Turkmenistan inaugurated this Friday a statue that reaches 80 meters high, including the base, one of the tallest in the world, in honor of the most famous poet of this Central Asian country.
This bronze monument was erected south of the capital, Ashgabad, at the foot of the Kopet-Dag mountains, Agence France-Presse (APF) reported after the inauguration, which was attended by President Serdar Berdymukhamedov.
For comparison, the Statue of Liberty in New York and the statue of Christ the Redeemer in Rio de Janeiro measure 93 and 38 meters respectively, far from the world record held by the Statue of Unity in India, at 182 meters.
The construction of the monument in honor of the poet Magtymguly Pyragy, presented by the regime as a pillar of Turkmen identity, is part of the authorities’ attempts to consolidate their nation-state, while Central Asia has long been a zone without real borders. inhabited by nomads who were then under Russian and Soviet rule.
The honor had been decided by former president Gurbanguly Berdymoukhamedov, Serdar’s father, who maintains immense prerogatives after having led this desert former Soviet republic, bordering the Caspian Sea and without political opposition between 2006 and 2022.
Become a “protective hero” and “leader of the Turkmen nation,” this 66-year-old man established a cult of personality, according to his critics.
This nation periodically attempts to break various records from the Guinness Book of Records, sometimes caricatured, such as the largest seminar on organic melon cultivation, the largest bicycle parade or the largest ecology class.
Inaugurated on the occasion of the 300th anniversary of the poet’s birth, this monument was created by Saragt Babayev, author of other monumental works in Turkmenistan, such as the golden statues representing Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov (43 meters) and the Alabaï dog breed (15 meters) . .
“I wanted to embody the greatness of a humanist and a poet whose name is among the eminent writers of the East,” the sculptor told AFP.
Around the monument, 24 smaller bronze statues were installed in honor of foreign authors such as Honoré de Balzac (France), William Shakespeare (England), Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (Germany) and Du Fu (China).
Turkmenistan is criticized by international non-governmental organizations (NGOs) for its grandiose projects, carried out thanks to the income from its immense natural resources, but without great benefits for the population.
Source: Observadora
