Abstract
Following immense international pressure, Turkmen satirist Farid Takhbatullin was granted amnesty from three years in prison in 2003. His work on the environment brought him head-to-head with President Saparmyrat Niyazov and he felt he had no future in his own country. From his new home in western Europe, he follows events in Turkmenistan closely and publishes a human rights bulletin online. He plans to launch Central Asia’s first satirical website this year.