The Nation’s Next Generation: Media Coverage of Children in Turkmenistan

By Oguljamal Yazliyeva, Ph.D., Charles University

Children in Turkmenistan are not simply regarded as the next generation. They are positioned as active instruments in preserving and supporting the authoritarian regime. Through tightly controlled media narratives and state-sponsored education, children are immersed in an environment where loyalty to the leader and conformity to state ideology are not only encouraged but required. From an early age, they undergo ideological indoctrination, learning to repeat regime slogans, revere national symbols, and participate in highly choreographed state rituals. These practices are not merely educational. They are formative, shaping children’s identities to align with state priorities. The regime uses emotional and social control to reinforce obedience: it praises those who follow the rules and shames or excludes those who don’t. Over time, this system fosters deep internalization of official values, ensuring that children grow up to be not just compliant citizens, but intergenerational carriers of state ideology. This article examines how media coverage of children in Turkmenistan reflects and reinforces these mechanisms, highlighting the ways the regime seeks to shape its future through the youngest members of society.

Children’s Participation in Çäre: The Discursive Function of the “Happy Life” Narrative

Children in Turkmenistan are subjected to ideological indoctrination, including compulsory participation in state-organized çäre (festive events), where they must repeat regime slogans. International observers have highlighted the detrimental impact of these events, particularly because they often occur during school hours, thereby infringing on children’s right to education.

(UN Committee on the Rights of the Child, Concluding observations on the combined fifth and sixth periodic reports of Turkmenistan, October 9, 2024).

The slogan “Bagtyýarlygyň bagtyýar çagalary”, translated as “Happy children of a happy life”, is frequently employed in state-controlled Turkmen media to project an image of national prosperity, stability, and well-being under the leadership of the Berdimukhamedov family clan. This slogan particularly emphasizes children as symbols of the nation’s “bright future”. A feature story by Turkmenistan Altyn Asyr state media, concerning the children’s summer vacation in Lebap province titled “Bagtyýarlygyň bagtyýar çagalary”, suggests a vision of social harmony in Turkmenistan, where children are depicted as growing up happy, safe, and well-cared for. This narrative may imply that the government is committed to the welfare of its young citizens, with a focus on healthcare, education, and secure development. Furthermore, it symbolizes the current regime’s success, portraying children as the content beneficiaries of state leadership, thereby reinforcing the notion that the government ensures a joyful life for all its young generation.

It is crucial to acknowledge the discrepancy between the slogans spread by the state media as propaganda for the state ideology and the independent reporting based on the lived experiences of the Turkmen people, including children.

Framing Children’s Issues in Turkmen Media Ecosystem

There are several children-oriented TV and radio programs, newspapers, and magazines. Ýaşlyk – Youth Channel is the only main state TV channel in Turkmenistan focused on youth, including teenagers and young children. This channel broadcasts in Turkmen. Its programming includes educational content, hygiene, healthy habits, entertainment, cartoons, and game shows. The channel also broadcasts animated films on children’s rights produced in cooperation with UNICEF. Cartoons from this partnership are aired on Ýaşlyk and Aşgabat TV. It also features a series of programs focused on digital development and internet safety.

Among the print media focused on children’s issues, two periodicals stand out. The first is a magazine published by the Mahabat Department of the State Broadcasting Committee, featuring interactive content such as QR codes linking to cartoons, audio, video, and games. Titles include Sagdyn nesil – Healthy Generation and Tebigaty goralyň – Let’s Protect Nature. These magazines are available in bookshops and online. The second periodical is Youth Magazine Arkadagly ýaşlar, a monthly online magazine published under the auspices of the Magtymguly Youth Organization. This magazine covers youth policy, young people’s interests, languages, culture, and many youth-related topics in Turkmen, Russian, and English.

The narratives presented by state media regarding the protection of children’s rights underscore its centrality to the nation’s social policy. This is reinforced by the enactment of the Law on State Guarantees of the Rights of the Child, which ensures the development of living and democratic conditions within the country, in line with international legal standards. Establishing favorable conditions for children is a fundamental tenet of a “prosperous and flourishing society”.

However, despite the formal emphasis on children’s rights in legislation and state narratives, digital spaces reveal a markedly limited presence of child-focused content, highlighting the gap between official commitments and the visibility of independent or diverse child-centered initiatives online.

A keyword search on the Instagram platform using Çaga (child) returns only five accounts specifically related to children. Of these, four are commercial accounts focused on the sale of children’s goods. The sole non-profit presence is Çagalara Hemaýat Türkmenistan, affiliated with the Gurbanguly Berdimukhamedov Foundation for the Support of Orphaned and Vulnerable Children. This account provides updates on the foundation’s activities, often highlighting the work of its vice president, Oguljahan Atabayeva (daughter of Gurbanguly Berdimukhamedov), and offers expert content related to children’s health, education, and welfare, often by inviting professionals working in child-focused fields. The search for this foundation’s website showed that it has only a page under the site of the Ministry of Health and Medical Industry of Turkmenistan.

Beyond the Propaganda: Contrasting Narratives of Children’s Well-being 

While state media in Turkmenistan frequently promotes the narrative of children living a “happy life,” independent reports and external assessments present a more complex and often contradictory reality. Notable issues include education, children’s rights and freedoms, healthcare, poverty, and information control.

Although education in Turkmenistan is officially free and compulsory, the quality of teaching and access to resources, particularly internet connectivity and uncensored information, remains uneven, especially in rural areas. These inequalities contribute to the persistence of corruption at all levels of the education system. A content analysis of the curricula shows that they are heavily infused with ideological messages, reflecting the general use of education as a tool of state propaganda. Opportunities to engage with international education and alternative worldviews are extremely limited.

The new UNICEF report indicates the prevalence of physical punishment against children (70%), children witnessing the abuse in the families (25.5%) and widespread acceptance of abuse among women (58%, MICS) in Turkmenistan.

International watchdog organizations have documented instances of child rights abuses and child labor in certain regions, notably in cotton harvesting. Progres Foundation reports that the government of Turkmenistan lacks an official poverty measurement system, does not establish a poverty line, and does not produce disaggregated poverty-related statistics.

More critical issues, particularly impacting vulnerable children, healthcare and poverty, are mentioned by the Human Rights Watch reports. Along with official data limitations, anecdotal evidence indicates disparities in healthcare access, especially in rural areas. Economic challenges, unemployment, and food insecurity persist, despite the state’s optimistic portrayal.

Despite legal guarantees, children in Turkmenistan face heavy restrictions on information. The lack of free and independent media, widespread online censorship, and blocking of major international websites limit their access to diverse ideas, news, and educational resources, severely hindering their learning and development (UN Committee on the Rights of the Child, Concluding observations on the combined fifth and sixth periodic reports of Turkmenistan, October 9, 2024).

Public photo: tdh.gov.tm

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