Love Under Restriction: Separated Families of Turkmenistan and the Violation of the Right to Family Reunification

Yesterday, the world celebrated Valentine’s Day — a day of love, a day for those who cherish and stand beside one another. Millions of people around the world marked this day, including citizens of Turkmenistan. But I could not congratulate our citizens on this beautiful day. There are serious reasons for this. At a time when many families are deprived of the opportunity to reunite, deprived of their fundamental right to freedom of movement and the right to be with their loved ones, I have no moral right to speak of celebration. Every day, I witness the suffering of families. I see the pain of Gulala Hasanova — the wife of civil activist Alisher Sakhadov, who disappeared on July 24, 2025, after leaving a deportation camp in Edirne, Türkiye. I see the suffering of the Sazonov family. I see the pain of Lachyn Gench. And more than one hundred other families who cannot reunite with their loved ones due to Article 30, Clause 9 of the migration legislation of Turkmenistan — a provision that directly contradicts international law, including the right to freedom of movement and the right to family reunification. I cannot offer congratulations on a day of love knowing that families are being artificially separated. I cannot celebrate while families are denied the chance to embrace their loved ones. Love must never be restricted. Family must never be separated by law. No political ambition, no legal provision, and no restriction should have the power to destroy families. Only when families are reunited, when the fundamental human right to love, to family, and to freedom of movement is respected, will such celebrations truly have meaning. We address the authorities of Turkmenistan: You are violating international law. You are violating the right to family. You are violating the right to love. You are violating the right to family reunification. We will continue to fight for the most basic human rights — the right to freedom of movement and the right to family reunification. Until every family can be together. With respect, Diana Dadasheva