Turkmen authorities have ordered civil servants to spend their summer holidays in Avaza, a luxury resort on the Caspian coast where hotels are mostly empty due to exorbitant prices.
Many civil servants in Turkmenistan's northern Dashoguz region are not wondering where they will spend their precious vacation this summer, Radio Free Europe writes in English.
Several civil service workers told RFE/RL's Turkmen Service that authorities had ordered them to buy holiday packages in the attractive Avaza resort on Turkmenistan's Caspian coast, where hotels are mostly empty due to exorbitant prices.
"They tell us that anyone who doesn't go (to Avaz) will be fired, 100 percent," an official in the capital of the region, Dashoguz, told RSE on condition that he not be named for fear of retaliation from authoritarian Turkmenistan, where they are not tolerated. disagreements with the government or criticism.
Civil servants told RSE that they have to buy vacation packages of up to 10 nights, which cost an average of 660 euros per person.
Vacation packages sold in Dashoguz cover hotel and breakfast costs, Turkmen officials say, adding that they have to pay for things like transportation, lunch and dinner separately.
State officials in Dashoguz did not respond to RFE's request to comment on the allegations of government employees.
The average salary of civil servants is around 205 euros per month - which is considered a low salary for a country with huge energy reserves.
Economic crisis
Since Turkmenistan gained independence in 1991, for most of that time its citizens have had either free or heavily subsidized utilities, such as natural gas, electricity or water.
Even certain quantities of certain goods, such as salt, were given for free.
However, with the predominantly sandy country entering the worst crisis in its short post-Soviet history, utilities and other things that were free or extremely cheap now have to be paid for as the government has reduced or completely eliminated subsidy programs.
In addition, many civil servants complain that they are regularly forced to pay for school renovations and mandatory subscriptions to state newspapers and magazines.
Because of this, many Turkmen families struggle to make ends meet and a large number of people who cannot find work leave the country in search of better opportunities.
Also, it is not easy to get to Avaza.
Passengers from Dashoguz complained about what they say is a lack of direct flights between Dashoguz and Turkmenbashi - Avaza's closest big city.
People traveling to Avaza from the capital Ashgabat or other regions of the country of about 5,6 million people usually take a plane, train or bus to Turkmenbashi, where they take a taxi or another bus to the resort.
'Bad services'
Many of those who have spent their holidays in Avaza have complained about poor services, slow internet and, quite unusually, the ban on taking pictures in many parts of the city.
Avaza was built between 2007 and 2017 as part of authoritarian President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov's plan to create first-class tourism infrastructure in Turkmenistan.
Despite the billions of dollars spent on the project, Avaza has so far failed to become a sought-after tourist destination.
Too expensive for many Turkmen, with hotel prices beyond their economic means, it has also not attracted attention abroad - obtaining a visa for Turkmenistan is often a long and futile process.
The deserted resort is often used only by Berdimuhamedov, who occasionally organizes international meetings, concerts and other events in Avaza.
The city, for example, hosted an apparently unsuccessful international windsurfing competition on a Sunday when there was not much wind.
And in 2013, international pop star Jenifer Lopez (Jeniffer Lopez) was criticized by human rights activists after a concert in Avaza to celebrate Berdimuhamedov's 56th birthday.
Lopez later issued a statement in which she stated that she would not have gone to Avaza if she had known about the poor state of human rights in Turkmenistan, according to several international organizations for the protection of human rights.
Many Turkmen civil servants do not have such a choice this summer.
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