Two dozen jailed in Turkmen grain trial By Institute for War and Peace Reporting staff
The Turkmen authorities have handed down sentences of up to 14 years
imprisonment to officials and workers in the grain production and baking
industries. The 24, all from Dashoguz in the north of Turkmenistan, were
accused of exaggerating their production figures.
The case reflects a common practice - under constant government pressure to
achieve unrealistic output figures, producers and officials collude in
massaging the statistics to show that they have met their targets,
NBCentralAsia commentators say. However, when things go wrong, scapegoats have
to be found.
According to Turkmenistan Chronicle, an opposition website, those convicted
include the director of Dashoguz's state grain
agency, who got 14 years and had all his assets confiscated; bakery managers,
warehouse workers and several farmers. A number of others received suspended
sentences and were fined the equivalent of US$1,000.
This trial was unusual for two reasons - it was the first time so many people
have appeared in court for some years, and there was an unprecedented level of
public access to the courtroom.
The nature of the accusations came as little surprise to veteran observers of
Turkmenistan, who see a pattern of officials and managers being encouraged to
overstate production levels, and then dismissing and jailing them for it.
"All local leaders know that they will only obtain an appointment [in grain
production and processing] if they agree to play by the rules and take part in
over-reporting," said a local observer. "They're also aware that these ...
posts in the grain production industry are lucrative, and that one can become
extremely rich in the course of one season."
Another commentator, based in eastern Turkmenistan, said, "If you reach your
targets, you're a hero. If you don't reach them, you face dismissal at best, or
a jail sentence for fiddling the figures at worst. So managers over-report in
order to become heroes."
While the state is now punishing local officials for inflating the figures, it
is guilty of doing the same thing at national level.
The national wheat production target last year was about 1.5 million tonnes.
The final harvest figure is unclear, but some economists the official figure
could overstate the real harvest by 100%. An agricultural-sector employee said
the government is reluctant to announce a more realistic figure, since this
would show that the country is still a long way off its stated aim of
self-sufficiency in grain.
Wheat production is low for a number of reasons - poor land management, a
shortage of farm machinery and fertilizers, a lack of irrigation water, all of
which contribute to the land becoming less and less fertile. This is compounded
by the absence of economic incentives for farmers to become more productive.
(NBCA is an Institute for War and Peace Reporting-funded project to create a
multilingual news analysis and comment service for Central Asia, drawing on the
expertise of a broad range of political observers across the region.
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