Victory in the European Parliament

Great news from the European Parliament! MEPs have overwhelmingly rejected a proposal to extend a trade deal with Uzbekistan due to concerns over the ongoing use of forced child labour in the country’s cotton industry.

603 MEPs voted to send back proposed legislation that could have resulted in the EU increasing its textile imports from Uzbekistan, including cotton harvested by children in slavery, until the issue of forced child labour has been addressed. Only 8 MEPs voted against.

The European Parliament raised the question of Uzbekistan’s benefit from preferential trade tariffs, despite the ongoing use of child slavery.

Joanna Ewart-James, Anti-Slavery International Supply Chain Programme Co-ordinator, said: “By rejecting the deal the European Parliament has sent a strong message to Uzbekistan that it must end slavery. It is also very encouraging that Europe is finally looking to ensure its trade deals reflect its human rights concerns. Countries should not be financially rewarded for profiting from slavery.”

Catherine Bearder, MEP South East England who supports our campaign, said: “The European Parliament has made it clear that Uzbekistan can not pretend that it is ‘business as usual’ while it continues to profit from child slavery.”

You can see a short video of her powerful message in the Parliament here http://youtu.be/wRPGaP9uOGE. 

This is a fantastic response from MEPs who have overwhelmingly rejected this trade deal taking a very strong stance on the ongoing used of forced child labour in Uzbekistan’s cotton industry. This vote is a very positive step in the right direction for the EU as we call for consistency in its message that forced labour in Uzbek cotton fields must end.

BISHOP BELL SCHOOL DELIVERS COTTON CRIMES PETITION WITH OVER 13,000 SIGNATURES TO THE EU

With a current total of 13, 379 signatures for the Cotton Crimes Petition so far and still counting, Anti-Slavery International and five Students from Bishop Bell School in Eastbourne presented the petition to George Cutas MEP on the 7^th December at the European Parliament in Brussels. Accepting the petition on behalf of the International Trade Committee, George Cutas said he will be presenting it to the European Parliament next week. The petition requests the removal of Uzbekistan’s preferential trade tariffs in light of the ongoing use of state-sponsored child slavery in the country’s cotton industry.

Mr George-Sabin Cutas MEP said:

“I congratulate the students as I think this is a really important issue. I am impressed by their effort to come to the European Parliament and speak out for children in Uzbekistan who are forced to pick cotton.”

Catherine Bearder and Bishop Bell School students presenting the petition to George Cutas

Jasmine Down age 14 said:

“When I heard that children, sometimes as young as 5, are working in the cotton fields for 3 months a year, I was outraged. I believe these children should have a choice in whether they work in the cotton fields and that they shouldn’t get punished for not picking good quality or not enough cotton.”

“The act I would like the European Parliament to do about this issue is to stop child labour and give these children an education.”

“Today has been the best experience of my life and I have met loads of different people and learnt a great deal of things.”

Bishop Bell School students at the European Union

 

 

 

Isaac Nuckhir, age 14 also said:

“Once I found out what was happening in Uzbekistan, I immediately thought that it was unfair on these children. The fact they don’t even have the choice of education or work, it makes me think that I and others take things for granted and I’m thankful for my education.”

“I feel the European Parliament could put a stop to child labour and give children the same education as me.”

“I think it was a very good and interesting day overall. The MEPs who signed the petition were very respectful. I enjoyed myself and it was a good laugh.”

 

Their presence was well received by the MEPs who visited our stand. Over 19 in total signed our petition, took photos and talked with the students. We would like to extend our sincere thanks to Catherine Bearder MEP who sponsored our visit and helped make this trip possible as well as the students from Bishop Bell School and everyone who signed the petition.

Michael Theurer

Catherine Bearder MEP said:

“I’m delighted that the children have been learning about this issue and where the things they buy come from. When I’m working in Parliament I want to be representing the views of my constituents which is why I’m so pleased they are here today. It’s been an early start which just shows their commitment.”

