After banning opera and ballet for “not corresponding with the national mentality,” the president of Turkmenistan has officially forbid another questionable art form, ordering a nationwide ban on lip-synching.

Details come from the Associated Press, which reports the office of President Saparmurat Niyazov credited the ban to lip synching’s “negative effect on the development of singing and musical art.” Under the new ruling, lip synching is outlawed everywhere in the country, from public cultural events to private gatherings.

“Don’t kill talents by using lip synching,” Niyazov told a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday. “Create our new culture.”

Here’s hoping Turkmenistan’s drag queens can survive the new regime…