The Constitution of Turkmenistan adopted on 18 May 1992 is the supreme law of

Turkmenistan Turkmenistan ( or ; tk, Türkmenistan / Түркменистан, ) is a country located in Central Asia, bordered by Kazakhstan to the northwest, Uzbekistan to the north, east and northeast, Afghanistan to the southeast, Iran to the s ...

(Article 5). In its

preamble A preamble is an introductory and expressionary statement in a document that explains the document's purpose and underlying philosophy. When applied to the opening paragraphs of a statute, it may recite historical facts pertinent to the subj ...

, the Constitution emphasizes

self-determination The right of a people to self-determination is a cardinal principle in modern international law (commonly regarded as a '' jus cogens'' rule), binding, as such, on the United Nations as authoritative interpretation of the Charter's norms. It sta ...

for the

Turkmen people Turkmens ( tk, , , , ; historically "the Turkmen"), sometimes referred to as Turkmen Turks ( tk, , ), are a Turkic ethnic group native to Central Asia, living mainly in Turkmenistan, northern and northeastern regions of Iran and north-weste ...

, as well as the

rule of law The rule of law is the political philosophy that all citizens and institutions within a country, state, or community are accountable to the same laws, including lawmakers and leaders. The rule of law is defined in the ''Encyclopedia Britannic ...

and rights for citizens. (''See also

Human rights in Turkmenistan Turkmenistan's human rights record has been heavily criticized by various countries and scholars worldwide. Standards in education and health declined markedly during the rule of President Saparmurat Niyazov. Since December 2006, under the Gover ...

''). The 1992 constitution was amended in 1995, 1999, 2003 and 2006. It was amended on 26 September 2008, abolishing the 2,500-member People's Council () and expanding the elected Assembly () from 65 to 125 members. A new constitution was adopted on 14 September, 2016. State Flag and Constitution Day is celebrated on 18 May.

Constitution of the Turkmen SSR

There were three Constitutions of the Turkmen Soviet Socialist Republic, enacted in 1927, 1937, and 1978. The last was superseded by the modern Constitution of Turkmenistan, which came into force in 1992. It has since been amended in 2008 and 2016.

Overview

Section 1

Section 1 of the 2008 Constitution is composed of 17 articles (15 articles in the 1992 Constitution). Article 1 describes Turkmenistan as a

secular Secularity, also the secular or secularness (from Latin ''saeculum'', "worldly" or "of a generation"), is the state of being unrelated or neutral in regards to religion. Anything that does not have an explicit reference to religion, either negativ ...

democracy Democracy (From grc, δημοκρατία, dēmokratía, ''dēmos'' 'people' and ''kratos'' 'rule') is a form of government in which the people have the authority to deliberate and decide legislation (" direct democracy"), or to choose g ...

and

presidential republic A presidential system, or single executive system, is a form of government in which a head of government, typically with the title of president, leads an executive branch that is separate from the legislative branch in systems that use separation ...

. The sovereignty and the territorial integrity of the state are inviolable and indivisible. Article 3 proclaims individual rights and

dignity Dignity is the right of a person to be valued and respected for their own sake, and to be treated ethically. It is of significance in morality, ethics, law and politics as an extension of the Enlightenment-era concepts of inherent, inaliena ...

as a value protected by the state. Article 8 states that foreign residents and persons without citizenship enjoy the same rights as the citizens of Turkmenistan subject to existing laws and international agreements. Among the rights specifically enumerated are the

right to property The right to property, or the right to own property (cf. ownership) is often classified as a human right for natural persons regarding their possessions. A general recognition of a right to private property is found more rarely and is typicall ...

(article 9) and

freedom of religion Freedom of religion or religious liberty is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or community, in public or private, to manifest religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship, and observance. It also includes the freedo ...

(article 12; article 11 in the 1992 Constitution). Article 4 endorses a

separation of powers Separation of powers refers to the division of a state's government into branches, each with separate, independent powers and responsibilities, so that the powers of one branch are not in conflict with those of the other branches. The typi ...

, including

judicial independence Judicial independence is the concept that the judiciary should be independent from the other branches of government. That is, courts should not be subject to improper influence from the other branches of government or from private or partisan inter ...

. Article 14 (13 in the 1992 Constitution) establishes the

Turkmen language Turkmen (, , , or , , , ), sometimes referred to as "Turkmen Turkic" or "Turkmen Turkish", is a Turkic language spoken by the Turkmens of Central Asia, mainly of Turkmenistan, Iran, and Afghanistan. It has an estimated 5 million native speake ...

as the

official language An official language is a language given supreme status in a particular country, state, or other jurisdiction. Typically the term "official language" does not refer to the language used by a people or country, but by its government (e.g. judiciary, ...

and article 17 (15 in the 1992 Constitution) confirms

Ashgabat Ashgabat or Asgabat ( tk, Aşgabat, ; fa, عشق‌آباد, translit='Ešqābād, formerly named Poltoratsk ( rus, Полтора́цк, p=pəltɐˈratsk) between 1919 and 1927), is the capital and the largest city of Turkmenistan. It lies ...

as the capital city. Two new articles added in the 2008 Constitution declare the state's commitment to the market economy, including encouragement of small and medium-sized business (Article 10), and specify the

administrative division Administrative division, administrative unit,Article 3(1). country subdivision, administrative region, subnational entity, constituent state, as well as many similar terms, are generic names for geographical areas into which a particular, ind ...

of the country into (provinces), cities with the status of , (districts), towns with status, towns in an , and villages of different levels (Article 16, supersedes Article 47 in the 1992 Constitution).

