Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
06ASHGABAT458
2006-05-01 09:42:00
UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY
Embassy Ashgabat
Cable title:  

EMBASSY ASHGABAT MARKS HOLOCAUST REMEMBRANCE DAY

Tags:  KIRF PGOV PHUM TX 
pdf how-to read a cable
VZCZCXRO9513
RR RUEHDBU RUEHLN RUEHVK RUEHYG
DE RUEHAH #0458/01 1210942
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 010942Z MAY 06
FM AMEMBASSY ASHGABAT
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 7287
INFO RUCNCIS/CIS COLLECTIVE
RUEHTV/AMEMBASSY TEL AVIV 0274
RUEHWR/AMEMBASSY WARSAW 0108
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ASHGABAT 000458 

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

DEPT FOR SCA/CACEN FOR PERRY; SCA/PPD FOR SCHWARTZ; EUR/OHI

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: KIRF PGOV PHUM TX
SUBJECT: EMBASSY ASHGABAT MARKS HOLOCAUST REMEMBRANCE DAY
WITH A SHOWING OF "SCHINDLER,S LIST"

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ASHGABAT 000458

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

DEPT FOR SCA/CACEN FOR PERRY; SCA/PPD FOR SCHWARTZ; EUR/OHI

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: KIRF PGOV PHUM TX
SUBJECT: EMBASSY ASHGABAT MARKS HOLOCAUST REMEMBRANCE DAY
WITH A SHOWING OF "SCHINDLER,S LIST"


1. (U) On April 25, approximately 60 people, including
students, representatives of minority religious groups, NGO
leaders, and teachers, gathered at post's newly inaugurated
PD center to attend a viewing of Schindler's List to mark
Holocaust Remembrance Day (Yom Hashoah). The movie was
followed by a lively discussion about the causes of, and the
lessons learned from, the Holocaust.


2. (SBU) Post had originally intended to host the event on
January 27 (the day designated by the UN as the
internationally recognized Holocaust Remembrance Day) and had
intended to invite GOTX officials, the diplomatic corps,
media, students, and others to attend a larger event.
However, GOTX was reluctant to hold such an event since it
would have detracted attention from GOTX,s preparations for
the President's Birthday. (Note: During conversations with
the MFA to organize the showing of Schindler's List in
January, the MFA interlocutor--apparently in all sincerity,
but suspicious of USG intentions--asked questions such as:
"What's the Holocaust?" and "What's the List about?" End
Note.)


3. (U) Before the movie showing, Conoff gave an overview of
the Holocaust and solicited the audience's thoughts about
what the Holocaust was. Surprisingly, most of the audience
knew what it was (although one of the audience members
claimed that it was an attempt by Germans to get "Jewish
money.") As the movie was shown, the audience attentively
watched the movie, the vast majority staying to the end.


4. (SBU) Following the movie, Conoff led a group discussion
about what the audience thought of the movie and about what
they thought were the main causes of the Holocaust. Some
ideas the audience gave as causes were: one group's/man's
hatred of another group, the desire to gain and keep power,
and a defeated nation's desire to take out its frustrations
of defeat out on others. One woman suggested that general
ignorance played a role in facilitating the Holocaust since
television and internet did not exist during the war. This
idea was countered by a member of the local Jewish community
who argued that even after the invention of television and

internet, genocides still occur. Conoff suggested that the
crowd consider the idea that the Holocaust occurred due to
basic intolerance of differences. Conoff opined that the
Holocaust represented the worst form of intolerance: the
intolerance of the physical existence of a group of people.
He noted that there are many other forms of intolerance, for
example the persecution of those who oppose the policies of
their government, of those who want to have an independent
voice, or have an opposing view to the status quo. (Note:
Many appeared to see the veiled innuendo of what Conoff was
talking about vis a vis Turkmenistan. End Note.)


5. (SBU) Conoff's comments generated a lively and unexpected
discussion among the audience. One person suggested that it
was necessary for governments to prevent such groups from
gaining attention by restricting their access to media as a
way of prevention. Another responded that governments needed
to address the issues of general intolerance that exists
among society as a means of prevention. One other
participant, the head of the Kazakh Diaspora organization,
said that it was necessary for mankind to take it upon itself
to ensure that such tragedies never happen again. He
recalled the famous saying about how one person remained
silent while others were taken away since he was not a
communist, Jew, political opponent, etc., and that when it
was time for him to be taken away, there was nobody left to
help him because everyone else was gone.


5. (SBU) Conoff then explained how the Holocaust impacted
American foreign policy. He informed the audience that
despite the fact that we were well informed of the threat
Nazi Germany posed to European Jews and other targeted
peoples, the United States, like other world democracies,
refused to get involved to stop Hitler. America's failure to
prevent the Holocaust has to this day weighed on our
conscience as a nation, and has strengthened our resolve to
promote democracy and oppose tyranny around the world. That
is why the United States is in Iraq and Afghanistan, and that
is also why we at the U.S. Embassy do what we are doing to
promote human rights in Turkmenistan.


6. (SBU) The audience's response to Conoff,s comments was
overwhelmingly positive. Many expressed their appreciation
that the embassy would even address such a subject and engage
in discussion with average Turkmenistanis about it. Some
suggested that the embassy should have chosen a bigger venue

ASHGABAT 00000458 002 OF 002


to hold the event and that the embassy should do more to
advertise future films and events in order to attract a wider
audience. (Note: Conoff did not inform the audience that the
GOTX regularly stymies our efforts to conduct and advertise
such events in bigger venues. End note.) Some asked Conoff
to show &Schindler's List8 to their respective schools and
organizations, ignoring suggestions that another less
powerful film be shown.

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COMMENT
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7. (SBU) Post's decision to commemorate Holocaust
Remembrance Day with a public showing of &Schindler's List8
was not only to mark this important event, but also to
encourage discussion about discrimination, intolerance, human
rights, and most importantly independent thought and how it
may relate to individuals today. Although nobody mentioned
Turkmenistan by name, it was clearly obvious among the
members of the audience that many recognized that these
problems exist here. Given the lively and sometimes
emotional comments, the audience by and large seized the
opportunity to freely speak their mind about such
controversial issues. We plan to hold regular viewings of a
variety of American movies that we hope will not only
entertain Turkmenistanis, but to also get them thinking. END
COMMENT.
JACOBSON