A huge line of Turkmens mixed with foreign dignitaries streamed solemnly past the coffin of President Saparmurat Niyazov early Sunday as the country prepared for the burial of the man who ruled the country with an all-encompassing personality cult, The Associated Press reports.

Niyazov, who took the title “Turkmenbashi” (Father of All Turkmen), was to be buried later Sunday in his home village of Kipchak on the grounds of Central Asia’s largest mosque — which is named after him.

Niyazov’s body lay in state in the rotunda of the presidential palace. A line of mourners stretched across the vast plaza outside, many of them bearing flowers. Many women wore dark coats set off by the vividly colored, intricately patterned headscarves characteristic of Turkmenistan.

“He was everything to us,” said one weeping woman, who refused to give her name. Others in the line of mourners declined to talk to journalists.

After three hours of people filing past the open coffin, it was closed and placed by men wearing armbands on a flower-laden trailer hitched to an armored personnel carrier that began driving slowly toward the village, about 10 kilometers (6 miles) outside the capital.

Goose-stepping soldiers marched in front of the coffin as it was taken out of the palace carrying cushions with the late leader’s numerous state awards, in line with Soviet-era traditions. The sidewalks along the cortege route were lined with spectators and uniformed men.

Security checkpoints outside Ashgabat were tightened and villagers who came to sell products at city markets were turned away. Weddings, other celebrations and sporting events were canceled. The capital’s streets were empty of traffic as people on foot headed toward the presidential palace.

State TV’s live broadcast of the ceremonies was accompanied by constant playing of the national mourning music “Kotch Pelek” (Bitter Fate). The music is also used at annual commemorations for the victims of World War II and of the tens of thousands of Turkmens who died in a 1948 earthquake.

The procession of ordinary Turkmens periodically came to a halt as foreign delegations arrived, including those of Russian Prime Minister Mikkhail Fradkov, Ukrainian Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych and U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Richard Boucher. Delegations from 40 countries and international organizations were attending the funeral, including neighboring Iran’s vice president, Parviz Davoodi.

Niyazov, whose death at 66 was announced Thursday, left no obvious successor.

On Saturday, the country’s security minister promised his forces will preserve calm in the wake of the death of the two-decade leader amid concern about a power struggle in the energy-rich country. In a statement published Saturday in state-run newspapers, security minister Lt. Gen. Geldimukhammed Ashirmukhammedov vowed to pursue policies set forth by Niyazov. The national security ministry “will day and night stand guard on the achievements founded by Saparmurat Turkmenbashi the Great … and vigilantly preserve the calm and happy life of our people and to support stable conditions within the country,” the statement said.

But Niyazov had exiled or jailed all his opponents, keeping all power in his hands, and observers predict a battle for succession that could provoke instability.

Signs of jockeying for power emerged just hours after Niyazov’s death was announced. Although the constitution stipulates that the parliamentary speaker become acting president, the deputy prime minister was given the job. He later dismissed the speaker, who was charged with abuse of power and human rights violations.

Turkish Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul on Saturday urged calm in Turkmenistan. “It is important that the transitional period in Turkmenistan takes place in a calm and quiet manner,” Gul told reporters at Ankara’s airport before his departure for Turkmenistan to attend Niyazov’s funeral.

Turkey has close ethnic and linguistic ties to Turkmenistan and other Central Asian countries.

After Niyazov’s death, exiled opposition leaders are clamoring to return and Russia, China and the West appear positioned to compete for influence over the ex-Soviet republic and its vast energy resources.

Turkmenistan’s natural gas deposits are second only to Russia’s among the former Soviet states. Most Turkmen gas flows to Russia, which re-exports much of it to Europe.

Analysts said that powerful security officials stood behind acting President Gurbanguli Berdymukhamedov, who was likely to be only an interim leader.

On Tuesday, the chief legislative body will set a date for elections. But one-party rule does not appear threatened in the country, which has never known democracy.

Niyazov had led Turkmenistan since 1985 and held absolute power after the desert nation of 5 million that lies north of Afghanistan and Iran became independent with the 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union. In 1999 he was named president for life.

Niyazov isolated Turkmenistan from the outside world. He erected gold statues and busts of himself everywhere, ordered citizens to call him “Turkmenbashi” and renamed the month of January after himself — and April for his mother. He banned ballet and opera and ordered his nation’s youth to read his book of moral and spiritual guidance — the “Rukhnama” - three times a day in order to go to heaven.

Popularity: 3% [?]