Bishop Bell School with Gemma Wolfes and Joanna Ewart-James from Anti-Slavery

Next week the EU Parliament will be voting on a trade deal that would make it easier for Uzbekistan to export textiles to Europe. The Foreign Affairs and Trade Committee have already voted against this. If the EU votes against this it would be a very positive step towards getting the EU to take greater action against child-slavery in Uzbekistan.

Thank you to everyone who has supported our campaign. We need to continue to pressure Uzbekistan via the EU to ensure child slavery in the country ends once and for all, so please watch this space for how you can keep supporting us.

You can see more pictures of the petition delivery on our facebook page. 

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150459936278377.382107.46852258376&type=1.

Thank you!

LOBBYISTS' ROLE IN BRUTAL REGIMES EXPOSED

Today it was reported, through a Bureau of Investigative Journalism sting, that Bell Pottinger, one of Britain’s largest lobbying companies, is able to influence public opinion on behalf of governments that violate human rights. Uzbekistan is one of the most brutal dictatorships in the world, and its ongoing use of state-sponsored child slavery during the annual cotton harvest attests to that.

Tim Collins, a senior director at Bell Pottinger, claimed to have access to key UK politicians like William Hague. He alleged that they would be able to manipulate Google to push negative coverage of human rights violations away from the front page of a search, although this is against the code of conduct that Bell Pottinger has signed.

News that a lobbying firm may have influence on government and public policy has spread across the media like wildfire. This coverage raises questions around how lobbyists may influence the EU's decision-making process and allow Uzbekistan to continue with business as usual.

Uzbekistan continues to benefit from EU preferential trade tariffs despite violating international law through the use of state-sponsored forced labour to collect its cotton harvest each Autumn. Tomorrow we will be handing in a petition to the European Parliament calling for these preferences to be removed. We must show them that this is not acceptable.

COTTON CRIMES PETITION TO BE HANDED TO EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT TOMORROW

We have been working hard on this campaign over the past year, and we are pleased to announce that we have substantially surpassed our target of a 10,000 signature strong petition to the European Parliament. This petition requests the removal of Uzbekistan’s preferential trade tariffs in light of the ongoing use of state-sponsored child slavery in the country’s cotton industry.

We are currently at 13072 signatures, and we could not have got to this point without valuable support. Change.org helped us reach a wider audience, for which we are grateful. People like Ricky Martin have voiced their support of our campaign and shared our viral video “End Cotton Crimes”. Ethical fashion bloggers and online magazines like ethical consumer have posted our campaign onto their blogs, as well as sharing it via social media. The Ethical Fashion Forum shared our message at their Source Expo earlier this year. Most importantly, though, our supporters – you – have engaged with the campaign, spoken out against the crimes that the Uzbek government continues to commit, and taken the time to sign our petition.

This petition will be hand-delivered to the European Parliament tomorrow (7th December) by Anti-Slavery International and schoolchildren from Bishop Bell School, invited by Catherine Bearder MEP after they wrote to her expression concern over slavery in the fashion industry.

The importance of dealing with this issue has been emphasised today through the national press as they publish stories about Bell Pottinger’s willingness to work with journalists posing as clients from the Uzbek government. The international public relations giant indicated a desire to work with, and transform the image of, one of the most vicious dictatorships in the world. In the face of this, we must convince the international community to speak up for the children of Uzbekistan.

Uzbek activist urges compliance with laws on forced child labour

Dmitriy Tikhonov, a human rights activist based in Angren, has written to the Deputy Prime Minister of Uzbekistan, Rustam Azimov, asking for an end to forced child labour practices during the cotton harvest.

Tikhonov says, “I addressed my demands to Rustam Azimov because he is personally responsible for overseeing the implementation of the Cabinet of Ministers’ Resolution No.207 of 12th September 2008.”

This resolution is supposed to implement the ILO Minimum Age Convention alongside a ban on, and eradication of, child labour.

Angren authorities even recently distributed a flyer stating the use of child labour was against the law, whilst demonising and denouncing the ‘mendacious insinuations and misinformation’ in foreign media.

There is no insinuation or misinformation here. Thanks to the efforts of monitors we know that, this season, widespread use of forced child labour has been documented throughout Uzbekistan.

