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It is known that sanitary standards in the lavatories in public
places of the former Soviet Union are, on average, far from perfect. One
of the psychological mechanisms is, obviously, the following. In the
Soviet Army, cleaning of the toilet, as well as other kinds of cleaning
work, were used as a punishment for small misdemeanors. The work in the
toilet was the most humiliating one. Therefore majority of men, especially
those who had served in the army, have strong aversion against cleaning
the toilet rooms. Therefore, public lavatories in Russia are usually
cleaned by female personnel. In Moscow, Saint Petersburg and other large
cities, sanitary conditions in lavatories are, on average, more
satisfactory. In some more distant places, such as Dushanbe, Grozny or
Vladikavkaz, the author of this letter observed extremely contaminated
toilets in public places, where deposits of excrements accumulated around
the apertures or lavatory pans, as well as elsewhere on the floor, were up
to 1 meter in depth or more. Nonetheless, the lavatories were further in
use. One of the reasons thereof is obviously related to the fact that in
the army, many soldiers from the corresponding areas refused cleaning
lavatories, referring to their customs and traditions.
On the causes of poor sanitation in the public lavatories of the former Soviet Union
It is known that sanitary standards in the lavatories in public
places of the former Soviet Union are, on average, far from perfect. One
of the psychological mechanisms is, obviously, the following. In the
Soviet Army, cleaning of the toilet, as well as other kinds of cleaning
work, were used as a punishment for small misdemeanors. The work in the
toilet was the most humiliating one. Therefore majority of men, especially
those who had served in the army, have strong aversion against cleaning
the toilet rooms. Therefore, public lavatories in Russia are usually
cleaned by female personnel. In Moscow, Saint Petersburg and other large
cities, sanitary conditions in lavatories are, on average, more
satisfactory. In some more distant places, such as Dushanbe, Grozny or
Vladikavkaz, the author of this letter observed extremely contaminated
toilets in public places, where deposits of excrements accumulated around
the apertures or lavatory pans, as well as elsewhere on the floor, were up
to 1 meter in depth or more. Nonetheless, the lavatories were further in
use. One of the reasons thereof is obviously related to the fact that in
the army, many soldiers from the corresponding areas refused cleaning
lavatories, referring to their customs and traditions.
Competing interests:
None declared
Competing interests: No competing interests