Gulgeldi Annanyýazow

Gulgeldi Annanyýazow is an activist from Turkmenistan. He was initially arrested in 1995 for organizing a peaceful protest. After four years, he was released under a presidential pardon and fled to Kazakhstan and eventually Norway. At that point, he was arrested again on charges of "illegal border crossing", and sentenced to eleven years in prison, even though the Turkmen criminal code stipulates a maximum sentence of ten years for that charge. Another five years were later added to the charge. He was released from prison in 2019, but is still in "conditions that amount to detention".

Background and arrests Turkmenistan became independent from the Soviet Union in 1991; however Saparmyrat Nyýazow remained president for life. In response to this, Annanyýazow along with other members of the "Ashgabat Eight"

Following his 1995 arrest, there were reports that he was subjected to torture, and one of his co-defendants, Çarymyrat Gurow, died in prison. He was released in January 1999, allegedly to coincide with a visit from Human Rights Watch to Turkmenistan.

His wife and three of his children remained in Norway. in March 2019, a "Caspian coastal area where the salted air makes breathing difficult, and which takes days for visitors, including, family members in Ashgabat, to travel to visit",

The Ambassador from Norway to the OCSE emphasized Annanyýazow's case in relation to Turkmenistan's human rights record.