers serve a five-year term.
The president, who is directly elected for a five-year term, is
both head of state and government (prime minister) and appoints
the council of ministers. In 1994 the current president's mandate
was extended by plebiscite to 2002.
History
The principal Turkmen tribes are the Tekkes of Merv and Attok, the
Ersaris, the Yomuds, and the Gokluns, all speaking varieties of
a Turkic language and descended from the Mongol invaders who swept
across Asia in the 13th century.
Conquered by Tsarist Russia 1877- 1900, the region became part
of the Turkestan Soviet Socialist Autonomous Republic 1921, and
a constituent republic of the USSR 1925. The Soviet-built Kara
Kum canal brought millions of acres of desert to life, although
living standards remained very low.
Independence Achieved
Turkmenistan's nationalist movement was more muted than in other former
Soviet Central Asian republics. In Aug 1990 Turkmenistan's supreme
soviet declared its `sovereignty´; Communist Party leader Saparmurad
Niyazov was elected president. However, in the March 1991 USSR
constitutional referendum the population voted to maintain the
Union, and the attempted anti-Gorbachev coup in Moscow Aug 1991
was initially supported by President Niyazov. In the Oct 1991
referendum there was an overwhelming (94%) vote in favour of independence,
duly declared.
Turkmenistan joined the Commonwealth of Independent States Dec
1991. It was admitted into the United Nations March 1992. In the
same month US diplomatic recognition was achieved. In Feb 1992
Turkmenistan had joined the Economic Cooperation Organization,
founded by Iran, Pakistan, and Turkey 1975. A new constitution
was introduced May 1992 but the republic's political system remained
dominated by communists. In Nov- Dec a 110-member People's Council
(Khalk Maslakhaty), or supreme parliament, was popularly elected.
The republic, with its strict, secular leadership, succeeded
in avoiding the religious and interethnic violence experienced
by neighbouring Tajikistan during the early 1990s. A personality
cult was developed and in Jan 1994 President Niyazov received
overwhelming support for his presidency in a national referendum,
thereby extending his mandate by five years and bypassing the
constitutional requirement for re-election. His supporters won
the 1995 parliamentary elections.
In Jan 1997 the parliament passed legislation allowing private
land ownership.
Economy
Turkmenistan was less severely affected by the dissolution of the USSR
than many other republics due to its abundant natural resources.
Following independence it pursued a programme of cautious economic
reform and encouraged foreign investment, creating seven free
economic zones for the purpose, although by 1995 little real privatization
had taken place.
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