Turkmen policemen and customs officers come to blows at border crossing with Uzbekistan

On November 16, at the Shavat border crossing, where residents of the Daşoguz region of Turkmenistan cross the border into Uzbekistan, a conflict occured between the Turkmen policemen and customs officers.

Employees of the regional department of the Ministry of National Security (MNS) were attracted to settle the matter, the Chronicles of Turkmenistan reports.

Reportedly, several hundred people gather on the Turkmen side of the crossing every day. Not willing to stand in line, people look for police officers whom they know or make a deal with them for some money.

This time, due to the fact that people gathering there were more than usual, a conflict broke out, firstly, between the people, who were waiting and those, who wanted to get rid of it. Later on, disagreements arouse between the policemen and customs officers. 6-8 people believed that the customs officers were working too slowly, and they insisted that the police officers should keep the order in the queue to avoid creating chaos.

As a result, a fight occurred. Commanders could not settle the conflict and an MNS representative had to call his colleagues. Only after that, the special force services managed to resolve the matter.

According to eyewitnesses, due to the conflict, the work at the checkpoint was “paralyzed”. More than 50 people were unable to cross the border and spent the night at the border crossing.