by Maya Saryeva
This essay is part of a continuing Camel Spit conversation.
I would like to present a subjective account of my experience with Peace Corps Volunteers (PCVs), and please note that none of what I say is directed at any PCV personally. These are simply my thoughts, memories and experiences that I gathered over the years. I cannot argue that Peace Corps Volunteers make Turkmenistan a better country. However, I can say that they certainly facilitate a great deal of cultural exchange and touch the lives of different individuals and families in different ways. While there are a few jewels amongst the waves of PCVs that come and go, most are there for the experience of enduring a life outside of United States and coming back to say that they actually made it, and if they are lucky or strong individuals, they were actually able to enjoy it. I found it especially interesting that very few of the Volunteers (most of the ones I became friends with) had a sense of pragmatism and interest in the lives of Turkmen people, while many others didn't. Undoubtedly some PCVs came with the goal of changing Turkmenistan, while others had a strange air of ideological bias that "we are here to show you things that are not necessarily different, but are essentially "better". I believe for most of the latter, the attitudes change in time as they realize that there is much in their way, and that the only difference they can truly make is in their neighborhoods, villages or a group of friends.
Showing posts with label PCT. Show all posts
Showing posts with label PCT. Show all posts
Friday, February 12, 2010
Does Peace Corps Help Turkmenistan : Yes & No
by Nate Truitt, T-9
This is a response to the question we posed in an earlier posting.
Yes and no, depending on who you ask.
Perhaps the most important thing I learned in Peace Corps was that, by and large, people in other countries are quite content with their way of life. Of course, they have problems and complaints, as do all of us. But they also place a high value on the attitudes, ideas and traditions that under-gird their day-to-day existence.
With very rare exceptions, no nation thinks of itself as desperately in need of foreign assistance. To the contrary, when people think of how foreigners or foreign organizations might help their own country, they usually define the word "help" in very narrow terms.
This is a response to the question we posed in an earlier posting.
Yes and no, depending on who you ask.
Perhaps the most important thing I learned in Peace Corps was that, by and large, people in other countries are quite content with their way of life. Of course, they have problems and complaints, as do all of us. But they also place a high value on the attitudes, ideas and traditions that under-gird their day-to-day existence.
With very rare exceptions, no nation thinks of itself as desperately in need of foreign assistance. To the contrary, when people think of how foreigners or foreign organizations might help their own country, they usually define the word "help" in very narrow terms.
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Call for answers: Does Peace Corps help Turkmenistan? Why/Why not?
by Charles Gussow, T-11
As many of you know, Turkmenistan initially invited, then declined to issue visas to the Volunteer group set to arrive in autumn 2009. An agreement has since been reached to invite a smaller group, consisting only of health volunteers, to begin service this spring.
Given the ambivalence shown by the Turkmen government, now is an opportune moment to ask - Is the Peace Corps good for Turkmenistan? Why or why not?
As many of you know, Turkmenistan initially invited, then declined to issue visas to the Volunteer group set to arrive in autumn 2009. An agreement has since been reached to invite a smaller group, consisting only of health volunteers, to begin service this spring.
Given the ambivalence shown by the Turkmen government, now is an opportune moment to ask - Is the Peace Corps good for Turkmenistan? Why or why not?
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