TURKMENISTAN: DAS KROL'S MEETING WITH THE GRAND

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ASHGABAT 000522 SENSITIVE SIPDIS STATE FOR SCA/CEN E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PHUM PREL TX SUBJECT: TURKMENISTAN: DAS KROL'S MEETING WITH THE GRAND MUFTI - "TURKMEN MEANS ISLAM" ¶1. (U) Sensitive but unclassified. Not for public Internet. ¶2. (SBU) SUMMARY: On April 22, 2009, visiting Deputy Assistant Secretary George Krol, met with Grand Mufti, Rovshen Allaberdyev, and the Deputy Chairman of the Council on Religious Affairs, Nurmuhammet Gurbanov. The Mufti emphasized that to be Turkmen is to be Muslim. He said that theology students are no longer sent abroad to study, because of the concern they could trained in Wahabist or extremist principles. The Mufti did not believe that outside influences, such as from Iran or Afghanistan, have an effect on the religious practices of the majority of Turkmen. Turkmen practice a moderate form of Islam moderately, they reject extremism, and believe that religion is sometimes used as a pretext to mask horrendous acts. END SUMMARY. ¶3. (SBU) On April 22, 2009, visiting Deputy Assistant Secretary George Krol, met with Grand Mufti, Rovshen Allaberdyev, and the Deputy Chairman of the Council on Religious Affairs, Nurmuhammet Gurbanov. The meeting took place at the Council of Religious Affairs. The Chairman of the Council, Charigeldi Seryayev, also attended the meeting, but said virtually nothing. Following pleasantries, DAS Krol asked the Grand Mufti about religion in Turkmenistan. The meeting focused on Islam and there was no discussion of any other religion, despite efforts to get Gurbanov to speak more broadly. ¶4. (SBU) The Mufti noted the majority of Turkmen are Muslims. Turkmen do not separate religion from customs and traditions. You cannot have one without the other. He went on to say that people (in Turkmenistan) are free to pursue religion however they want. The Grand Mufti said that "Turkmen is Muslim." If a Turkmen distances himself from his religion (Islam) he could be ostracized by the community. However, customs and traditions are more important than religion, per se. For example, if one chooses to not go to the mosque but follows other customs and traditions of Islam, they may not be criticized. However, if you do not follow traditions, such as marking the death of a relative after 3, 7 and 40 days, the community may disapprove. In addition, if a man does not follow Islam, he would not be buried according to Muslim tradition, even if that was what he wished. The Mufti made the point that conformity to tradition is not mandated, but people carry it out as part of a societal (religious) norm. ¶5. (SBU) The Mufti explained that the education of religious staff in Turkmenistan is carried out at the Theology Department of The State University in the Faculty of History. This department provides education on all religions, not just Islam. He said they looked at many different methodologies, best practices and other places for religious training but concluded their staff were the best option. The religious professors are known as "Ahuns" and are considered to have the equivalent of a doctorate or masters degree and are capable of providing instruction in multiple religions. The Mufti felt that the Theology department is sufficient and saw no need to train religious personnel abroad. Students had been sent away for religious education in the past, but not anymore. The Mufti felt that students would get a different type of training, possibly in Wahabi principles, and Turkmen do not like this. Regarding prayer, each mosque provides this type of education, and every Mullah of every mosque is free to train their visitors anyway they like. ¶6. (SBU) The Mufti first said that the shoot-out in Khitrovka in September 2008 was connected to religious extremism. On questioning, he indicated that he had spoken somewhat out of turn and he explained that people assumed this because it was such an extreme event. Murder is prohibited in the religion of Islam. The perpetrators used religion as a cover for their activity when, in reality, they were involved in narcotics trafficking. It is common for these types of incidents to be carried out under the guise of religion, when in fact they are not related. Due to the extreme nature of this incident, people assumed it was ASHGABAT 00000522 002 OF 002 somehow connected to Wahabism. The country of Saudi Arabia pursues Wahabism as their religion. However, on an official visit to Turkmenistan, their leaders condemned the Khitrovka incident and said that it had nothing to do with religion. ¶7. (SBU) Regarding the influence of Iran and Afghanistan, the Mufti believes there is influence from outsiders. However, it does not affect the majority of the population. Instead, it is more situational and is influenced by family ties. The Mufti said Turkmen-Turkish schools are secular. All schools are secular regardless of their country of origin. For example, they would not call an American school "Christian" or and Indian school "Hindi." All curriculum is approved by the Ministry of Education. ¶8. (SBU) The Mufti mentioned that if you look at Turkmen history, no single fight happened because of religion. As the Prophet Mohammed taught all Muslims, if you follow the five tenets of Islam, you will go to heaven. The five tenants are 1) visit to Haj, 2) fasting during Ramazan, 3) reading the Namaz prayer five times per day, 4) participating in charitable acts and 5) acknowledging that Allah is the only God and Mohammed is his prophet. As Turkmen, they follow religion moderately and not to the extreme. The Mufti said he would be criticized if he did not follow all aspects of Islam. ¶9. (SBU) COMMENT: The meeting ended on a cordial note, but without time to discuss anything other than Islam. The most senior person in attendance (the Chairman of the Religious Council) said nothing during the entire meeting. Gurbanov deferred to the Mufti on efforts to engage him in a broader discussion of religion. During a brief tour of the compound, including the central mosque, Gurbanov spoke warmly of the Russian Orthodox community and nearby churches, but made no mention of other denominations. The Grand Mufti stressed that Turkmen were free to choose their own beliefs, but at the same time pointed out that they would receive pressure from the community if they did not choose Islam. He mentioned over and over how the leaders of the Mosque and the religious council really had no influence on an individual's beliefs, that pressure came entirely from society. The Mufti seemed to back pedal a bit when asked about his reference to "Turkmen is Islam". He said he read it on the internet and in reality, it is difficult to separate religion from customs and traditions. END COMMENT. ¶10. (U) DAS Krol cleared this cable. MILES