Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
06ASHGABAT983
2006-09-15 14:30:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Ashgabat
Cable title:  

RUMORS DISPELLED IN MYRADOVA CASE, BUT SISTERS

Tags:  PHUM PGOV PREL TX 
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C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 ASHGABAT 000983 

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR SCA/CEN (PERRY)

E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/14/2016
TAGS: PHUM PGOV PREL TX
SUBJECT: RUMORS DISPELLED IN MYRADOVA CASE, BUT SISTERS
REQUEST ASYLUM

REF: A. A) BRUSH-PERRY SEPTEMBER 14 TELECON

B. B) ASHGABAT 963 AND PREVIOUS

Classified By: Charge d'Affaires Jennifer L. Brush for Reasons 1.4 (B)
and (D)

Summary
---------

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 ASHGABAT 000983

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR SCA/CEN (PERRY)

E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/14/2016
TAGS: PHUM PGOV PREL TX
SUBJECT: RUMORS DISPELLED IN MYRADOVA CASE, BUT SISTERS
REQUEST ASYLUM

REF: A. A) BRUSH-PERRY SEPTEMBER 14 TELECON

B. B) ASHGABAT 963 AND PREVIOUS

Classified By: Charge d'Affaires Jennifer L. Brush for Reasons 1.4 (B)
and (D)

Summary
--------------


1. (C) Embassy personnel visited the Myradova residence late
in the evening September 14 and did not observe any excessive
security presence, any indication that the police had entered
the Myradova residence nor any other reported difficulties,
in contradiction to information received reftelcon A.
Embassy personnel took photos of Myradova's body. Charge
consulted with German, OSCE and French heads of mission
September 15 to discuss the case and learned of the brief
occupation of Turkmenistan's embassy in Paris. The Myradova
sisters visited the embassy September 15 to request feedback
and also demand political asylum. Embassy personnel outlined
issues related to the political asylum process, while noting
the sisters' fears, concerns and complaints. End Summary.

Nighttime Visit to Myradova Residence
--------------


2. (C) Following events earlier on September 14 (see reftel
B) and subsequent to feedback from Washington, three embassy
personnel returned to the Myradova residence at about 10:00
p.m. Although there were several cars and individuals in the
area, it did not seem uncommonly crowded for a neighborhood
of apartment buildings. Ogulsparar Myradova's son was
outside the stairwell and escorted embassy personnel upstairs
and into the family's apartment. The Myradova sisters and
two or three other women were mourning the body upon emboffs'
arrival.


3. (C) The Myradova sisters said that the police had not
entered their apartment, demanded the return of their
mother's body nor confiscated their sibling's camera (again
in contradiction to information received by the Department
per ref A). The sisters pulled out the digital camera and
showed embassy personnel a four-minute video they had
recorded of the condition of their mother's body. It is
unclear whether the sisters also took still images of their
mother's body. The sisters consented to embassy viewing the

body again and to the taking of photographs. Due to the
condition of the body, the sisters had not turned it over to
determine if there were any injuries or markings sustained on
the back. After taking photographs, embassy assured the
family that photos taken by the embassy would not/not be
released outside of U.S. government channels. The sisters
confirmed that their phones had been disconnected. Embassy
personnel had no difficulty departing the residence and
subsequently met the Charge and telephoned Department's
Turkmenistan Desk Officer Perry to discuss developments.

Germans Convene Morning Meeting on Case
-------------- -


4. (C) The following morning (September 15),Charge met with
German Charge d'Affaires Astrid Wolf (also representing the
European Union),Ashgabat OSCE Ambassador Ibrahim Djigic and
French Ambassador Christian Le Chevry to discuss next steps
in the case. Le Chevry told the group that he received four
phone calls the previous evening from Foreign Minister Rashit
Meredov regarding a two-hour penetration of the Turkmenistan
Embassy in Paris by five people representing Journalists
Without Borders; he was scheduled to meet with Meredov this
morning. (Note: It was later reported to the Charge that
Meredov remained completely silent when Le Chevry asked that
the government release an official report on Myradova's cause
of death. End Note.) During the meeting, OSCE Human
Dimensions Officer Benjamin Moreau told the group that
Myradova had annually visited the center regarding the
imprisonment of her brother for the past four years. Since
January 2006, the frequency of her visits had steadily
increased and she told Moreau that she was taking videos and

ASHGABAT 00000983 002 OF 003


was feeding increasingly more information about the
government to the Turkmenistan Helsinki Foundation. All
agreed that the case continued to be suspicious, and all
public responses should refrain from commenting on the case
against Myradova, but rather focus on calling for the
government to act transparently and legally. The first step
would be to call on the government to release a statement
regarding the event and the autopsy stating the cause of
death. Charge told the attendees the details of the
September 14 events as witnessed by emboffs, highlighting the
factual details in juxtaposition to the inaccurate details
being printed in the media and on human rights groups'
websites. Charge did not mention embassy had taken
photographs of the body.

