Turkmenistan tightens dress code and other restrictions
New rules introduced in Turkmenistan that further limit what women can wear to work
16.03.2025
Article published on the rus.azathabar.com website
Unmarried women in Ashgabat have been informed that they must wear yellow headscarves at work. When asked why, their managers simply shrugged their shoulders in response. The women were only told that the instruction had come “from on high”.
The order was issued in early March, along with the requirement that all married women must wear yellow dresses at work. Those who fail to comply with the new colour rule run the risk of dismissal.
The list of requirements in Turkmenistan, which have no legal basis but could have serious consequences if ignored, continues to grow. In the country’s capital Ashgabat, all cars must be white or light-coloured. External air conditioning units have been removed from the fronts of buildings, while women now have to wear traditional dresses. Young men must be clean shaven, in effect a de facto ban on beards, which is also in place in other parts of Central Asia.
In an interview with Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL), Slavomir Horak, a Central Asian expert at Charles University in Prague, said that these “rules” are not based on any legal documents and are often the result of some kind of memo, remark or recommendation made by the President or one of his family.
Turkmenistan has been ruled by President Sardar Berdymukhaemdov since March 2022. On election day, the young politician arrived at the polling station in a car that had the licence plate number 7297. It was later announced that he had won the Presidential election with 72.97% of the national vote.
Sardar, 43, is the son of former President Gurbanguly Berdymukhaemdov, who held office from 2006-2022, but is still widely regarded as the country’s top decision-maker.
Horak told RFE/RL of a ban on satellite dishes which was introduced after Gurbanguly publicly stated that the dishes spoilt the look of the city. That was enough for law enforcement agencies who took this as an order.
The headscarf rule is a continuation of previous instructions on women’s appearance, which has provoked strong personal reactions. “When will this affront to women’s dignity stop?”, said one Turkmen woman in an interview with Azatlyk on condition of anonymity. Female civil servants have already been banned from wearing make-up, tight dresses or having white colouring in their hair.
The Women’s Union of Turkmenistan has not responded to Azatlyk’s request for comment on the latest dress code requirements.
Horak said that the country’s aesthetic norms are partly a legacy of the Soviet era and the whims of Turkmenistan’s first President, Saparmurat Niyazov, who died in 2006 but which reached their height during the Berdymukhaemdov dynasty.
No-one really knows why yellow was chosen as the colour for women’s clothing, although some believe this has something to do with the personal preference of Gurbanguly’s wife and sisters.
Observers note that there have been some modest signs of progress in Turkmenistan since Sardar came to power three years ago, including a willingness to address forced labour issues in the cotton industry and the release of census data. However, the country is still one of the most corrupt and authoritarian in the world where, outside the main showcase cities and resorts, poverty levels remain high.
Although publicly available information is hard to find, it is estimated that the average income in this gas-rich country is just $2.40 per day, less than a quarter of that in neighbouring Kazakhstan.
