Cotton propaganda campaign in local communities

In the Syrdarya region of Uzbekistan, preparations for the forthcoming cotton harvest have begun. In order to draw people’s attention to the cotton-picking season and make people go to the cotton fields, school teachers were required to carry out propaganda work in the local communities to raise the interest in the cotton harvest. For example, a school director allocated different parts of the Mahalla (residential buildings and neighborhoods) located close to the school to teachers of his school.

Accordingly, teachers are obliged to visit a certain number of homes, make a list of all people living there and get the signatures of those who agree to go and pick cotton. The signed lists are then handed on to the school director. Eventually, the director himself sends the lists to the regional or the city department for education.

Text from the information leaflet (translated from Uzbek):

Our hardworking farmers have sown and cultivated a rich harvest of cotton. Our duty is to gather this harvest in a very short time before the beginning of the rainy season. We, the teachers – members of a propaganda group, ask you to send one person of your family to pick cotton. Collecting cotton will bring some extra income to your family, and will help to pay utility bills as well.