Embassy Reviews Photos
--------------


5. (C) Charge consulted certain U.S. mission staff,
including resident medical nurse practitioner, to review
details of the case. After discussion and review of photos,
staff came to the preliminary conclusion that the cause of
death could remain inconclusive. Myradova appears to have
suffered a broken nose and jaw. Some of the injuries and
marking on the body could have occurred post-mortem. There
was some discoloration on her leg, ankle and shoulder. There
is a marking on the neck, but it is not a wound and not
bruised, therefore probably occurred after death. Myradova
also had a history of heart disease and it apparently is
common practice to deny patients their medications while in
prison. Embassy is providing the photographs to various USG
medical professionals for further analysis, but not/not for
distribution outside of the USG.

Myradova Sisters Return to Embassy
--------------


6. (C) The Myradova sisters returned to the embassy
September 15 in the afternoon. The sisters opened their
comments first by asking what had been done with the photos
taken the previous evening, and second what conclusions had
we made regarding the cause of their mother's death. Embassy
personnel advised the sisters that the photos had been taken
to record the condition of the body, and that the photos had
not been distributed. Secondly, embassy personnel responded
that cause of death could not be ascertained. The sisters
indicated that burial had already taken place, and added that
their residence is under continued surveillance. They
expressed fear for their lives, and noted that family members
had been staying with them for added protection.


7. (C) The Myradova sisters then requested political asylum
and stated they would no longer provide information to the
embassy without our granting this request. They added that
some relatives and friends blamed them for their mother's
death, noting that their contact with "foreign agencies" had
caused Myradova's death. The sisters lashed out at the
Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE)
with four points:

-- the OSCE shared too much information about their mother's
case;

-- the OSCE was ineffective;

-- the OSCE abandoned them after the death of their mother;
and

-- the OSCE could only generate statistics on democracy and
not much else.


8. (C) In addressing their request, embassy noted the
difficulty of the case, the need to gather more information
and the inability to provide immediate answers. However,
embassy also advised the Myradova sisters of our inability to
process a political asylum case at the embassy on their
behalf. Embassy also noted issues regarding their need to
travel abroad for an asylum request, as well as the option of

ASHGABAT 00000983 003 OF 003


approaching the United Nations High Commissioner for
Refugees. The sisters did not respond to this feedback.
Embassy informed the sisters of some of the international
developments relating to their mother's death, and also
advised them of the likely transmission of a message to them
from the leadership of Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty.
The meeting then ended.

Public Inquiries and Comments
--------------


9. (SBU) Embassy Ashgabat has received direct inquiries from
Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty correspondents as well as
Human Rights Watch. Embassy notes that stories regarding
Myradova's death have appeared in various foreign news
accounts, on human rights organization websites, opposition
political party sites and elsewhere. However, given the
nature of Turkmenistan's government-controlled media, there
has been no reporting of Myradova's death in the local news.
Embassy notes the accurate and balanced tone of the OSCE
Representative on Freedom of the Media's statement regarding
Myradova's death.

Comment
--------------


10. (C) The OSCE, the German Embassy and the U.S. Embassy
think that this case has the earmarks of a set-up. The
ex-con and police past of Myradova's accomplice Amanglychev
continues to cast a shadow on the case, with local observers
suggesting Myradova may have been a victim of a
government-orchestrated scheme to discredit the human rights
community. The Myradova sisters' telephones were not cut
until after the inaccurate Turkmenistan Helsinki Foundation
report was released on September 14 detailing the release of
Myradova's body and the involvement of U.S. Embassy officers.
Historically, the government has cut both land and cellular
phone lines of local reporters when sensitive and damning
information was being transmitted; lines have been restored
when it appeared the government wanted to monitor what was
being transmitted internationally. The government may have
considered the utility of ending the Myradova sisters'
telephone communications and determined that their contact
with international organizations would now be detrimental to
the government's cause. Their fears of government
retribution are not unfounded and they know that their
futures and the futures of their family members are now in
jeopardy. Given the continued inaccuracy and discrepancies
being generated by the Turkmenistan Helsinki Foundation, post
recommends not focusing on the attributes of the Myradova
case itself. Instead, post recommends keeping to the higher
ground and advocating for the international community to
focus on the available facts, work in concert, and demand
transparency from the government regarding the cause of
death. Waiting two weeks for the autopsy is paramount to
maintaining both the moral and the tactical advantage with
the government. The human rights community's tendency to
spin this case as solely a human right case -- and to rely on
inaccurate information -- could be detrimental to the
international community's ability to address human rights in
Turkmenistan with adequate credibility. End Comment.

BRUSH