Turkmenistan’s authorities have stepped up security measures ahead of the holidays by introducing an unspoken curfew. Now, police in Turkmenbashi City detain people on the streets in the evening and temporarily arrest citizens they consider “unreliable”. This was reported by Radio Azatlyk.
According to the correspondents, parents are asked to sign an undertaking to increase the supervision of their children. And that they undertake to observe the rules of fire safety during the celebration of Neutrality and New Year, neither they nor their children will participate in parties and meetings. This is not the first warning, by the way. In December 2022, schoolchildren, teachers, and parents were informed about the ban on the use of firecrackers up to imprisonment for violation.
In addition, fire safety officers go around the houses, check electrical appliances, and require residents to sign a specially prepared receipt. In this case, citizens agree to be prosecuted in case of violation of these requirements.
At present, police officers patrol the streets of Turkmenbashi at night and detain citizens who are on the streets after 9 p.m. They are usually taken into custody. As a rule, persons who are “on the street without a valid reason” are taken into custody. They are placed in a temporary detention center until 10 a.m. the next morning when the police chief appears and signs a report.
Residents of the city usually do not know that a curfew is in effect, as no one informs them about it. Also – citing an order from above, the police have rounded up all the local alcoholics registered with the drug treatment center and put them in the isolation unit at the Akdash prison until 3 January 2024. Poor children, people with disabilities, and homeless people will also be placed in the temporary isolation center.
According to an informed source from Radio Azatlyk, such measures began on 5 December to “ensure order and peace in the city during the holidays”.
There will be no place for internal migrants in Turkmenbashi during the holidays, either. People who have come to work from other regions of the country are being asked to give receipts that they will not return to the Balkan province by 10 January.
Retail outlets selling alcohol were also banned. They were not allowed to sell alcoholic beverages and tobacco products.
Recall, the Day of Neutrality in Turkmenistan is celebrated on 12 December. Throughout the month, citizens are forced to observe bans and restrictions.
