Justice Institution Employees Day in Turkmenistan Date in the current year: June 18, 2024

The justice system of Turkmenistan has existed since the proclamation of the country’s independence from the Soviet Union, but it initially lacked a unified legal framework that would regulate its proper functioning. The situation changed when the Assembly of Turkmenistan adopted the Law “On Justice (Adalat) Bodies of Turkmenistan”.

The central justice body of Turkmenistan is the Ministry of Adalat established in 1993. Originally named the Ministry of Justice, it was renamed the Ministry of Adalat (the Turkmen word for “justice”) in 2003. The key task of the Ministry is to ensure the protection of the rights, freedoms and legitimate interests of Turkmen citizens, as well as foreign citizens temporarily staying in Turkmenistan.

Apart from the Ministry of Adalat, the justice system of Turkmenistan includes provincial (welayat) adalat departments, the Central Civil Registry Archive, state notary offices, and the State Office for Registration of Real Estate Titles and Related Transactions. The activities of these bodies are regulated by the Law of Turkmenistan “On the Adalat Bodies of Turkmenistan” and other regulatory acts, for example, the Law “On Notary Offices and Notarial Service”.

Employees of the justice institutions consult citizens on legal matters, legalize various documents, register civil status acts (births, marriages, divorces, adoptions, establishments of paternity, changes of name, deaths) and issue relevant certificates, register real estate titles, etc.

In addition, the justice institutions of Turkmenistan are entrusted with the honorable task of providing legal assistance to the population. This task is carried out by the notarial service and the bar association. The bar association of Turkmenistan is a non-government professional association of lawyers based on the principles of self-government. To carry out legal assistance activities in Turkmenistan, one needs to obtain a license, which can be issued both to legal entities (for three years) and individuals (for an unlimited period).

In 2016, the Assembly of Turkmenistan established Justice Institution Employees Day to emphasize the importance of their work. It is the justice system that ensures the full-fledged functioning of the state and creation of a civil society, so it is hard to overestimate the contribution of all people who work in the country’s justice bodies. Like all professional observances, the holiday is a working day unless it falls on a weekend.

On the other hand, Turkmenistan is notorious for human rights abuses and lack of civil liberty. In this light, the claims that the Ministry of Adalat ensures fairness, honor, and order seem highly questionable. From this point of view, Justice Institution Employees Day is a hypocritical observance because it is highly doubtful that there is any justice in one of the world’s most repressive countries.