Residence Registration as a Tool of Pressure: Why Turkmen Citizens Are Being Expelled from Their Own Capital

Residence Registration as a Tool of Pressure: Why Turkmen Citizens Are Being Expelled from Their Own Capital Police checks targeting citizens who have arrived from the regions have once again intensified in Ashgabat. According to Radio Azatlyk, in the area known as “Khitrovka,” police officers are conducting door-to-door checks, stopping people in the streets and demanding identification documents. Particular attention is being paid to citizens who do not have permanent residence registration in Ashgabat. According to the source, detainees may be taken to police stations. Their relatives are required to bring their documents, after which fines may be imposed. Some young men are reportedly being forcibly sent back to their home regions. The apparent reason for the increased police presence may have been a recent serious criminal incident: a young woman from Dashoguz Region who was working in the capital suffered severe stab wounds and was admitted to intensive care. However, a fundamental question arises: why does the investigation of a specific crime turn into mass checks targeting people based on their place of registration? Citizens Should Not Become “Outsiders” in Their Own Country People do not come to Ashgabat to break the law. They come in search of employment and opportunities to support their families. Economic hardship and a shortage of jobs in the regions force many citizens to seek work in the capital. This creates a vicious circle: the state fails to provide sufficient economic opportunities in the regions, citizens travel to where they can earn a living, and then face police checks and demands to leave the capital. What is particularly troubling is that this problem has persisted for years. The issue is therefore not only police practices but also Turkmenistan’s residence registration system itself, which has long been in need of serious reform. In the 21st century, registering one’s place of residence should not be a complicated, multi-stage administrative obstacle. In many countries, such procedures have been significantly simplified: registering or changing one’s place of residence can be completed quickly through public administrative services and, in many cases, remotely through government online platforms. Why should a citizen of Turkmenistan not be able to obtain temporary registration within a few hours or submit an application online? Why should an ordinary administrative procedure require numerous certificates, permissions and repeated visits to government offices? The purpose of residence registration should be to maintain accurate population records, not to restrict citizens’ freedom. Turkmenistan needs comprehensive reform of its residence registration system: a transparent procedure, a minimal list of required documents, clear processing deadlines and a fully functional electronic registration system. The state should make interaction with public authorities easier for citizens, not create additional barriers. The right to freedom of movement and to choose one’s residence within one’s own country is protected by Article 12 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. Restrictions on this right must not become an arbitrary mechanism that divides citizens into those who are permitted to live in the capital and those who are effectively denied access to it. Public Security Does Not Justify Collective Punishment When a crime is committed, the state has a duty to identify those responsible and protect the public. But the actions of one individual cannot justify treating thousands of other citizens as suspects. Targeting people simply because they come from Dashoguz, Lebap, Mary, Balkan or another region is not a solution to crime. Ashgabat is the capital of all citizens of Turkmenistan, not only those who hold Ashgabat residence registration. The Human Rights Platform of the Dayanç Civil Movement calls on the authorities of Turkmenistan to end the practice of arbitrary detention and forced removal of citizens from the capital solely because of their place of registration and to begin the long-overdue reform of the residence registration system. Registration should become a simple administrative service: a procedure completed within hours instead of a bureaucratic ordeal; an online application instead of endless paperwork; clear rules instead of dependence on individual officials. And the fundamental question remains: why should citizens have to prove to the state that they have the right to live and work in the capital of their own country? We encourage citizens to share their experiences. If you have been denied permanent or temporary residence registration, required to provide excessive documentation, fined, detained or forced to leave Ashgabat because of your registration status, tell us about it in the comments. Source: Radio Azatlyk, 11 August 2026 Photo and information: Azatlyk Radiosy (RFE/RL)