Children in Turkmen orphanages allegedly subject to hunger and sexual abuse
Orphans in Turkmenistan orphanages subjected to hunger and sexual abuse, says one former resident
11.11.2024
Article published on the rus.azattyq.org website
The Turkmen Government claims that orphanages are safe and happy homes. However, one woman who grew up in one of these institutions has revealed that children there are defenceless, enduring hunger, abuse and even sexual exploitation.
Turkmenistan’s State media often describe the country’s orphanages as secure and joyful places which provide a decent childhood for their children. Such claims are at odds with the accounts of 27-year old Makhym (not her real name) who grew up in an orphanage in the south-eastern city of Mary. The reality is very different, she says.
Makhym recalled not being given enough food to eat, as well as subjected to physical and psychological abuse by staff at her State-run facility. Inmates were also exploited by the authorities and forced to work in cotton fields.
According to Makhym, caregivers would beat and bully the children “mercilessly” who had no-one to turn to for help.
“When a child broke something or did not follow a caregiver’s instructions, he or she would be shouted at, beaten and abused. In fact, all the carers hit us regularly and often pinched my thighs and breasts”, she said.
Children were even denied a basic education. “We only saw teachers once or twice a month, one of whom taught several subjects. Most children who have grown up in orphanages are unable to read or write – the carers often used to tell us that we had no need for any education”.
Makhym also accused staff at the Mary orphanage, including cooks and carers, of taking home food meant for the children who were often given just boiled pasta to eat. A proper children’s table was only set for them when someone brought food as a charitable donation.
Makhym said that she once witnessed some teenage girls in the orphanage being forced to have sex with a member of the security team. She did not say how widespread this alleged sexual exploitation was at her facility but claims that a caretaker hired in 2013 coerced several girls into having sex with a police officer who, Makhym believes, was a relative of one of the carers.
The Mary authorities have not responded to requests from the Azattyk Turkmen Service for comment and Radio Azatlyk has not been able to independently verify Makhym’s allegations. However, several other graduates from Turkmen orphanages are known to have already reported instances of abuse and violence in these institutions.
Continuing her story, Makhym said that “child labour was routinely exploited, with children over the age of 12 being sent to pick cotton during the harvest season. We would have lunch in the fields and return to the orphanage in the evening. As well as cotton picking, some carers would take children home with them to perform household chores”.
The Turkmen Government has previously been criticised for forcing students, public and private employees and soldiers to pick cotton under threat of punitive action.
The difficulties facing children from orphanages continue even when they leave State care on reaching 18 years of age as these institutions do little to prepare them to live independently. Makhym says that without financial help or a dedicated support system, orphans leaving State care often fail to integrate into society, while some become involved in criminal activity.
By law, those leaving orphanages in Turkmenistan are entitled to social housing but many end up waiting years to be housed, said a resident of Lebap province who also grew up in care.
The authorities also place female care leavers in old people’s homes and forcibly send boys to the army as conscripts, a Lebap resident told Azatlyk earlier this year.
Both Makhym and a former orphanage resident from Lebap province have decided to speak out about their experiences in order to draw attention to the plight of Turkmen orphans still in the State’s care.
Farangiz Najibullah
