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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ASHGABAT 000557 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR SCA/CEN, DRL 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PHUM KDEM SOCI TX
SUBJECT:  TURKMENISTAN: "TRUST" NGO HELPING FILL SOCIAL SERVICE GAP 
 
ASHGABAT 00000557  001.2 OF 002 
 
 
¶1. (U) Sensitive but Unclassified.  Not for Internet distribution. 
 
¶2. (SBU) SUMMARY:  Embassy Political Assistant met with NGO 
Chairperson Lyudmila Petuhova to learn about the NGO Ynam's 
("Trust") activity.  The NGO provides legal, psychological and 
reproductive health consultation services and fills a gap that 
government social services cannot fill.  It also runs a library, 
provides limited Internet access to the public, and conducts 
awareness programs on trafficking in persons, domestic violence, 
family issues and discrimination.  As such, the NGO has found its 
own niche, but it relies solely on funding from the international 
donor community, and must work hard to ensure its own continuity. 
END SUMMARY. 
 
PROVIDING LEGAL, PSYCHOLOGICAL, AND REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH SUPPORT 
 
¶3. (SBU) The Council Chairperson of the "Ynam" Club, Lyudmila 
Petuhova talked with Embassy Political Assistant on April 28 about 
the organization's background and activities.  Ynam was founded and 
registered in 1997 and re-registered in 2004.  It  has worked to 
provide social and legal support to the country's residents.  The 
club offers a variety of mental health, legal and reproductive 
health awareness programs, operates a resource library and provides 
limited Internet access to the public.  Psychological and legal 
assistance is provided free of charge via telephone hotline or 
in-office consultations.  The club also conducts programs that 
educate the public regarding trafficking in persons, domestic 
violence, discrimination and a wide range of other social issues. 
 
STRUCTURE 
 
¶4. (SBU) There are seven staff members and about 35 volunteers, 
including three psychologists and eleven lawyers.  Decisions about 
the organization's activities are made at general meetings that take 
place at least once a year.  The Club Council or Chairperson 
determines the organization's priorities.  Ynam's funding comes from 
International Organizations, Western embassies and local businesses. 
 Not long ago, the British Embassy purchased a facility for the NGO 
and provided it with office furniture and equipment, while the U.S. 
Embassy and the UNHCR have sponsored their participation in various 
conferences and training events abroad in the past. 
 
ADDRESSING THE TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS ISSUE 
 
¶5. (SBU) Ynam conducts awareness seminars to prevent trafficking in 
persons (TIP) for the public and for those who plan to travel 
abroad.  They offer guidance on what documents travelers should have 
and also provide useful contact information for getting help abroad 
if they believe they are at risk of being trafficked.  Ynam 
established an international network of NGOs abroad who can assist 
TIP victims.  In 1998, the NGO assisted a woman from Turkmenistan 
who had become a victim of trafficking in Abu Dhabi, by facilitating 
her return to Turkmenistan.  Several Ynam representatives attended a 
training seminar on TIP in Washington in 2004 as part of a Visitors 
Program, and also traveled to Great Britain to share their 
experience with the British NGO Citizens Advice Bureau in 2000. 
 
TELEPHONE HOTLINE PROVIDES EXTRA SUPPORT 
 
¶6. (SBU) The NGO initiated its "Trust" Telephone Hotline 
consultation program in 1999.  The Ministry of Communications 
provided the NGO with the telephone number 450911, because the last 
three digits are reminiscent of the American 911 system.  Similar to 
911, the NGO is prepared to counsel callers on a range of legal, 
psychological, and social issues.  Hotline consultations are 
anonymous and confidential.  On average, Ynam has received about 
2,500 telephone calls per year from predominantly female callers. 
If callers want further consultation, they are then invited to visit 
the NGO and meet with a representative. 
 
LIBRARY AND INTERNET ACCESS FOR A HUNGRY PUBLIC 
 
¶7. (SBU) The NGO also runs a lending library that contains resources 
 
ASHGABAT 00000557  002.2 OF 002 
 
 
relevant to their mission, as well as a wide range of fiction and 
academic literature, periodicals, reference books and children's 
literature open to the public.  Since May 2008, Ynam has been able 
to provide limited free Internet access to the public at four 
computer stations.  The organization aspires to expand the number of 
Internet stations it has, and is seeking out a source of funding. It 
also plans to buy additional stock for the library and wants to 
begin paying honoraria to its specialists. 
 
CIVIL SOCIETY DEVELOPING--ALBEIT SLOWLY 
 
¶8. (SBU) As Petuhova noted, Ynam is funded solely through 
sponsorship.  Not long ago, when the organization considered 
charging modest fees to cover the cost of some of its services, the 
Ministry of Justice representative warned Petuhova that if the 
organization were to generate any income, then it would have to be 
closed and re-register as a commercial entity.  That said, as a 
fully registered public organization, Ynam has enjoyed full 
cooperation from the government.  When asked her opinion about the 
development of civil society in Turkmenistan, Petuhova observed that 
there it is developing and growing, slowly but surely.  "NGOs are 
slowly growing in number, and it is a good sign," she said.  With 
the aim of promoting NGO development, Over the last few years, Ynam 
conducted a nationwide seminar on resolving internal organizational 
conflicts and a seminar on the principles of consulting.  NGO 
representatives from all the provinces participated, and the 
programs were a great success. 
 
¶9. (SBU) COMMENT: Considering the restrictions that bar NGOs from 
earning any income for operations, Ynam's directors have their work 
cut out for them in eliciting regular financial support from the 
international donor community to ensure continuity with the 
important services the organization provides, especially the legal 
and psychological consultations and the hotline.  Such services fill 
a gap in social services here that the government is unlikely to 
address anytime soon.  Groups such as Ynam should continue to 
receive support and be nurtured by the international community.  END 
COMMENT. 
 
MILES