Any students that refuse to work the harvest are punished, their parents forced to pay to “employ” a replacement worker (at around US $60-120 according to unofficial market rates).

“Many families will literally hand over their last penny, sell property or go into debt in order to make those payments,” says Tikhonov.

The audacity of the Uzbek government is astounding. ILO conventions are ratified and ignored while leaflets denouncing the truth are distributed in cities. Despite Uzbekistan’s continued use of child labour and evident lack of respect for international law, the EU still provides the country with preferential trade tariffs. We must take action to end this; you can sign our petition to the European Parliament, which will be delivered on the 7^th December, here.

Edited from uznews.net and cottoncampaign.org

Cotton Crimes is off to Brussels!

On the 7th December 2011 we'll be descending on the European Parliament with schoolchildren from Bishop Bell School in Eastbourne to hand in our Cotton Crimes campaign petition calling on the European Union to do more to stop child slavery in Uzbekistan.

Please sign our petition here to help us reach 10,000 signatures before the big day! 


Catherine Bearder, MEP for South-East England, invited the students to Brussels after they wrote to her to express their concern about buying clothes made by children in slavery and asked her to take up the issue at the European Parliament.

Our petition is calling for the European Union to stop rewarding Uzbekistan with preferential trade tariffs until the former Soviet republic ends the practice of forcing hundreds of thousands of school children as well as adults to pick its annual cotton harvest.

You can follow us on Facebook and Twitter on the day for live updates from the students who will be lobbying MEPs about this issue ahead of a key Parliamentary vote regarding an Uzbek-EU trade deal, which could make it easier for Uzbekistan to import textiles into Europe.

Please help us put a stop to this and SIGN THE PETITION HERE.

Uzbekistan Forced Labour Leaves Child Comatose

Thirteen year-old Bakhodir Pardaev is the latest victim of the state-sanctioned forced child labour that occurs in Uzbekistan during the cotton harvest. The country has repeatedly reneged on promises to outlaw child labour and continues to ignore international condemnation from individuals, nations, the EU and major fashion brands.

Bakhodir, just one of an estimated 1-2.5 million children forced to work each year, has suffered severe injuries that have left him in a coma after being hit by a car. The child labourers are often forced to walk a dangerous route to and from the fields alongside highways. 

IPS News reports that Nadejda Atayeva, from the Association for Human Rights in Central Asia, said: ‘This is just one in a series of similar traffic accidents associated with the cotton harvest campaign and coercive mobilisation of school children every year.’

99% of Uzbek cotton ends up in the EU, which continues to provide the nation with preferential trade tariffs, and it is a tragedy that consumers can find themselves unwittingly supporting dangerous and abusive child labour.

Uzbekistan’s Cotton Crimes must stop. We must urge the EU to take decisive action and convince retailers to tighten up their supply chains to squeeze Uzbek cotton out. Click here to watch our “End Cotton Crimes” video. Click here to see retailer’s responses regarding their usage of Uzbek cotton. Click here to sign our petition to the EU.

The real price of our clothes

In order to increase awareness of the child labour practices in the Uzbekistan cotton industry, lobby the EU with a stronger petition, and garner support for fashion free of child labour, we have re-launched our Cotton Crimes Campaign with a short film. Please discuss and share this; let us work communally to end Uzbekistan’s forced child labour practices.

Moving forward with our campaign is important. The deadline for our petition is imminent and the 2011 cotton harvest has begun. In Uzbekistan, the third largest exporter of cotton in the world, it is not the cotton picking machines that are firing up; unlike other major cotton exporting countries, Uzbekistan does not use machines. Instead, it is the country’s schools that are shutting down as Government officials force children as young as nine out of their classrooms and into the fields to pick cotton.

In the wake of our successful lobbying of the EU to block a textile deal with Uzbekistan, due to objections over the country’s continued use of government sanctioned forced child labour, it is important that we keep our feet on the ground. Though we are hugely proud of this progress, we continue to campaign for the EU to enact consistent policy with Uzbekistan in order to pressure the country to end their practice of forced labour.

