Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
08ASHGABAT1453
2008-11-06 03:38:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Ashgabat
Cable title:
TURKMENISTAN: POTENTIAL MEJLIS CANDIDATE AND HIS
how-toVZCZCXRO4217 PP RUEHAG RUEHBI RUEHCI RUEHLH RUEHPW RUEHROV DE RUEHAH #1453 3110338 ZNY CCCCC ZZH P 060338Z NOV 08 FM AMEMBASSY ASHGABAT TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 1810 INFO RUCNCLS/ALL SOUTH AND CENTRAL ASIA COLLECTIVE PRIORITY RUCNCIS/CIS COLLECTIVE PRIORITY RUCNMEM/EU MEMBER STATES COLLECTIVE PRIORITY RUEHAK/AMEMBASSY ANKARA PRIORITY 4464 RUEHBJ/AMEMBASSY BEIJING PRIORITY 2276 RUEHKO/AMEMBASSY TOKYO PRIORITY 2141 RUEHIT/AMCONSUL ISTANBUL PRIORITY 2712 RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK PRIORITY 0922 RHMFISS/CDR USCENTCOM MACDILL AFB FL PRIORITY RUEHVEN/USMISSION USOSCE PRIORITY 3031 RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC PRIORITY RHEFDIA/DIA WASHDC PRIORITY RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC PRIORITY RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC PRIORITY RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHDC PRIORITY
C O N F I D E N T I A L ASHGABAT 001453
SIPDIS
STATE FOR SCA/CEN; DRL
E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/05/2018
TAGS: PGOV KDEM TX
SUBJECT: TURKMENISTAN: POTENTIAL MEJLIS CANDIDATE AND HIS
CITIZEN SUPPORTERS THWARTED IN MARY
Classified By: Charge Sylvia Reed Curran for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).
C O N F I D E N T I A L ASHGABAT 001453
SIPDIS
STATE FOR SCA/CEN; DRL
E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/05/2018
TAGS: PGOV KDEM TX
SUBJECT: TURKMENISTAN: POTENTIAL MEJLIS CANDIDATE AND HIS
CITIZEN SUPPORTERS THWARTED IN MARY
Classified By: Charge Sylvia Reed Curran for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).
1. (C) POLOFF met a lawyer affiliated with the Ilkinjiler
Farmer's Cooperative in Mary at the Embassy-sponsored
Presidential Election Reception on November 5. Abdulrahman
Bayramov said a citizens group had recently attempted to
initiate procedures in order to nominate him as a candidate
for Mejlis deputy. According to Turkmenistan's recently
revised Law on Mejlis Elections, the nomination of candidates
was to have begun on October 31, 45 days before election day.
2. (C) Bayramov said that on October 26, several days
before nomination was to have begun, his supporters tried to
hold an exploratory meeting at a local sports club in Mary in
order to discuss the process to nominate him. Three days
before they were to meet, they informally notified their
district election commission of their intention to meet.
(NOTE: According to the new law, a citizens group intending
to nominate a candidate must notify the district election
commission of the place and date of the planned nomination
meeting as well as the names, addresses and dates of birth of
those planning to attend. The election law does not require
an initiative group that wants to organize a group discussion
to do so as well. END NOTE.)
3. (C) Bayramov said that when they went to the sports club
for the planned meeting, a gathering of election commission,
police, and MNB officials were waiting for them and told them
that their planned meeting was illegal, that it was too late
to nominate a candidate, and that they should disperse. When
Bayramov pointed out to the officials that the newly revised
law indicated that the nomination period would extend to
November 14, and that the law did not require them to notify
officials of the meeting of their initiative group, the
officials present had no knowledge of the election law and
insisted that the group go home. Bayramov said that after
this, he acquired the text of the new election law
electronically, printed out copies of it, and started handing
it out to residents in Mary.
4. (C) Bayramov indicated that local officials did not want
to see him nominated because he had participated in the
formation in the early 1990s of the Democratic Party, which
was initially formed to promote democratic values and oppose
former President Niyazov and his supporters. (NOTE: In its
infancy, the party had a solid following in Mary. One of the
party's primary organizers was Mary resident Nazarly
Shahberdiyev, who is currently serving a sentence for
corruption in the Mary prison. As President Niyazov sought
to consolidate his power in the mid-1990s, his supporters
took over the party, stripped away its original platform, and
converted it to the Democratic Party of Turkmenistan, now the
only legal political party here. END NOTE.)
5. (C) COMMENT: Bayramov's story is discouraging, and
calls into question the idea of nomination of Mejlis
candidates by citizen groups. Post intends to investigate
further. END COMMENT.
CURRAN
SIPDIS
STATE FOR SCA/CEN; DRL
E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/05/2018
TAGS: PGOV KDEM TX
SUBJECT: TURKMENISTAN: POTENTIAL MEJLIS CANDIDATE AND HIS
CITIZEN SUPPORTERS THWARTED IN MARY
Classified By: Charge Sylvia Reed Curran for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).
1. (C) POLOFF met a lawyer affiliated with the Ilkinjiler
Farmer's Cooperative in Mary at the Embassy-sponsored
Presidential Election Reception on November 5. Abdulrahman
Bayramov said a citizens group had recently attempted to
initiate procedures in order to nominate him as a candidate
for Mejlis deputy. According to Turkmenistan's recently
revised Law on Mejlis Elections, the nomination of candidates
was to have begun on October 31, 45 days before election day.
2. (C) Bayramov said that on October 26, several days
before nomination was to have begun, his supporters tried to
hold an exploratory meeting at a local sports club in Mary in
order to discuss the process to nominate him. Three days
before they were to meet, they informally notified their
district election commission of their intention to meet.
(NOTE: According to the new law, a citizens group intending
to nominate a candidate must notify the district election
commission of the place and date of the planned nomination
meeting as well as the names, addresses and dates of birth of
those planning to attend. The election law does not require
an initiative group that wants to organize a group discussion
to do so as well. END NOTE.)
3. (C) Bayramov said that when they went to the sports club
for the planned meeting, a gathering of election commission,
police, and MNB officials were waiting for them and told them
that their planned meeting was illegal, that it was too late
to nominate a candidate, and that they should disperse. When
Bayramov pointed out to the officials that the newly revised
law indicated that the nomination period would extend to
November 14, and that the law did not require them to notify
officials of the meeting of their initiative group, the
officials present had no knowledge of the election law and
insisted that the group go home. Bayramov said that after
this, he acquired the text of the new election law
electronically, printed out copies of it, and started handing
it out to residents in Mary.
4. (C) Bayramov indicated that local officials did not want
to see him nominated because he had participated in the
formation in the early 1990s of the Democratic Party, which
was initially formed to promote democratic values and oppose
former President Niyazov and his supporters. (NOTE: In its
infancy, the party had a solid following in Mary. One of the
party's primary organizers was Mary resident Nazarly
Shahberdiyev, who is currently serving a sentence for
corruption in the Mary prison. As President Niyazov sought
to consolidate his power in the mid-1990s, his supporters
took over the party, stripped away its original platform, and
converted it to the Democratic Party of Turkmenistan, now the
only legal political party here. END NOTE.)
5. (C) COMMENT: Bayramov's story is discouraging, and
calls into question the idea of nomination of Mejlis
candidates by citizen groups. Post intends to investigate
further. END COMMENT.
CURRAN