It’s repression with panache as Arkadag leads people to polls

Published on Friday 10 February 2012 00:53

His subjects call him Arkadag: the Patron. He is president, prime minister and commander of the armed forces; the undisputed leader of a country holding 4 per cent of the world’s gas reserves.

Gurbanguli Berdymukhamedov is certain to extend his rule of Turkmenistan in a presidential election on Sunday choreographed to present a harmonious image of a state ranked by human rights groups among the world’s most repressive.

Residents of the down-at-heel town of Abadan, 16 miles from the showpiece capital Ashgabat, recognise just one of the eight faces on posters identifying the candidates for the presidency of the former Soviet state.

That same image – a smiling Mr Berdymukhamedov, dressed immaculately in suit and tie – graces a giant billboard on the road into town. Portraits of the 54-year-old leader, a qualified dentist, adorn parks, offices and hotel lobbies nationwide.

“Everyone knows what the result of this election will be,” said Oraz, 36, who sells tomatoes in Abadan’s central bazaar. He declined to reveal his full name. After winning the last presidential election in February 2007 with 89 per cent of the vote, Mr Berdymukhamedov began gradually to dismantle the often bizarre cult of personality around Saparmurat Niyazov, the country’s first post-Soviet leader, who died of a heart attack.

He has engaged foreign governments and promised economic reforms while avoiding the eccentric traits of his predecessor, who banned opera and circus, as well as beards and gold teeth.

But Mr Berdymukhamedov – described as having a “vain and conservative personality” in a leaked US diplomatic cable last year – is becoming more ubiquitous. A mosque and a ship have been named in his honour and a police unit after his father. MPs bestowed upon him the title “hero of Turkmenistan” at a lavish ceremony in October.

The rutted roads of Abadan contrast with the fountain-lined avenues and marble palaces of the capital. Satellite dishes crowd the roofs of Soviet-built apartment blocks to pick up mainly Russian television channels, a rare connection with the outside world in a country where much of the internet is blocked.

A district of Abadan was devastated by a series of blasts at a munitions depot last July, attributed by officials to the accidental detonation of fireworks during a hot summer.

Officials broke days of silence to say 15 people died. Damaged buildings have since been repaired and repainted.

However, the secrecy that shrouded the incident, with mobile phone networks abruptly cut, was a reminder of the state’s stranglehold on information in the republic.

Mr Berdymukhamedov has called for the elections to be held in a spirit of celebration and said they “should reflect the richness of the spiritual world of the Turkmens”.

Campaign literature has been marked by a startling uniformity of thought. None of Mr Berdymukhamedov’s seven opponents – all government officials – has explicitly asked Turkmens to vote for them and have instead praised the president’s accomplishments.

Leaflets for water resources minister Annageldi Yazmyradov’s campaign are typical. “In this era of great achievements, every single citizen of our country fully endorses all the transformations taking place,” reads one line.

Ruslan, a 34-year-old estate agent in Abadan, said he would vote for the president “out of politeness”.