Victory!
The VAC (Volunteer Advisory Council), brought my proposal to change the Peace Corps Ukraine's policy towards writing for the media to the administration. The administration has agreed to change the policy! Wooohoooo! As soon as it's implemented, I will no longer have to get my writing approved by Peace Corps for publication!
This is what I love about Peace Corps Ukraine: it's really dynamic and really willing to work with you.
What's follows is the e-mail from my VAC representative and after that is the e-mail I sent to the VAC. It's all kind of long, and not required reading, but it's there in case you wanted to see the correspondence. Karl Beck, by the way, is the country director.
VAC to Me:
Hey Daniel!
I am going to be representing Region 5 at our VAC meetings and addressing any concerns that you may have. Thank you for writing us about the media issue that you encountered. This was talked about in our meeting for an extensive period of time and the discrepancies between the wording in the Peace Corps handbook and PC Ukraine handbook were displayed and Karl Beck decided to change the wording in the PC Ukraine handbook to directly reflect that of the Peace Corps Volunteer Handbook! Great news! I'm sorry that you had such a rough time with this and hopefully in the future the process will be much smoother. If you have any other concerns or input for us, please let us know!
Thanks again!
Marisa [Last Name Rmoved for Privacy Reasons]
Me to VAC:
To whom it may concern,
I was asked to write about the Orange Revolutionand my experiences as a Peace Corps trainee for publication in theUnited States. As per Peace Corps of the United States Ukraine Policy and Procedure Handbook guidelines, I submitted the article to myRegional Manager for approval. It was rejected because some of things written about were not"consistent with Peace Corps policy." The article was completelyapolitical in nature, focusing, in fact, on the sharp ideological divide in the country while never giving any opinion whatsoever on either candidate. The main items of concern to my Regional Director were a reference to excessive vodka drinking, a reference to making out with several girls, and a sometimes unflattering description ofUkraine, particularly its crumbling cities.
Since my wish is to maintain good relations with my Regional Directorand the items in question were not integral to the article as awhole--merely interesting window dressing--I have no problem with editing these items out.
The whole episode did impel me, though, to consult my handbooks, andI noticed discrepancies between the Peace Corps Handbook policy onmedia contributions and Peace Corps Ukraine's policy.
Personally, I would very much like to see Peace Corps Ukraine's policy on writing for the media removed and it be replaced by thepolicy as stated in the Peace Corps Handbook.
Here are the relevant passages from both handbooks:
Peace Corps Volunteer Handbook
"You are free to discuss your role in the Peace Corps with the press or anyone else—keeping in mind the responsibility that goes with that freedom…your thoughtful and accurate views and insights can contribute substantially to bringing to the U.S. a better understanding of another country. You may write articles for publication, but you should discuss them in advance with the CD, or ask him or her to review what you have written for problems you may not have anticipated."
Peace Corps of the United States Ukraine Policy and Procedure Handbook
"Before an article is published or broadcast, however, it must be submitted for the Regional Manager's review and approval."
"Submit a copy of an article that you intent to publish to your Regional Manager before releasing it for publication."
"Volunteers are invited guests in Ukraine and as such should not criticize the Ukrainian government or Ukrainian culture and people in any media form."
The Volunteer Handbook uses carefully considered language. You canalmost feel the tightrope walk the handbook faces: it does not want bad publicity or press for Peace Corps and the host countries itserves in, but it also seems aware that forbidding something to be written in the media would be censorship and therefore anathema to the freedom of expression that the United States holds dear and wishes toteach to the world.
The rules, according to the Peace Corps Handbook, seem thusly: if you are going to write an article for publication, you should "discuss"the article with your CD. This means that you only need to tell your CD that you are writing an article and what it is about. You do not even have to show it to him or her. Another possibly action offered by the Handbook, presented as an alternative and not as a mandate, is to actually show the article to the CD. Even then, the CD she can only point out problems, not forbid its publication, for never once is the word "approve" used. This word, obviously, would mean that PeaceCorps had some form of control over what a volunteer writes for public dissemination and I have the feeling that Peace Corps does not want to be seen as an organization that controls what its Volunteers say. Peace Corps, in fact, thrives on being transparent, saying it has nothing to hide. A policy of censorship implies just the opposite. This is why I think this particular language is in the Peace CorpsHandbook.
Peace Corps Ukraine's Policy Handbook does no tightrope walking, though. Not only does it specifically say that all articles must beapproved, but it also says that certain subjects cannot criticized. Politics, obviously, for Peace Corps is apolitical. But it goes one step further to say that a Volunteer cannot criticize the culture or people of Ukraine. This policy, I feel, is dictatorial in nature and even comparable to many of the policies of information-control that Americans feel are destructive to a free society. I understand the argument that Peace Corps can only work if it is welcome, and critical articles can strain or destroy its relationships with its host countries. I understand, too, that Peace Corps' success depends on its reputation, and this reputation can be stained or destroyed by bad publicity.
I want Peace Corps to be welcome and uccessful in Ukraine, but there is something deep inside me thatreacts negatively to this policy, that feels that, as representatives f the United States, we should not be censoring our own. uch of Peace Corps Ukraine's policy as been one of leading by example: a willingness to learn from past mistakes, accept suggestions and change structures and polices as needed. This has been done in part, as mentioned by country director Karl Beck to my cluster, to show Ukrainians the American methods of running an organization. In this light, it seems incongruous to not lead by example in the realmof free speech. Do we want Ukrainian organizations to not allow their employees to express themselves in the media and to forbid expressions critical of the organization or of their country?
I think Peace Corps Ukraine's policy towards writing for the media should be as stated in the Peace Corps Handbook and go no further. I submit that the new language be taken out of the Peace Corps Ukraine'sPolicy and Procedure Handbook and the language in the Peace Corps Handbook be put in verbatim.
-Daniel Reynolds Riveiro