The European Union must still remove the preferential trade tariffs given to Uzbekistan for cotton imported into the EU. Sign our petition to Jerzy Buzek, President of the European Parliament, calling for exactly that.

EU Lawmakers Block Textile Deal With Uzbekistan Over Child Labor Concerns

The EU today rejected a trade deal that would have made it easier for Uzbekistan to export textiles to Europe, due to its objections to the country’s continued use of forced child labour to pick cotton. The news came after intensive lobbying from Anti-Slavery international and our partners for the deal to be blocked.  

The European Parliament’s foreign affairs committee unanimously voted against the inclusion of textiles in the Partnership and Cooperation Agreement, a document that has formed the basis of trade in most other goods between the EU and Uzbekistan since it came into force in 1999. The deal would have lowered the tariffs on EU imports of Uzbek Cotton, which currently represent one-quarter of the country’s exports.

Despite this progress, the EU still allows Uzbekistan to benefit from reducing trading tariffs for all its imports into the EU due to it low development ranking. Although today’s result is major step forward in securing tougher action from the EU with regards to the use of forced child labour, we need to ensure action is taken across the EU and that their policy in relation to trade with Uzbekistan is consistent, in order to put pressure on the country to end this practice.

Anti- Slavery International’s Cotton Crimes campaign continues to call for the EU to remove all trade preferences for Uzbekistan. Please support us here: www.antislavery.org/cottoncrimes.

News source: http://www.rferl.org/content/eu_lawmakers_block_textile_deal_with_uzbekistan_over_child_labor_concerns/24349083.html

Fashion Takes A Stand

Following mounting pressure from human rights campaigners and protestors, IMG, the organisers of New York Fashion Week, cancelled Gulnara Karimova’s fashion show (http://nyp.st/qnfDQo).

Despite this, Karimova refused to be discouraged and instead put on a private show at Cipriani, a prestigious restaurant in Manhattan. This did not help her avoid further demonstrations however, as the International Labour Rights Forum (ILRF) organised a rally and protestors gathered outside the lavish restaurant chanting and holding placards that read "I always dream about going to the park with my mum and dad, but I've got to pick cotton for Gulnara Karimova's fashion week" (http://bit.ly/nyvAZw).

On both sides of the Atlantic there has been considerable media coverage on the recent events and pressure is now growing on the Uzbek government to end the use of child labour in its cotton industry. H&M, Adidas, Puma, Burberry & Levi are just of some of the 60+ global clothing brands that have pledged to 'not knowingly source' cotton from Uzbekistan (http://tgr.ph/n2Zbue).

Adidas said that "By signing this pledge we are showing our unwavering commitment to the cause," and H&M have said that they "will maintain this pledge until the elimination of this practice is independently verified by the International Labour Organization (ILO)."

 

Ultimately we hope that Gulnara's attempt to launch her own fashion line will have inadvertently thrown Uzbekistan's cotton crimes into the spotlight. 

To see photos of the rally http://bit.ly/qFWqgt or bit.ly/qF3hM7.

Slavery in Uzbekistan is front page of the New York Times

Read the full article from the NY post below:


Daughter of murderous dictator to unveil spring line at Fashion Week

The pampered daughter of the murderous dictator of Uzbekistan -- a reviled tyrant who once boiled a political foe alive and has killed, tortured and enslaved thousands of his countrymen -- will unveil her new line of spring creations during Fashion Week at Lincoln Center.

And human-rights advocates say Gulnara “GooGoosha” Karimova -- a high ranking official in her father’s government once bluntly described by US diplomats as “the single most-hated person in the country” -- should not be given the privilege of a prestigious Sept. 15 runway show given her complicity in her father Islam Karimov’s reign of terror.

“There’s nothing fashionable about lending a high-profile platform to the senior official of one of the world’s most repressive governments,” fumed Steve Swerdlow, Uzbekistan researcher at Human Rights Watch.

The jet-setting Karimova, 39, has tried mightily to project a glamorous image: making a video with Julio Iglesias and booking Sting for a fashion festival in Tashkent in 2009 -- a gig for which he was roundly criticized.

