the legal grounds for the request, he was forced to swear on the Qur’an that they would held at the checkpoint for four hours then not use VPNs to access the internet. sentenced to 15 days’ administrative detention after he blocked the road with his LGBTI PEOPLE’S RIGHTS car in protest. Murat Dushemov was further Consensual sexual relations between men charged with assault for purportedly attacking remained a criminal offence punishable by his cell mates – a charge he denied. On 16 up to two years’ imprisonment, and at least August, he was sentenced to four years’ one case was reported of a man being imprisonment for “intentional medium bodily arrested and charged in August in the city of harm” and “intimidation”, and for having Turkmenabat. attempted to bribe a doctor. In Turkmenistan’s Third Periodic Report to The authorities attempted to stop protests the UN Human Rights Committee published abroad by putting pressure on in 2020, the government had undertaken to demonstrators. On 1 August, a legal protest consider decriminalizing consensual sexual outside the Turkmenistani consulate in relations between men, but no progress was Istanbul, Turkey, was disrupted when made towards this. consulate staff called police claiming that the FREEDOM OF RELIGION AND BELIEF protesters were terrorists. Ten were detained for five days. Farhad Durdiev, a blogger and Freedom of religion remained severely activist, described how two men offered him restricted and conscientious objectors faced a lift to the protest in a car with Turkmenistani criminal prosecution. In January, six licence plates but then threatened him and Jehovah’s Witnesses were convicted and drove him to the back entrance of the imprisoned. A further conviction in March consulate where he was beaten by them and brought the total number of Jehovah’s Turkmenistani diplomats. He was released a Witnesses imprisoned for conscientious few hours later when Turkish police objection to 16. On 8 May, all 16 – who were intervened. serving sentences of between one and four FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION years – were released under an amnesty. There remained no genuine civilian On 15 July the case of Khursanai alternative to military service. Ismatullaeva – a doctor who had been The NGO Forum 18 reported that on 21 attempting to gain redress for being unjustly July, the first day of the Muslim festival of Eid dismissed from her job at a neonatal clinic in al-Adha, state security officers raided homes the capital, Ashgabat, in 2017 – was raised at in at least four towns in the eastern Lebap an event organized by the EU Region and confiscated all Muslim religious parliament. She was arrested the following literature except the Qur’an. day and subjected to an enforced FORCED LABOUR disappearance for two weeks until it was revealed that she was being held in a pre-trial At an International Labour Conference in detention centre. She was charged with fraud May-June, the ILO Committee of Experts in connection with the sale of the apartment expressed “deep concern at the continued of a man she had cared for, and whose family practice of forced labour in the cotton sector” had agreed to pay her US$600 for looking and urged the government to eliminate its after him. use. In response, the government denied the Access to the internet remained severely use of forced labour. restricted and the authorities blocked However, in a report published in March, numerous sites including Facebook, turkmen.news and the NGO Turkmen YouTube, Twitter and those offering virtual Initiative for Human Rights documented the private networks (VPNs). Internet users use of forced labour, including child labour, reported in August that they were being during the cotton harvest in 2020. Women Amnesty International Report 2021/22 376