Turkmenistan has ranked 175 out of 180 in the Press Freedom Index by "Reporters Without Borders." In 2023, the country was at 176th place, and in 2022 - at 177th.
In the 2024 ranking, below Turkmenistan are Iran, North Korea, Afghanistan, Syria, and Eritrea. Kyrgyzstan occupies the 120th place, Kazakhstan - the 142nd, Uzbekistan - the 148th, Tajikistan - the 155th, Russia - the 162nd, China - the 172nd. The top five positions in the ranking are held by Norway, Denmark, Sweden, Netherlands, and Finland.
The situation with press freedom in Turkmenistan has remained unchanged for many years. Official state media continue to monitor all the nuances of the work and leisure of the president, now both President Serdar Berdymukhamedov, and his father and predecessor, Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov. Only positive news is published, with no room for political criticism, incident reports, or sharp social observations in the media.
The few semi-independent media outlets rewrite the state agenda, mixing it with news from industry unions, creative groups, and sports teams. These are usually reports on formal events.
The editorial offices of those media outlets that strive to reflect real life are based abroad by necessity. Their correspondents inside the country operate strictly anonymously, fearing for their freedom. If they are "exposed," they are harshly persecuted.
For example, Nurgeldy Khalykov, who forwarded a photo of the WHO delegation to the turkmen.news editorial office, taken from someone else's Instagram, is serving four years in prison on fabricated fraud charges. And Soltan Achilova, an elderly woman who almost single-handedly collaborates with foreign journalists in the country, was not allowed to leave Turkmenistan in the fall of 2023 to receive the Martin Ennals Award.
Readers are also subjected to persecution. Internet access is heavily restricted in the country, requiring the use of VPNs (which are ironically developed by the employees of the Cybersecurity Service). If it is discovered that a person has read "forbidden" media or watched foreign YouTube channels criticizing the Turkmen regime, they are at least threatened with a serious conversation. Over time, if the person does not "correct" their behavior, after a series of such conversations, they realize that to preserve their freedom, they must leave the country.
