Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
09ASHGABAT277
2009-03-02 12:10:00
UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY
Embassy Ashgabat
Cable title:  

OVERVIEW OF REFUGEE SITUATION IN TURKMENISTAN

Tags:  PGOV PREL PREF UNHCR TX 
pdf how-to read a cable
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DE RUEHAH #0277/01 0611210
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 021210Z MAR 09
FM AMEMBASSY ASHGABAT
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 2385
INFO RUCNCLS/ALL SOUTH AND CENTRAL ASIA COLLECTIVE
RUCNCIS/CIS COLLECTIVE
RUCNMEM/EU MEMBER STATES COLLECTIVE
RUEHAK/AMEMBASSY ANKARA 4874
RUEHBJ/AMEMBASSY BEIJING 2644
RUEHKO/AMEMBASSY TOKYO 2509
RUEHIT/AMCONSUL ISTANBUL 3118
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 0950
RHMFIUU/CDR USCENTCOM MACDILL AFB FL
RUEHVEN/USMISSION USOSCE 3354
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHDC
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC
RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHDC
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 ASHGABAT 000277 

SENSITIVE

SIPDIS

STATE FOR SCA/CEN, PRM, DRL

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV PREL PREF UNHCR TX
SUBJECT: OVERVIEW OF REFUGEE SITUATION IN TURKMENISTAN

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 ASHGABAT 000277

SENSITIVE

SIPDIS

STATE FOR SCA/CEN, PRM, DRL

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV PREL PREF UNHCR TX
SUBJECT: OVERVIEW OF REFUGEE SITUATION IN TURKMENISTAN


1. (U) Sensitive but Unclassified. Not for Internet distribution


2. (SBU) SUMMARY: According to the UNHCR Representative in
Turkmenistan, refugees who arrived from Tajikistan during the 1990's
have either returned home or been granted citizenship. Integration
of the largely ethnic Turkmen group has gone well and UNHCR's work
with the group will end this year. There are smaller groups of
prima facie and mandate refugees, mostly from Afghanistan, many of
whom have also been resident since the 1990's. Although UNHCR
handled refugee determination and protection functions until
recently, the State Migration Service has now taken over that role.
UNHCR will assume the role of a watchdog for Government compliance
with the Refugee Convention and domestic law. The organization also
tracks the issue of statelessness, which is a post-Soviet legacy
that continues to affect thousands of residents. END SUMMARY.

MOST REFUGEES FROM TAJIKISTAN BECAME CITIZENS


3. (SBU) On February 25, Political Officer and Political Assistant
met with UNHCR Representative in Turkmenistan, Brita Helleland, to
discuss the current refugee situation and her organization's work.
Helleland remarked that currently there are few refugees in
Turkmenistan. The major refugee issue was resolved in 2005 when the
Government granted citizenship to approximately 10,000 refugees from
Tajikistan, primarily ethnic Turkmen, who came to Turkmenistan
during Tajik civil war. An additional 8,000 refugees returned to
Tajikistan. Helleland said the former refugees who remained in
Turkmenistan have integrated well. Most settled in remote areas of
Lebap and Mary provinces where they were given either virgin land or
land in tiny villages where the refugees make up eighty percent of
the population. They mostly work as farmers and, according to
Helleland, some have been quite prosperous, although infrastructure
in these areas is poor.


4. (SBU) During the past two years UNHCR has implemented a
Japanese-funded program on integration of refugees into Turkmen
society. Within the framework of this program UNHCR carried out
projects on sanitation and clean water, construction of health
facilities in villages, vocational training of refugees,

construction of workshops - mechanical for men and sewing for women
- to generate income, and school renovations. All projects were
carried out in coordination with the relevant Government agencies or
ministries. The program will end in October and no UNHCR follow-up
is planned since the members of this group have become citizens.

OTHER REFUGEE GROUPS ARE SMALL IN NUMBER


5. (SBU) There remains a group of 600 prima facie refugees from
Afghanistan who arrived in Turkmenistan in 1994 via Iran. Their
refugee status is based on conditions in Afghanistan during Taliban
rule. In 1994 they received residence permits in Turkmenistan.
Many of them are traders conducting business. They retain Afghan
passports and leave and reenter Turkmenistan without difficulty.
Most of these individuals are also ethnic Turkmen.


