The civil activist and human rights defender Natalya Shabunts was exposed to another provocation in Ashgabat. In the morning of 20 August when Natalya, as usual, was walking her dogs, two young Turkmen women with children approached her.
— Russian swine! Only Russians keep dogs at home! Their dogs scare our kids! the females yelled in broken Russian, accompanying their shouting with revolting Turkmen swear words and other insulting comments.
Scared by the screaming of their own mothers rather than the Pekinese dogs (Natalya picked up one of them in her hands), the children burst out crying.
Natalya tried to get away from the women towards her apartment block, but the latter were following her. A man, whom she met on the way home and who Natalya sought protection from, took the side of the females.
They were shouting at her back: Stop! Where are you running to, you bastard? Let’s talk. We have a good life in our wonderful country! We live as we like! You get back to Russia!
Hoping to seek protection from residents of the neighbouring houses, N. Shabunts headed to a small store where people gather in the morning to buy cigarettes. However, several men started insulting her and tried to kick her dog. Only after an elderly white-bearded Turkmen shamed them, people went quiet.
Natalya had no choice but to return home quickly.
Later the neighbors, who had been witnessing the scene from their windows, said that they had never seen the two women who were shouting so loudly in their neighbourhood. The man who accompanied them often kept vigil at the entrance hall where Natalya resides.
We have previously reported that individuals in a car constantly keep her house under surveillance.A severed sheep’s head was thrown at the door of her apartment.
On a regular basis N.Shabunts is subjected to threats but does not give up her active citizenship.
Natalya herself thinks that the special services are trying to intimidate her ahead of the Asian Games.
Let us recall that a correspondent of Radio “Azatlyk” (Radio Liberty/Radio Free Europe) Soltan Achilova had been repeatedly assaulted by unidentified officials.