“Glory to the Turkmen ruler, glory to the Protector!”. Under a burning sun, there are thousands, in traditional dress and flag in hand, to sing the praises of the strong man of Turkmenistan, Gurbanguly Berdymoukhamedov, for the inauguration of a city named in his honor.
This city, still uninhabited, was solemnly opened during a sumptuous ceremony to which AFP journalists were invited, an exceptional invitation as access to Turkmenistan, a reclusive country in Central Asia, is so rare.
For three hours, the participants chained dances, shows and horse training demonstrations, before a fireworks display in the evening closed the ceremony.
But if the main interested party is in Saudi Arabia for the great Muslim pilgrimage of the hajj, everything here recalls the presence of Gurbanguly Berdymoukhamedov, who turns 66 on Thursday, including more than sixteen to preside over the destiny of this former Soviet republic.
In the center of this city, sits a monument 43 meters high, to the glory of this trained dentist who, after handing over to his son Serdar in 2022, remained in charge.
Appointed at the head of a supreme body with immense prerogatives, he was made “head of the Turkmen nation” and bears the title of “Hero-Protector” (Arkadag). A name given to this new city, but also to a football club, made up of the best players in the country, and to the media.
“The monument in the center of the new town of Arkadag is a tribute to the eminent politician of modernity and the great son of the Turkmen people Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov,” a ministry official told AFP on condition of anonymity. construction and architecture.
In gold, the leader is represented on his favorite horse, holding the reins in one hand to control the animal standing on its hind legs, while his right arm seems to show the way forward, in a grandiloquent gesture.
A posture suggesting a Turkmen reinterpretation of the famous painting of Napoleon Bonaparte by Jacques-Louis David. If, contrary to the former emperor, Gurbanguly Berdymoukhamedov has no expansionist inclinations, repeating at will the “peaceful” character of his regime, he nevertheless shares with him his taste for pomp.
A habit regularly criticized by NGOs accusing it of spending without counting the income from the immense gas reserves in grandiose projects without great benefits for the population.
But the authorities assure him: “the best conditions have been created” for the future some 70,000 inhabitants of Arkadag, the first “smart city” of this country covered by sands and bordered by the Caspian Sea.
Everything is done to live comfortably there and this city will respect many ecological standards, add the state media, while Turkmenistan is located in the abyss of the ranking of the NGO Reporters Without Borders (RSF) of freedom of the press.
The construction, a “grandiose project” started in 2019, still cost around $5 billion. But the city has already been rewarded with 21 international certificates, welcomes the power.
In the absence of Berdymoukhamedov senior Thursday, a meticulous inspector during the works, it was therefore the son Serdar who took charge of inaugurating this city located about 30 kilometers from the capital Ashkhabad, at the foot of the mountain range of Kopet-Dag, border with Iran.
“This truly historic day will be inscribed in golden letters in the glorious chronicle of the independent and neutral homeland”, assures the Turkmen press agency.
And as happiness never comes alone in Turkmenistan, the country also celebrated the publication of yet another book by Gourbanguly Berdymoukhamedov, the sequel to his book “The Meaning of Life”. Already a “national treasure”, according to the regime.
29/06/2023 19:51:43 – Arkadag (Turkmenistan) (AFP) – © 2023 AFP