VZCZCXRO5229
PP RUEHAG RUEHAST RUEHBI RUEHCI RUEHDF RUEHIK RUEHLH RUEHLN RUEHLZ
RUEHPW RUEHROV RUEHVK RUEHYG
DE RUEHAH #1095/01 2340408
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 210408Z AUG 08
FM AMEMBASSY ASHGABAT
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 1394
INFO RUCNCLS/ALL SOUTH AND CENTRAL ASIA COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUCNCIS/CIS COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUCNMEM/EU MEMBER STATES COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUEHAK/AMEMBASSY ANKARA PRIORITY 4189
RUEHBJ/AMEMBASSY BEIJING PRIORITY 2001
RUEHKO/AMEMBASSY TOKYO PRIORITY 1866
RUEHIT/AMCONSUL ISTANBUL PRIORITY 2437
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK PRIORITY 0870
RHMFIUU/CDR USCENTCOM MACDILL AFB FL PRIORITY
RUEHVEN/USMISSION USOSCE PRIORITY 2800
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC PRIORITY
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHDC PRIORITY
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHDC PRIORITY

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ASHGABAT 001095 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR SCA/CEN; DRL 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV SCUL SOCI TX
SUBJECT: TURKMENISTAN'S GAY UNDERGROUND: HIDDEN, GROWING 
AND AT RISK 
 
REF: ASHGABAT 380 
 
¶1.  (U)  Sensitive but unclassified.  Not for public Internet. 
 
¶2. (SBU) SUMMARY. Officially nonexistent and a taboo topic, 
Turkmenistan's gay population is finding partners with 
greater frequency.  Men will first meet in public places and 
then secretly continue seeing each other, although the shame 
and social stigma attached to being gay leads to frequent 
self denial.  Some see gay sex as subversive resistance to a 
strict, traditional society.  Gay men who are forced to marry 
either neglect their wives or resign themselves to the 
circumstances.  While the government does not report any 
HIV-positive cases, gay men and their families are especially 
at risk for sexually transmitted illnesses (STI) due to lack 
of information and support.  This problem will only worsen 
without reliable data and a focused educational campaign. 
END SUMMARY. 
 
A TABOO SUBCULTURE 
 
¶3. (SBU)  If government officials are to be believed, there 
are no gays in Turkmenistan.  State media categorically 
avoids the topic.  Even the Russian word for gay, "goluboi", 
remains taboo for polite conversation.  Yet a gay subculture 
does exist in Turkmenistan.  Although it is impossible to 
determine the number of gay men in the country, locals report 
that they are finding partners with greater frequency and 
that numbers of gay men seeking partners is increasing. 
 
FROM PUBLIC MEETINGS... 
 
¶4. (SBU)  Gays commonly meet one another for the first time 
in public places in broad daylight.  A man who has been with 
three different partners met them at Russian Bazaar, Amir 
Bazaar and on the bus.  There are no set gestures or signals 
for indicating interest, so men have to be extremely careful. 
 One wrong choice could permanently ostracize them from their 
family and community.  Typically, when two men meet in a 
public place and display interest toward each other, they 
will exchange contact information and agree to take a walk 
together.  This is relatively safe as the walk gives both of 
them a chance to gauge the inclination of the other. 
 
...TO CLANDESTINE TRYSTS 
 
¶5. (SBU)  If interest is unambiguously reciprocated, the two 
men will then agree to meet in secret.  They will take great 
pains to ensure their friends and families don't find out. 
Two good friends only discovered each other's sexual 
preferences when it was revealed they had both slept with the 
same man.  Some nightclubs are also reported to shelter gay 
activity.  In particular, the discotheque within the "Nissa" 
hotel is known for having gay clientele and even male 
prostitutes. 
 
BUT THEY'RE "NOT GAY" 
 
¶6. (SBU)  Turkmen will almost never admit to being "goluboi". 
 The closest answer one could hear is "I don't like women." 
Turkmen frequently feel a sense of shame about the matter and 
psychologically distinguish between their "normal" and their 
secret lives.  Some consider having sex with men as the only 
way to escape from what they feel is an overly repressive, 
stifling environment.  For these select few, gay sex 
represents a form of subversive resistance to strict, 
family-oriented cultural mores. 
 
GAY MARRIAGE? NOT EXACTLY... 
 
¶7. (SBU)  Cultural pressures demand that many Turkmen marry 
young.  For gay men, this is a particular source of anxiety. 
One man described the misery of leaving his Ashgabat lover to 
 
ASHGABAT 00001095  002 OF 002 
 
 
return to his home in Turkmenbashy in order to get married. 
These men have no support network that they can turn to and 
must confront this problem in isolation.  Some choose to 
continue surreptitiously finding partners on the side, 
remaining emotionally distant from their wives.  Others try 
to resign themselves to living a married life as best they 
can. 
 
AT RISK FOR HIV/AIDS 
 
¶8. (SBU)  The government reported zero official HIV cases in 
the past several years, although an unofficial 2007 UNDP 
report estimated 1,000 HIV-positive cases in Turkmenistan 
(reftel).  Clinics and health officials are regularly told 
not to document patients that come in for treatment or 
testing of the virus.  There are very few public awareness 
initiatives available to educate people on STI prevention and 
treatment.  Most Turkmen believe HIV can only be transmitted 
through vaginal sex.  Unprotected sex puts not only the men 
at risk but also their wives and children, who will not be 
aware of the danger of transmission and will not receive 
treatment. 
 
¶9. (SBU) COMMENT.  Gays in Turkmenistan will continue to be a 
taboo subject in the foreseeable future.  With no local 
support network or access to internet forums, this group will 
remain an underground subculture in Turkmenistan.  Besides 
the emotional trauma from stigmatization that gay men endure, 
they are a growing health risk from STIs.  They have little 
opportunity to be informed about safety precautions and 
hesitate to seek medical attention.  If the government 
continues ignoring the problem of HIV/AIDS and fails to 
provide available information on safety and precaution, this 
problem will only worsen.  END COMMENT. 
CURRAN