She also launched her colorful “Guli” fashion line, which is heavily influenced by Middle Eastern and Asian cultures.

It features embroidered trims and traditional flowing Uzbek blends of cotton and silk.

But US diplomats in Uzbekistan said, “Most Uzbeks see Karimova as a greedy, power-hungry individual who uses her father to crush business people or anyone else who stands in her way,” according to documents released by WikiLeaks.

The firestorm is an embarrassment for IMG, which produces Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week.

“We’re horrified by the human-rights abuses in Uzbekistan, and hope that the attention Human Rights Watch generates is able to effect change in the country. We also hope to work hand-in-hand with Human Rights Watch during Fashion Week and beyond to challenge those in power in Uzbekistan to take action immediately,” an IMG spokesman said.

Nevertheless, IMG said it had no plans to cancel the runway show.

Representatives for Karimova said the fascista fashionista was out of the country and unavailable for comment.

“Ms. Karimova should not be ... benefitting from the international limelight while the Uzbek government continues to engage in ... torture and forced child labor,” Swerdlow added.

Karimova has also been linked to the Russian mob. And critics charge that she and her family have raked in millions from the regime’s forced labor policies in which schoolchildren are ordered to leave classes to pick cotton.

The International Labor Rights Forum is planning a mock fashion show outside Lincoln Center to protest Karimova’s Sept. 15 show.

“Models will include local college students who will be wearing T-shirts and costumes illustrating the link between the fashion industry and forced child labor in Uzbekistan’s cotton industry,” said the forum’s Tim Newman.

And retailers such as Macy’s, The Gap, Walmart and H&M have already stopped buying Uzbek cotton.

http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/manhattan/fashion_weak_on_torture_8KYhMldKuolwEloVgZtZVO

Uzbekistan: British Embassy Staffer Fined by Court for Contact with Activists

A press secretary for the British Embassy in Uzbekistan has been fined $1,600 for meeting with Uzbek human rights advocates, fergananews.com, an independent Central Asian website reported last week.


Leonid Kudryavtsev was charged under the Uzbek administrative code for "violation of procedure for organizations, conducting meetings, rallies, streets actions or demonstrations," punishable by fines or up to 15 days of arrest.

Kudryavtsev said that he learned of the case against him on June 9 when he was summoned for interrogation. The police used a supposed letter from irate citizens as a pretext for the summons. The accusatory letter goes into detail with sarcasm-laden claims about Elena Urlayeva, a prominent Tashkent-based human rights advocate who is often in the news for monitoring child labor in the cotton industry. She is claimed to be involved in "hooligan activity" and "assemblages disguised as trainings" at the Embassy with Kudryavtsev.

Kudryavtsev told fergananews.com that the Embassy does in fact meet with Tashkent human rights advocates and has held two such meetings in the past year which were strictly educational in nature, fergananews.com reported:

We explain to local human rights defenders the basics about many local laws and international covenants ratified by Uzbekistan. These are activities of the Embassy... so it is surprising that I am on trial.

Why is the Uzbek regime going after a vulnerable member of the British staff who can't claim diplomatic immunity, because he is an Uzbek citizen? The authorities are always trying to block access to the foreign diplomatic community by the local independent human rights groups and this is one way they "send a message."

This article is abridged from the original first published on Eurasianet.org

Will Brussels Give Tashkent a Pass on Wide-Scale Forced Labour?

On Tuesday, Anti-Slavery's Supply Chain Programme Co-ordinator, Joanna Ewart-James, called on the European Parlimanent's International Trade Committee to "grasp this opportunity to influence the Government of Uzbekistan to end this abhorrent and illegal practice" presented by an amendment to the trade agreement between the EU and Uzbekistan, which the Parliament is considering approving.

Catherine Bearder MEP who sits on the International Trade Committee, described the use of state-sponsored forced child labour to pick cotton in Uzbekistan as “penal servitude on a massive scale.”

“To pass [this amendment] would clearly send the wrong message about what the EU stands for, the rights of people that we trade with,” Bearder continued. “By reserving our decision on this agreement we send a clear message that we are watching.”

