When Millions Are Found for an Official, While Millions of Citizens Are Forced to Leave

When Millions Are Found for an Official, While Millions of Citizens Are Forced to Leave The Human Rights Platform of the Civic Movement “DAYANÇ” expresses deep concern over information published by Turkmen.news regarding attempts to secure the release of the former head of Turkmen Railways, who was detained in Russia, for a sum of 3 million US dollars. This fact goes far beyond a criminal case. It reveals the true structure of social and political inequality in Turkmenistan. Money is found — but not for the people In a country where: families cannot afford medical treatment for their children, pensioners survive on humiliatingly low payments, young people are forced into mass labor migration, people sell their property to save their relatives, 3 million dollars is suddenly and easily found to protect one former official. This raises an unavoidable question: Why are millions found for a former official, while citizens receive only silence and restrictions? What is the difference between an official and a citizen? In Turkmenistan, there are in practice two different legal realities. For officials: money, lawyers, connections, diplomatic channels, unofficial protection. For citizens: travel bans, absence of court decisions, absence of legal protection, repression, poverty and migration. This is not a state of equal citizens. It is a caste-like system where proximity to power determines the value of human life. Does the state participate — or simply allow it? It is impossible to believe that such processes occur without the involvement or silent consent of state institutions. If an official accused of a serious crime receives such extensive protection, it means: either the system itself participates in his rescue, or it serves exclusively the interests of the elite, or the law as an institution no longer exists in the country. In any of these cases, we are not dealing with a rule-of-law state, but with a corporate system of power. Millions for one — zero for millions Millions of citizens of Turkmenistan: live separated from their families, work abroad without rights, face deportations, kidnappings, transnational repression, and at the same time receive no protection or support from their own state. When one person receives millions, millions lose the right to a dignified life. This is not only corruption — it is a social crime This is not merely a matter of possible corruption. It is a systemic crime against society. When state resources are used to protect the elite instead of protecting the people, the state loses its moral and legal legitimacy. The position of DAYANÇ The Human Rights Platform “DAYANÇ” declares: The law must be equal for all. No official must have privileges over a citizen. Not a single dollar should be spent on protecting corruption and crimes while the people live in poverty and fear. We demand: international legal assessment of such cases, transparency of financial sources, investigation of the involvement of Turkmen state institutions in such processes, and an end to the practice of double standards. Conclusion The problem in Turkmenistan is not that one official has been detained. The problem is that the entire system is built on the principle that: one stands above millions. Until this changes, no slogans about stability and prosperity will have any real meaning.