The International Press Institute (IPI) on Thursday welcomed the release of Turkmen journalist Dovletmyrat Yazkuliyev, a correspondent for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL), who had been sentenced on 5 October to five years in prison for allegedly encouraging a relative’s suicide attempt.

Yazkuliyev was among roughly 1,700 prisoners pardoned as part of an amnesty signed by Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov on 26 October to mark Turkmenistan’s 20th anniversary of independence, which the country celebrated on Thursday.

“We welcome Yazkuliyev’s release and hope that he will be able to continue to work as a journalist free of harassment,” said IPI Press Freedom Manager Anthony Mills. “We remain deeply concerned that Yazkuliyev was imprisoned at all. His persecution unfortunately appears to be in keeping with the hostility displayed by the Turkmen authorities towards the concept of press freedom.”

Yazkuliyev recently reported on a series of devastating blasts at a weapons depot in the Turkmen town of Abadan which, according to Yazkuliyev’s article, killed hundreds of people. Following publication of the piece, Yazkuliyev was summoned by police and warned that if he was summoned again in connection with his writing he would be accused of defamation and threatening national security.

With regard to the charge that he allegedly encouraged a relative’s suicide, the journalist’s family stated that they had been forced by police to sign statements against Yazkuliyev and that the sentence was in retaliation for his reporting, RFE/RL stated.

In a public statement on 6 October, one day after the sentence against Yazkuliyev was passed, IPI called on Turkmenistan’s authorities to immediately release the journalist.