Uzbekistan’s ambassador to the EU, Bakhtiyar Gulyamov, was invited to the International Trade Committee hearing, but did not attend. The European Parliament is due to vote on the amendment later this year.

More details of the event can be read on Eurasianet.org

US Children's Clothing Company Gymboree Bans Use of Uzbek Cotton

US children's clothing manufacturer Gymboree is the latest company to take a stand against child labour by refusing to buy cotton from Uzbekistan. Their web announcement of the policy change comes after over 3,000 Change.org members sent in letters asking for the company to stop buying Uzbek cotton.
 
Over 70 of the world's largest apparel brands and retailers have developed policies on the use of Uzbek cotton in their products or refusing to buy products made with Uzbek cotton. And now after nearly a year of advocacy from Change.org members, Gymboree will join their ranks. According to the statement on their website, "Gymboree prohibits the use of cotton sourced from Uzbekistan and textiles produced using Uzbekistan cotton because of Uzbekistan's history of forced child labor." It's a move that now puts Gymboree a step ahead of other children's brands, which ironically still use cotton harvested by kids.

Anti-Slavery will be following closely to ensure that Gymboree puts in place adequate tracking and tracing mechanisms to ensure that this commitment is enforced in practice.

This is an edited article originally published on change.org

Schoolchildren sent to cotton fields in Jizak Region

Uznews.net reported last week that schoolchildren in the Jizak region of Uzbekistan have been ordered to leave their classrooms and help farmers cultivate cotton by weeding fields.

 

A local teacher said the campaign was preventing school leavers from revising before their graduation exams. Those sent to the fields are 15 and 16 year-olds.

Sources claim that Jizak Regional education department was involved in sending high school pupils to the cotton fields. The campaign is no surprise to many activists trying to end the Uzbek government’s reliance on forced child labour to maximise its yields from cotton growing and exports each year. 

 

Uzbekistan exports about 1 million tonnes of cotton fibre every year. The Jizak Region is an important cotton producing area for the country.

Uzbekistan sets up child labour monitoring group

The Uzbek government has announced the formation of a new working group to ensure no forced child labour is used in Uzbekistan. Yet Tashkent has still not issued an invitation to the ILO to visit Uzbekistan during the cotton harvest this autumn.

The working group includes government ministries and government-organised social organisations but there are no representatives from independent NGOs or civil society. The officially-sanctioned group says it will monitor conditions of labour for children under 18 and prevent the worst forms of child labour, as required under ILO conventions.

Based on reports of the systematic use of forced child labour, the ILO has sought an invitation to visit Uzbekistan and monitor conditions during the cotton harvest. The announcement of the working group seems to give the semblance of cooperation with the ILO while distracting from the fact that Tashkent has continued to refuse to issue the invitation.

Umida Niyazova, head of the Uzbek-German Forum for Human Rights, told cottoncampaign.org that the measure seemed to be largely for show:

This is a peculiar response by the government to its own decision to refuse an ILO mission. Forced child labour in Uzbekistan exists precisely because the government supports this system. Therefore, it would be naive and absurd to suppose that the government is capable of monitoring itself, knowing that it is the state itself that is responsible for the existence of this problem.

It remains to be seen how much the working group will really function, and whether it will attempt to displace authentic monitoring activity by Uzbekistan’s beleaguered human rights groups.

This is an abridged version of an article posted on cottoncampaign.org 

Uzbekistan expands its client base

The recent floods in Pakistan, which destroyed approximately 15% of its cotton crop, have put its textile industry in a vulnerable position.  Never one to miss an opportunity, Uzbekistan officials swiftly secured a deal whereby struggling Pakistan has agreed to take a delivery of one million bales of cotton.

Uzbekistan’s standard procedure in cotton deals is to demand an 80% advance payment in cash, however interestingly it is reported that Uzbekistan has agreed to waive this demand in order to secure the deal.  Perhaps a sign of desperation? Customers in China and Bangladesh are facing difficult questions from international retailers over the origin of their cotton and conditions in which it was harvested, so is this a case of Uzbekistan looking to secure new business partners that don’t ask so many questions?

