Turkmenistan: Justice Makes a U-Turn in Zatoka Case

Justice can take some unusual turns in Turkmenistan. In a do-over court proceeding, a regional court on November 6 threw out an earlier conviction of environmentalist Andrei Zatoka, and replaced the five-year prison sentence with a fine.

Zatoka received his original sentence following a hasty trial on October 29. He was convicted of supposedly assaulting a stranger in a market in Dashoguz on October 20. Human rights groups maintained that the incident was a set-up. According to the Turkmen opposition website Chrono-tm.org, Zatoka was to be released after paying a roughly $350 fine.

Zatoka's arrest generated widespread international criticism, not only from human rights activists in the United States and European Union, but also in Russia. [For background see the Eurasia Insight archive].

Prior to his sentencing Zatoka said he wanted to give up his Turkmen
citizenship and return to his family in Russia. He holds Russian citizenship, but has been unable to leave Turkmenistan since 2007.