Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
09ASHGABAT1024
2009-08-13 12:39:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Ashgabat
Cable title:
TURKMENISTAN: ONE GROUP'S GRASSROOTS EFFORT TO
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C O N F I D E N T I A L ASHGABAT 001024
SIPDIS
DEPT FOR SCA/CEN; DRL
E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/12/2019
TAGS: PHUM PGOV SCUL SOCI TX
SUBJECT: TURKMENISTAN: ONE GROUP'S GRASSROOTS EFFORT TO
DEVELOP CIVIL SOCIETY
REF: ASHGABAT 941
Classified By: Charge Richard Miles, reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).
C O N F I D E N T I A L ASHGABAT 001024
SIPDIS
DEPT FOR SCA/CEN; DRL
E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/12/2019
TAGS: PHUM PGOV SCUL SOCI TX
SUBJECT: TURKMENISTAN: ONE GROUP'S GRASSROOTS EFFORT TO
DEVELOP CIVIL SOCIETY
REF: ASHGABAT 941
Classified By: Charge Richard Miles, reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).
1. (C) On August 11, Political Officer attended a
training-for-trainers seminar organized by Natalya Shabunts
and her NGO, "Civic Dignity." The two-day seminar, which was
conducted in the living room of Shabunts' apartment located
in a Soviet-era highrise, was led by Shabunts and involved
eight participants. The subject matter was public awareness
of the challenges and rights of people with disabilities.
The participants were a mix of experienced trainers who had
led meetings on this subject, and others who were learning
about how to plan and conduct such meetings.
2. (C) One participant shared her experience conducting a
seminar on people with disabilities with a football club of
14-15 year olds. She described the stages of her
presentation, including an explanation about the types and
causes of disabilities, practical exercises where the
teenagers simulated a disability, for example blindness by
covering their eyes and attempting to draw, and a film that
showed accomplishments of disabled persons. The participant
thought the training had had an impact, mentioning that
during feedback at the end, the participants agreed that
referring to disabled persons as "invalids," which is a
commonly used term here, is inappropriate and should be
avoided. With other groups, this participant had shown the
Hoffman-Cruise film, "Rain Man," combined with breaks and
discussion, to sensitize people about autism.
3. (C) There was lively exchange among the participants at
the seminar, especially as they shared experiences from
trainings they had lead and related stories about some of the
attendees. They agreed on the need for seminars to deal with
additional subjects such as suicide, particularly among young
people, and ethnic prejudice among children and young people,
which they said is learned at home from parents. They
stressed the need for instructional materials and literature
that could be distributed to the public, and particularly the
need for Turkmen language material. Participants said many
young people do not speak Russian, rendering most currently
available films and printed materials on these subjects
inaccessible to their target audiences.
4. (C) COMMENT: Informal and small scale, this training
session was typical of the continuing efforts of unregistered
civil society to address social issues through education and
awareness. The topics that arose, persons with disabilities,
suicide, ethnic prejudice, are clearly on people's minds, and
are illustrative of the areas in which civil society could
work to supplement government resources in addressing social
issues. Unfortunately, the government's refusal to allow
such groups to work openly not only makes their challenging
social agenda harder to achieve, but for the activists,
personally risky. END COMMENT.
MILES
SIPDIS
DEPT FOR SCA/CEN; DRL
E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/12/2019
TAGS: PHUM PGOV SCUL SOCI TX
SUBJECT: TURKMENISTAN: ONE GROUP'S GRASSROOTS EFFORT TO
DEVELOP CIVIL SOCIETY
REF: ASHGABAT 941
Classified By: Charge Richard Miles, reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).
1. (C) On August 11, Political Officer attended a
training-for-trainers seminar organized by Natalya Shabunts
and her NGO, "Civic Dignity." The two-day seminar, which was
conducted in the living room of Shabunts' apartment located
in a Soviet-era highrise, was led by Shabunts and involved
eight participants. The subject matter was public awareness
of the challenges and rights of people with disabilities.
The participants were a mix of experienced trainers who had
led meetings on this subject, and others who were learning
about how to plan and conduct such meetings.
2. (C) One participant shared her experience conducting a
seminar on people with disabilities with a football club of
14-15 year olds. She described the stages of her
presentation, including an explanation about the types and
causes of disabilities, practical exercises where the
teenagers simulated a disability, for example blindness by
covering their eyes and attempting to draw, and a film that
showed accomplishments of disabled persons. The participant
thought the training had had an impact, mentioning that
during feedback at the end, the participants agreed that
referring to disabled persons as "invalids," which is a
commonly used term here, is inappropriate and should be
avoided. With other groups, this participant had shown the
Hoffman-Cruise film, "Rain Man," combined with breaks and
discussion, to sensitize people about autism.
3. (C) There was lively exchange among the participants at
the seminar, especially as they shared experiences from
trainings they had lead and related stories about some of the
attendees. They agreed on the need for seminars to deal with
additional subjects such as suicide, particularly among young
people, and ethnic prejudice among children and young people,
which they said is learned at home from parents. They
stressed the need for instructional materials and literature
that could be distributed to the public, and particularly the
need for Turkmen language material. Participants said many
young people do not speak Russian, rendering most currently
available films and printed materials on these subjects
inaccessible to their target audiences.
4. (C) COMMENT: Informal and small scale, this training
session was typical of the continuing efforts of unregistered
civil society to address social issues through education and
awareness. The topics that arose, persons with disabilities,
suicide, ethnic prejudice, are clearly on people's minds, and
are illustrative of the areas in which civil society could
work to supplement government resources in addressing social
issues. Unfortunately, the government's refusal to allow
such groups to work openly not only makes their challenging
social agenda harder to achieve, but for the activists,
personally risky. END COMMENT.
MILES