Democratic Party of Turkmenistan

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Democratic Party of Turkmenistan
Türkmenistanyň Demokratik Partiýasy
AbbreviationTDP (Turkmen)
ДПТ (Russian)
LeaderAta Serdarov
FounderSaparmurat Niyazov
Founded16 December 1991; 29 years ago (1991-12-16)
Preceded byCommunist Party of Turkmenistan
HeadquartersAshgabat
NewspaperGalkynyş gazeti
Youth wingMagtymguly Youth Organisation of Turkmenistan[1]
Membership (2019)211,000
IdeologyTurkmen nationalism
Secularism
Social conservatism[2][3]
Colours  Green
  Gold
Slogan"The state is for the people"
(Turkmen: "Döwlet adam üçindir")
Seats in the Mejlis of Turkmenistan
55 / 125
Website
tdp.gov.tm

The Democratic Party of Turkmenistan (Turkmen: Türkmenistanyň Demokratik Partiýasy; Turkmen pronunciation: [tyɾkme̞nɪθtɑnɨŋ dɛmokɾɑtɪk pɑɾtɪjɑθɨ]; TDP) has been the ruling party of Turkmenistan since 1991.

The party was led by former Soviet provincial party leader Saparmurat Niyazov from the dissolution of the Soviet Union in the early 1990s until his death in 2006. In 2013, President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow suspended his party membership for the duration of his presidency.[4] The current leader is Ata Serdarov.[5] Their rule is by many described as authoritarian.[6][2][3][7]

History[]

The DPT was created following the dissolution of the Soviet Union as a successor party to the Communist Party of Turkmenistan. The internal structure of the old party was effectively unchanged in the transition, as was the old guard. The DPT has faced limited and sporadic challenges from alternative political parties in the past but have never faced a significant challenge during an election because of the often repressive nature of politics in the country. Opposition parties are usually crushed before they make any significant grounds in public opinion. This has been the case even after the formal legalization of opposition parties in 2010.

Chairmen[]

No. Picture Name

(Birth–Death)

Took office Left office Notes
Chairman
1 Saparmurat Niyazov in 2002.jpg Saparmurat Niyazov

(1940-2006)

16 December 1991 21 December 2006 Died in office
2 Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow (2017-10-02) 02.jpg Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow

(born 1957)

4 August 2007 18 August 2013 Acting Chairman: 21 December 2006 – 4 August 2007
3 TDP logo.svg Kasymguly Babaev

(?)

18 August 2013 3 April 2018
4 TDP logo.svg Ata Serdarov

(born 1964)

3 April 2018 Incumbent

Policies[]

Due to the lack of opposition parties to contest for government, the DPT controls most, if not all, industries of significant revenue directly. Central planning is a key element of party policy and serves as the basis of functionality for government services. The party's ideology of "Turkmen nationalism" was theorized by former party leader Saparmurat Niyazov for the purpose of an authoritarian state ideology in Turkmenistan.[8]

Election results[]

Turkmenistan elects on the national level a head of state - the president - and a legislature. Elections in Turkmenistan have been widely criticized for being completely fraudulent and attempting to give an appearance of legitimacy to what is in reality a dictatorship. The last presidential election was held in 2017.

Assembly of Turkmenistan[]

The Assembly is a 50-member legislative body officially led by the President of Turkmenistan. The DPT, not unlike every other facet of political life in Turkmenistan, holds a majority of seats, with accusations that the "multi-party system" established in the early 2010s only consists of parties loyal to the DPT. The last election for the assembly was held in 2018.

Electoral history[]

Presidential elections[]

Election Party candidate Votes % Result
1992 Saparmurat Niyazov 1,874,357 99.5% Elected Green tickY
2007 Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow 2,357,120 89.23% Elected Green tickY
2012 2,806,265 97.14% Elected Green tickY
2017 3,090,610 97.69% Elected Green tickY

Mejlis elections[]

Election Party leader Votes % Seats +/– Position
1994 Saparmurat Niyazov 2,008,779 100%
50 / 50
Increase 50 Increase 1st
1999 2,224,537 100%
50 / 50
Steady Steady 1st
2004 1,915,000 100%
50 / 50
Steady Steady 1st
2008 Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow 100%
125 / 125
Increase 75 Steady 1st
2013 Kasymguly Babaev
47 / 125
Decrease 78 Steady 1st
2018
55 / 125
Increase 8 Steady 1st

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ "VI Congress of Magtymguly Youth Organization of Turkmenistan in Ashgabat". tdh.gov.tm. Turkmenistan Today, Government of Turkmenistan. Retrieved 22 January 2021.
  2. ^ Jump up to: a b Anderson, John (1995). "Authoritarian political development in Central Asia: The case of Turkmenistan". Central Asian Survey. 14 (4): 509–527. doi:10.1080/02634939508400922.
  3. ^ Jump up to: a b Elena, Dmitrieva (2019). "Political elite of Turkmenistan. Post-Soviet period". Russia and the moslem world. pp. 49–58. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
  4. ^ "Turkmen president quits top party". 18 August 2013 – via Japan Times Online.
  5. ^ "Chairman of Turkmenistan's Democratic Party elected". Trend News Agency. 3 April 2018.
  6. ^ "Turkmenistan". freedomhouse.org. Freedom House. Retrieved 22 January 2021.
  7. ^ Al-Bassam, Kareem (1997). The Evolution of Authoritarianism in Turkmenistan. Demokratizatsiya. p. 387,394,400. S2CID 36015864.
  8. ^ "European Forum for Democracy and Solidarity". www.europeanforum.net. Archived from the original on 23 December 2014. Retrieved 23 December 2014.

Sources[]

  • Country Studies accessed on 31 July 2008
  • Badykova, Najia (2004-06-18). "The Turkmen Economy: Challenges and Opportunities". St Antony's College, University of Oxford. Retrieved on 31 July 2008.
  • BBC: Turkmenistan's 'sham poll' closes. Sunday, 19 December 2004, 17:22 GMT
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