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MARY, Turkmenistan — The streets have been completely cleaned, pale buildings abruptly painted, and farmland cleared of weeds as officers in Turkmenistan’s Mary area gave a grand welcome to authoritarian ex-President Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov this weekend.
Darkish-colored automobiles have been additionally ordered to be saved out of the sight for a couple of days and anybody who disobeyed noticed their automobiles towed away by site visitors police.
The mercurial Berdymukhammedov — who dominated with an iron hand from 2007 till turning over the presidency to his son Serdar in March — has a widely known penchant for white and is obsessive about cleanliness.
Berdymukhammedov, 65, traveled in a brand-new white automobile as he visited cotton farms and wheat plantations in Mary on November 12. The pinnacle of the higher home of parliament, he nonetheless carries enormous political clout inside the authoritarian state.
An identical cleansing drive — involving 1000’s of individuals — was below manner within the western Balkan area on November 14, forward of one other essential go to by “one of many Berdymukhammedovs” this week, native sources mentioned.
Whereas regional officers have been wanting to impress the nation’s leaders, many bizarre Turkmen have been far much less enthusiastic.
Some Mary residents privately instructed RFE/RL that intensive and dear preparations for such visits doesn’t sit will with folks mired in poverty.
“It’s an pointless burden after we barely make ends meet,” one native man mentioned. “Regardless of [the horrible economic conditions] we nonetheless cannot eliminate the Berdymukhammedovs.”
He spoke on situation of anonymity, because the tightly managed state doesn’t tolerate criticism of the authorities.
The Central Asian nation is stricken by a monetary disaster and meals shortages regardless of sitting atop the world’s fourth-largest reserves of pure gasoline.
However officers nonetheless go to excessive lengths to create a facade of prosperity when the president — or his father — visits a area or attends a gathering.
They mobilize 1000’s to brush the streets, repaint previous buildings, rake out previous shrubs, and plant new timber. A whole bunch extra — from kids to the aged — should put on conventional garments to satisfy and greet the essential company in numerous ceremonies.
Some 2,500 folks — largely public-sector employees — have been taken from their day jobs in Balkan Province this week to organize the port metropolis of Turkmenbashi for the upcoming go to, sources mentioned.
Small bazaars, fruit and vegetable stalls, and different companies are sometimes ordered to shut throughout such journeys for safety causes and even to assist enhance the view. Some Turkmen say “life stops” briefly of their cities when the president pays a go to.
In Mary, even farmland was cleared of weeds and pathways between plantations cleaned of litter and swept forward of Berdymukhammedov senior’s newest journey.
Sources near the native authorities instructed RFE/RL that the authorities needed to verify the fields look flawless in case Berdymukhammedov sees them from above whereas in his helicopter.
A number of the previous rooftops of residential buildings have been painted inexperienced in anticipation of the go to.
Residents and rural cafe homeowners have been ordered to not burn firewood till the previous chief had left city. Most villagers depend upon firewood to warmth their houses, however safety providers have been deployed to make sure folks adopted the orders.
Stored Beneath Wraps
The official sources mentioned that up till the final day Mary residents — even most officers – had not been instructed which of the Berdymukhammedovs — the son or the daddy — was going to go to. The secretive state routinely retains the dates and itineraries of its prime leaders’ journeys below wraps.
“At this level, it’s not clear who’s coming and once they’re coming. All we all know is {that a} Berdymukhammedov can be visiting to attend a ceremony to put the primary bricks of a manufacturing facility,” a supply mentioned on the eve of the journey.
The subsequent day, state tv confirmed the elder Berdymukhammedov speaking to farmers. He spoke to a neatly dressed farmer as a number of officers — all wearing strikingly related darkish coats and black baseball hats — stood close by taking notes on their matching inexperienced notepads.
State media mentioned the goal of Berdymukhammedov’s journey was to satisfy essentially the most profitable farmers within the nation and to ship presents on behalf of his son, the president, for Harvest Day. The occasion was marked nationwide with gatherings, meals festivals, exhibitions, and concert events.
The previous president continues to pay official visits to Turkmen areas. In June he visited Lebap Province and acquired related fanfare.
The journey to Mary was Berdymukhammedov’s second go to to the southeastern province since early September. It got here a day after he attended a summit of the Group of Turkic States in Samarkand. Serdar Berdymukhammedov — the president — did not attend the gathering although virtually all the different international locations there have been represented by their presidents.
Written by Farangis Najibullah based mostly on reporting by RFE/RL Turkmen Service correspondents within the Mary and Balkan provinces.
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