International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination: Equality Without Borders

Today, March 21, the international community marks the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination — a day that reminds us of the urgent need to protect human dignity and stand against all forms of inequality. The Human Rights Platform of the Civil Movement “Dayanch Turkmenistan” expresses its solidarity with the global community in the fight against racism, discrimination, and xenophobia. However, we are compelled to state that discrimination in Turkmenistan remains a systemic and widespread problem. Discrimination in the country persists on the basis of: nationality regional origin language ethnic background gender Of particular concern is the fact that there are no effective mechanisms within the country to combat discrimination. Moreover, based on our observations, discriminatory practices are systemic in nature and occur at the level of state institutions. Civil activists and human rights defenders are among the most vulnerable groups. We face: humiliation of human dignity personal insults pressure and persecution discrimination based on nationality, regional origin, language, ethnicity, and gender Such practices contradict not only Turkmenistan’s international obligations but also the fundamental principles of human rights. We emphasize that: discrimination in any form is unacceptable; human rights are universal and must not be restricted based on origin or beliefs; the state must protect its citizens, not create conditions for their discrimination. On this day, we call on: the authorities of Turkmenistan — to acknowledge existing problems and take real measures to eliminate them; the international community — to pay attention to systemic discrimination in the country; citizens — not to remain silent and to support each other in the struggle for equality and dignity. Human rights have no borders. Dignity cannot be suppressed. Equality is a right of every person. Respectfully, Human Rights Platform of the Civil Movement “Dayanch Turkmenistan”