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Religious communities and individuals in Turkmenistan continue to face difficulties in practising their faiths, even though the Central Asian country has made clear progress since last year, an independent United Nations human rights expert said today.

Young people in Turkmenistan are using their creativity to produce short video films on children’s rights thanks to an initiative cosponsored by the country’s Government and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF).

As the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights wrapped up an 11-day tour of Central Asia in Turkmenistan today, her office announced plans to assist the country’s Government on rights issues.

The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) today expressed serious concern about the recent death of a journalist in a prison in Turkmenistan and urged the country’s authorities to launch a full and independent investigation into what happened.

Reported information about continued serious human rights violations in Turkmenistan indicates a lack of overall improvement in this area, United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan says in a new report to the General Assembly.

The United Nations refugee agency today hailed the decision of the Government of Turkmenistan to grant citizenship to over 10,000 Tajik refugees, most of whom who had fled civil war in their neighbouring Central Asian country between 1992 and 1997.