Forced Deportation of Maral Annayeva: Direct Threat to the Life of a Woman and Her Children

The Human Rights Platform of the Civil Movement “Dayanç” (Turkmenistan) expresses its grave concern and strong protest regarding the forced deportation of Turkmen citizen Maral Annayeva from Dubai to Turkmenistan. She was deported together with her two minor children. This case constitutes a direct threat to their lives and safety. Turkmen citizens who are forcibly returned to the country are placed in complete isolation, without access to lawyers, medical care, or communication with the outside world. There are numerous documented cases of torture, ill-treatment, violence, and enforced disappearances of civil activists and human rights defenders in Turkmenistan. Particular concern arises regarding the situation of women and children. In places of detention, including the women’s colony in Dashoguz and pre-trial detention facilities, torture, physical and psychological violence are used. In such conditions, the deportation of a woman with two small children represents an immediate threat to their life and health. This case is not an isolated incident but part of a systemic practice of transnational repression. Turkmen citizens abroad are deprived of the possibility to obtain identity documents. Turkmen diplomatic missions do not issue passports or any other documents to their citizens, in direct violation of national legislation — in particular, Article 29(3) of the Law “On Migration,” which explicitly obliges the issuance of passports through consular institutions. As a result, the state deliberately creates a situation in which its citizens are left without documents, without legal protection, and exposed to detention and deportation. At the same time, Article 30(9) of the Law “On Migration” is used to restrict the right to leave the country, in contradiction with international legal standards, including the right to freedom of movement and family reunification. Thus, a citizen exercising the right to freedom of expression is subjected to deportation, persecution, and the risk of enforced disappearance, while state authorities that fail to fulfill their obligations remain unaccountable. We raise direct questions: Where is the place of human rights in this system? Where is the protection of women’s rights? Where is the safety of children? Where is state accountability for violations? Where is the response of international organizations, including UN mechanisms? The Human Rights Platform of the Civil Movement “Dayanç” demands: immediate clarification of the whereabouts of Maral Annayeva and her children; access to legal counsel, medical care, and communication with the outside world; guarantees of their safety and protection from torture and ill-treatment. We call on: UN bodies, including Special Procedures — to urgently intervene in this case; the international community — to provide a legal assessment of forced deportations and transnational repression; the authorities of Turkmenistan — to ensure the safety of Maral Annayeva and her children; human rights organizations and diplomatic missions — to place this case under constant monitoring; states hosting Turkmen civil activists and human rights defenders — to strictly comply with the principle of non-refoulement, to immediately ensure their protection from deportation and persecution, and to facilitate access to safe third countries for relocation. Each such case is not just a statistic. These are human lives. And the main question remains: who is next?