Reports have emerged that a high-profile actor in Turkmenistan has been jailed under the nation’s anti-homosexuality laws.

Turkmen.news has reported that the unnamed actor was found guilty of committing “sodomy”, and sentenced to two years in prison.

The actor, identified as G.S. in court documents, was convicted alongside almost a dozen other men, though the exact number was not revealed.

Same-sex relations between men are illegal under Turkmen law, with repeat offenders facing sentences of up to ten years.

International advocacy organisation Human Rights Watch have spoken out against the sentencing, and the criminalisation of homosexuality.

“In 2017, the United Nations Human Rights Committee flagged criminalisation of consensual same-sex conduct as ‘unjustifiable’ and urged the Turkmen government to repeal it,” Human Rights Watch said in a statement.

“This blatantly discriminatory law, that violates Turkmenistan’s international human rights obligations, enables police to subject gay and bisexual men to harassment, including with the purpose of extortion, humiliation and abuse.”

“Turkmenistan should also repeal article 135 of the criminal code and protect people from violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation.”

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