Section 2

Section 2 outlines rights of individuals and citizens. Civil and political rights include

equality rights Social equality is a state of affairs in which all individuals within a specific society have equal rights, liberties, and status, possibly including civil rights, freedom of expression, autonomy, and equal access to certain public goods an ...

(article 19; 1992:17), sex equality (article 20; 1992:18), freedom from

cruel and unusual punishment Cruel and unusual punishment is a phrase in common law describing punishment that is considered unacceptable due to the suffering, pain, or humiliation it inflicts on the person subjected to the sanction. The precise definition varies by jurisd ...

(article 23; 1992:21), and

freedom of movement Freedom of movement, mobility rights, or the right to travel is a human rights concept encompassing the right of individuals to travel from place to place within the territory of a country,Jérémiee Gilbert, ''Nomadic Peoples and Human Rights ...

(article 26; 1992:24). Social and economic rights include the

right to work The right to work is the concept that people have a human right to work, or engage in productive employment, and should not be prevented from doing so. The right to work is enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and recognized ...

(article 33; 1992:31), the right to rest (article 34; 1992:32), and the

right to education The right to education has been recognized as a human right in a number of international conventions, including the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights which recognizes a right to free, compulsory primary education for ...

(article 38; 1992:35). Other social rights include the

right to health care The right to health is the economic, social, and cultural right to a universal minimum standard of health to which all individuals are entitled. The concept of a right to health has been enumerated in international agreements which include the U ...

, the right to old-age pension, and the right to disability benefits (articles 35, 37; 1992:33, 34). A new article added in the 2008 Constitution (article 36) establishes the right to

environmental quality "Environmental Quality" is a set of properties and characteristics of the environment, either generalized or local, as they impinge on human beings and other organisms. It is a measure of the condition of an environment relative to the requirements ...

and charges the state with the responsibility for preserving natural resources and protecting the environment. Article 21 (1992:19) states that the exercise of individual rights and freedoms should not impinge on the rights and freedoms of other individuals and can be limited by considerations of

morality Morality () is the differentiation of intentions, decisions and actions between those that are distinguished as proper (right) and those that are improper (wrong). Morality can be a body of standards or principles derived from a code of co ...

, law, and public order. Article 22 declares that everybody has the

right to life The right to life is the belief that a being has the right to live and, in particular, should not be killed by another entity. The concept of a right to life arises in debates on issues including capital punishment, with some people seeing it a ...

and that

capital punishment Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty, is the state-sanctioned practice of deliberately killing a person as a punishment for an actual or supposed crime, usually following an authorized, rule-governed process to conclude that ...

is abolished in Turkmenistan. The 1992 Constitution allowed capital punishment, but only for "the heaviest of crimes" (article 20), and this provision was subsequently annulled by a 1999 presidential decree that abolished capital punishment.Abolition of capital punishment
, Presidential Decree 3003, 28 December 1999 Finally, Section 2 lists some obligations on citizens, including serving in the military (article 41; 1992:38) and paying taxes (article 42; 1992:39).

Section 3

Section 3 describes the organs of government in Turkmenistan. The state power is vested with the

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

, the (Parliament or Assembly), the

Cabinet of Ministers A cabinet is a body of high-ranking state officials, typically consisting of the executive branch's top leaders. Members of a cabinet are usually called cabinet ministers or secretaries. The function of a cabinet varies: in some countrie ...

, and the

Supreme Court of Turkmenistan The Supreme Court of Turkmenistan () is a constitutional institution in Turkmenistan. It is one of three Turkmen institutions to exercise governmental power and is the highest ranking court in the country. Established in 1992 after the adoption o ...

(Article 48). The

People's Council of Turkmenistan The People's Council of Turkmenistan ( tk, Halk Maslahaty, ɑlq mɑθlɑxɑt̪ɯ "People's Council") is the upper chamber of Turkmenistan's Parliament, the " National Council" ( tk, Milli Geňeş). It consists of 56 members, 48 elected from th ...

(), which figured prominently in the 1992 Constitution (Chapter 2 of Section 3), was abolished in the 2008 Constitution. Articles 50-58 of the 2008 Constitution (54-61 of the 1992 Constitution) describe the powers of the President of Turkmenistan. The President is the

head of state A head of state (or chief of state) is the public persona who officially embodies a state Foakes, pp. 110–11 " he head of statebeing an embodiment of the State itself or representatitve of its international persona." in its unity and ...

and also the

head of government The head of government is the highest or the second-highest official in the executive branch of a sovereign state, a federated state, or a self-governing colony, autonomous region, or other government who often presides over a cabinet, a ...

(Article 50). The President is in charge of Turkmenistan's foreign policy and is the country's commander-in-chief (Article 53). In addition to signing laws enacted by , he may issue Presidential decrees that have the power of law in Turkmenistan (Article 54).

References

External links

1992 Constitution of Turkmenistan
(as of 1997), unofficial English translation, University of Texas at Arlington, URL accessed 27 December 2006. *2008 Constitution of Turkmenistan, Ashgabat, 2008, 54 pp. {{Constitutions of Asia 1992 in law Turkmenistan, Constitution of Politics of Turkmenistan 1927 in law 1937 in law 1978 in law