6. (SBU) UNHCR also recognizes 63 mandate refugees in Turkmenistan,
down from 80 eight months ago. Their number declined due to
receiving residence permits or citizenship. Among them are 31
Afghans, plus Armenians, Chechens and Azerbaijanis. The mandate
refugees from Afghanistan want to resettle elsewhere because of
cultural and language differences. The men typically work in
bazaars or as mechanics. It is difficult for their children to get
an education. The Azerbaijanis and Armenians want to stay and UNHCR
is lobbying on their behalf for either permanent residence status or
citizenship.

NO ASYLUM SEEKERS FOR YEARS


7. (SBU) Helleland noted that there have been no asylum seekers in
Turkmenistan for several years. She pointed out the anomaly that
while no Afghan asylum seekers are apparently showing up in
Turkmenistan, there has been an increase of Afghans seeking asylum
in Tajikistan. Helleland wondered whether a potential Afghan asylum

ASHGABAT 00000277 002 OF 003


seeker would be accepted and processed properly at the Turkmen
border, noting that while UNHCR has trained Turkmen officials about
their obligations in such cases, it does not have the cpacity to
monitor activity at border crossings.

GOTX WILL MAKE REFUGEE DETERMINATIONS


8. (SBU) State Migration Service officials are responsible for
handling cases at the border crossing. Until recently, the
Government allowed UNHCR to make the determination about whether or
not a person was a refugee. In January President Berdimuhamedov
announced that the Migration Service would determine the status of
refugees and issue refugee documents. As a result, UNHCR activities
in Turkmenistan will be reduced, although UNHCR will keep training
and advising the Migration Service on refugee and statelessness
issues. Helleland said UNHCR in Turkmenistan would develop its role
as a watchdog to make sure the Government abides by the Convention
and its own law.

TURKMENISTAN'S HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE TO AFGHANISTAN


9. (SBU) Helleland mentioned that Turkmenistan provides
humanitarian assistance to northern Afghanistan, mostly populated by
ethnic Turkmen, providing them with subsidized electricity,
constructing schools, hospitals and railways, providing flour and
clothing. Such assistance might be aimed at reducing the potential
flow of Afghan refugees into Turkmenistan. According to Helleland,
while there is nothing to suggest that there would be a large flow
of Afghan refugees to Turkmenistan in the near future, if unrest
moved into northern areas of Afghanistan, Turkmenistan could expect
to receive a large number of refugees.

UPDATING REFUGEE LEGISLATION


10. (SBU) UNHCR is working with Government to amend Turkmenistan's
Refugee Law of 1997, which was adopted in cooperation with UNHCR.
According to Helleland, the current law is "not too bad, but is not
well implemented." Also, the law has not been updated to reflect
more recent trends in refugee issues, resulting in "gaps" in
protection, including complementary forms of protection, protection
from new forms of persecution, including non-state persecution, and
confidentiality in the procedure. UNHCR is a part of
inter-ministerial group to revise the refugee law, which Helleland
hopes would be adopted in the fall of this year.

UNHCR STATELESSNESS MANDATE


11. (SBU) Apart from its refugee mandate, UNHCR also addresses the
issue of statelessness. "The problem of statelessness is a bigger
problem in Turkmenistan than we had expected," Helleland said. The
statelessness problem is caused by the demise of Soviet Union and
existing gaps in citizenship law of former Soviet republics. In
2007, around 8,500 stateless persons were registered in
Turkmenistan. According to Helleland, the figure now exceeds
12,000, not including children under the age of 16. From Government
sources, UNHCR learned that 4,500 applications of stateless persons
have been submitted to the State Commission in charge of considering
permanent residence permits or citizenship. Apparently, these cases
are complete, but a presidential review is being delayed because the
commission wants to be able to submit a larger number of
applications for the President's review. Helleland explained that
compiling the necessary documentation is an onerous task requiring
17 documents, some of which are valid for only two weeks.


12. (SBU) COMMENT: The field for UNHCR activity in Turkmenistan
appears to be shrinking as the Government takes more responsibility
for refugee matters and former refugees are largely integrated.
This was no doubt facilitated by the fact that most of the refugees
were ethnic Turkmen from neighboring Tajikistan and Afghanistan. As
Helleland made clear, the Turkmen Government relied heavily on UNHCR
in handling refugee cases in the past, which also no doubt
contributed to its positive past performance. END COMMENT.


ASHGABAT 00000277 003 OF 003


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