Human Rights Platform of the Civil Movement "Dayanç" / Turkmenistan Holds Symbolic Protest: "We're Not Laughing Anymore"

Human Rights Platform of the Civil Movement "Dayanç" / Turkmenistan Holds Symbolic Protest: "We're Not Laughing Anymore" On 24 July 2026, the Human Rights Platform of the Civil Movement "Dayanç" / Turkmenistan held a symbolic protest in front of a circus building. The location was chosen deliberately. Through this action, we wanted to demonstrate that the people of Turkmenistan are tired of the political and social circus in which there is nothing left to laugh about. The country has state institutions that are supposed to protect the rights of its citizens. In practice, however, many people feel completely unprotected. There is the Halk Maslahaty, yet many citizens believe it does not address their real concerns. There are state-controlled media outlets, but they rarely report on the everyday problems faced by the population. There is also the Office of the Ombudsperson, yet its independence and effectiveness have repeatedly been questioned. We also express our concern that cooperation between international organizations and civil society in Turkmenistan remains extremely limited. According to many citizens and human rights defenders, their appeals often receive neither meaningful attention nor genuine dialogue. Civil activists continue to raise issues related to human rights violations, corruption, violence, transnational repression, and other systemic problems. Instead of addressing these issues, however, the authorities often target the activists themselves through intimidation, pressure, and persecution. All of this creates the impression of an endless performance in which the scenery changes, but the lives of ordinary people do not. The purpose of our protest is to draw the attention of the international community to the fact that there is absolutely nothing funny about the reality faced by millions of people in Turkmenistan. We once again call on international organizations, democratic governments, and human rights institutions to pay greater attention to the human rights situation in Turkmenistan. People need more than statements and expressions of concern—they need concrete and effective action that can help protect human rights, ensure accountability, and bring about meaningful change. We're not laughing. We demand justice, respect for human rights, and real change.