Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
08ASHGABAT1492
2008-11-14 12:42:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Ashgabat
Cable title:
TURKMENISTAN: PRIVATE HOTEL OWNER (AND SABIT
how-toVZCZCXRO1119 PP RUEHAG RUEHBI RUEHCI RUEHLH RUEHPW RUEHROV RUEHSR DE RUEHAH #1492 3191242 ZNY CCCCC ZZH P 141242Z NOV 08 FM AMEMBASSY ASHGABAT TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 1871 INFO RUCNCLS/ALL SOUTH AND CENTRAL ASIA COLLECTIVE RUCNCIS/CIS COLLECTIVE RUCNMEM/EU MEMBER STATES COLLECTIVE RUEHAK/AMEMBASSY ANKARA 4506 RUEHBJ/AMEMBASSY BEIJING 2318 RUEHKO/AMEMBASSY TOKYO 2183 RUEHIT/AMCONSUL ISTANBUL 2754 RUCPDOC/DEPT OF COMMERCE WASHDC RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC RHMFISS/CDR USCENTCOM MACDILL AFB FL RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC RHEFDIA/DIA WASHDC RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHDC RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHINGTON DC RUEHVEN/USMISSION USOSCE 3072
C O N F I D E N T I A L ASHGABAT 001492
SIPDIS
STATE FOR SCA/CEN, EEB
COMMERCE FOR STARKS, ROLLINS
E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/14/2018
TAGS: PGOV ECON EIND SOCI TX
SUBJECT: TURKMENISTAN: PRIVATE HOTEL OWNER (AND SABIT
ALUMNUS) COMPLAINS ABOUT GOVERNMENT MONOPOLY
Classified By: Charge d'Affaires a.i. Sylvia Reed Curran for reasons
C O N F I D E N T I A L ASHGABAT 001492
SIPDIS
STATE FOR SCA/CEN, EEB
COMMERCE FOR STARKS, ROLLINS
E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/14/2018
TAGS: PGOV ECON EIND SOCI TX
SUBJECT: TURKMENISTAN: PRIVATE HOTEL OWNER (AND SABIT
ALUMNUS) COMPLAINS ABOUT GOVERNMENT MONOPOLY
Classified By: Charge d'Affaires a.i. Sylvia Reed Curran for reasons 1.
4 (B) and (D).
1. (C) On November 7 econoff stayed at the Shahabad Hotel in
Dashoguz city, a private hotel owned and operated by U.S.
Department of Commerce Special American Business Internship
Program (SABIT) alumnus Ramanberger Ibragimov. Ibragimov's
pride in his hotel, located on the second floor of a building
which he built following independence in 1992, is obvious.
At check-in, one of his staff members shows the guest the
clean room, pointing out that everything works and that
television channels from all over the world in every language
are available via the satellite. (COMMENT: The lack of
customer-oriented focus, a holdover from the Soviet Union, is
widespread in establishments outside of the capital. END
COMMENT.) The bathroom is appointed with British fixtures,
including a completely closed in shower -- not a common
feature in Central Asian hotel bathrooms. Ibragimov's
stationery store, a photography studio, and a computer store
on the first floor are decorated with antique photography
equipment and a display of photographs of his family and old
Dashoguz, dating back to his great-grandfather. He described
his current business volume as "not good, and not bad."
2. (C) Ibragimov's pride in his participation in the SABIT
Hotel and Restaurant Management Program is evident.
Certificates and photos documenting his trip to the U.S. and
his membership in an American hotel and restaurant
association hang in the hotel's entry hall. However,
Ibragimov's share of tourists staying in hotels is small due
to the fact that he cannot register foreigners. And
foreigners are required to register where they are staying.
Ibragimov said that the "state hotels have the monopoly on
tourists." His guests are generally Turkmen businessmen who
can afford to pay $45 per night (including a homecooked
breakfast),or foreigners residing in Turkmenistan such as
embassy and international organization employees. Ibragimov
also said that he didn't understand what the registration
regime was all about, since "in the U.S. they just put a
stamp in my passport and I could go where I wanted."
3. (SBU) COMMENT: Despite Turkmenistan's unfriendly climate
for private industry, Ibragimov continues to persevere with
his various businesses. Ibragimov is a prime example of why
it is so important to continue to press for more
participation in exchange programs. Exposure to other ways
of doing things will continue to serve as a prime force for
progress in Turkmenistan. END COMMENT.
CURRAN
SIPDIS
STATE FOR SCA/CEN, EEB
COMMERCE FOR STARKS, ROLLINS
E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/14/2018
TAGS: PGOV ECON EIND SOCI TX
SUBJECT: TURKMENISTAN: PRIVATE HOTEL OWNER (AND SABIT
ALUMNUS) COMPLAINS ABOUT GOVERNMENT MONOPOLY
Classified By: Charge d'Affaires a.i. Sylvia Reed Curran for reasons 1.
4 (B) and (D).
1. (C) On November 7 econoff stayed at the Shahabad Hotel in
Dashoguz city, a private hotel owned and operated by U.S.
Department of Commerce Special American Business Internship
Program (SABIT) alumnus Ramanberger Ibragimov. Ibragimov's
pride in his hotel, located on the second floor of a building
which he built following independence in 1992, is obvious.
At check-in, one of his staff members shows the guest the
clean room, pointing out that everything works and that
television channels from all over the world in every language
are available via the satellite. (COMMENT: The lack of
customer-oriented focus, a holdover from the Soviet Union, is
widespread in establishments outside of the capital. END
COMMENT.) The bathroom is appointed with British fixtures,
including a completely closed in shower -- not a common
feature in Central Asian hotel bathrooms. Ibragimov's
stationery store, a photography studio, and a computer store
on the first floor are decorated with antique photography
equipment and a display of photographs of his family and old
Dashoguz, dating back to his great-grandfather. He described
his current business volume as "not good, and not bad."
2. (C) Ibragimov's pride in his participation in the SABIT
Hotel and Restaurant Management Program is evident.
Certificates and photos documenting his trip to the U.S. and
his membership in an American hotel and restaurant
association hang in the hotel's entry hall. However,
Ibragimov's share of tourists staying in hotels is small due
to the fact that he cannot register foreigners. And
foreigners are required to register where they are staying.
Ibragimov said that the "state hotels have the monopoly on
tourists." His guests are generally Turkmen businessmen who
can afford to pay $45 per night (including a homecooked
breakfast),or foreigners residing in Turkmenistan such as
embassy and international organization employees. Ibragimov
also said that he didn't understand what the registration
regime was all about, since "in the U.S. they just put a
stamp in my passport and I could go where I wanted."
3. (SBU) COMMENT: Despite Turkmenistan's unfriendly climate
for private industry, Ibragimov continues to persevere with
his various businesses. Ibragimov is a prime example of why
it is so important to continue to press for more
participation in exchange programs. Exposure to other ways
of doing things will continue to serve as a prime force for
progress in Turkmenistan. END COMMENT.
CURRAN