Complaint against cotton traders in Europe

The European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights (ECCHR) together with the Uzbek-German Forum for Human Rights, Sherpa and solicitor Guido Ehrler filed seven complaints against European cotton traders buying cotton from Uzbekistan in Germany, Switzerland, France and the UK. The Swiss National Contact Point  (NCP) for the OECD has now responded to the complaint, in line with the UK NCP.

ECCHR and its partners allege that the named traders support the systematic use of forced child labour and forced labour in the Uzbek cotton harvest. 

In February, the UK NCP accepted the two complaints filed in the UK for further examination. The Swiss NCP has followed suit and will now open the mediation process.

 

ECCHR welcomes this decision and hopes that it will  encourage similar responses from the German and French NCPs in due course.

EU refuses to send a delegation to Uzbekistan

The EU has decided not to send a delegation to Uzbekistan in protest at the country's recent decision to shut down the office of New York-based Human Rights Watch in Tashkent.

Michael Mann, spokesman for the EU Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Catherine Ashton, said that the EU had decided not to send EU delegation to Uzbekistan and that there was no-one there now.

The decision to set up an EU delegation in Tashkent was taken during Uzbek President Islam Karimovs visit to Brussels this January and his meeting with European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso.

Barroso and Karimov discussed the release of human rights activists Agzam Farmonov, Norboy Holjigitov and Isroiljon Holdorov and accreditation for representatives of Human Rights Watch. Karimov also agreed to allow representatives of the International Labour Organisation into the country to monitor the use of child labour in the cotton industry.

Two months on from the meeting, the human rights activists are still in prison, while Human Rights Watch has been forced to close down its office in Tashkent.

Michael Mann said that dialogue regarding human rights would continue with Uzbekistan and that the EU would be pressuring Tashkent to change its decision on Human Rights Watch.

Reported by The Times of Central Asia

Uzbekistan closes Human Rights Watch office in Tashkent

The advocacy organisation Human Right’s Watch has announced that the Government of Uzbekistan has expelled its employees from the country, and reports that it is shutting down its Tashkent office after a 15 year presence.  The expulsion could not come at a worse time for Uzbekistan where human rights are routinely and systematically violated. It is estimated that hundreds of thousands of children are forced into slavery to pick cotton for the Government-run industry, and there are ongoing reports of torture and ill-treatment within the criminal justice system.

"The Uzbek government's persistent refusal to allow independent rights groups to carry out our work exacerbates the already dire human rights situation in the country, allowing severe abuses to go unreported, and further isolating the country's courageous and beleaguered human rights community," said Human Rights Watch Executive director Kenneth Roth.

Not only have the Uzbek government forced many NGOs to leave, it has also consistently denied access to independent human rights monitors. Human rights defenders in Uzbekistan have been calling for the cotton harvest to be independently monitored for a number of years to ensure the Government is meeting its international obligations.

To read Human Rights Watch's press release click here.

Sting stung by Radio 4 Today

Radio 4’s Today programme recently discussed the “murky world” of the pop stars paid a fortune for playing private gigs for dictators.

The first celeb under fire was Sting who in February 2010 performed for the daughter of President Islam Karimov in Uzbekistan. 

Sting’s decision to accept £2 million to perform for the dictator’s daughter landed him in hot water with a cynical press, though his situation was nothing compared to opponents of President Karimov who have been boiled to death.

When questioned about singing for such a controversial figure, Sting said: "I am well aware of the Uzbek president's appalling reputation in the field of human rights as well as the environment. I made the decision to play there in spite of that. I have come to believe that cultural boycotts are not only pointless gestures, they are counter-productive, where proscribed states are further robbed of the open commerce of ideas and art and as a result become even more closed, paranoid and insular."

Sting’s decision to play in Uzbekistan is a PR coup for the government who wants the country to be part of the international scene. In reality the Uzbekistan government still forces hundreds of thousands of children are forced by pick cotton each season.

Celebrities must recognise their responsibilities and be aware that by agreeing to gigs and events at the invitation of such leaders they appear to endorse regimes that sponsor slavery. 

World Bank-backed child labour in Uzbek agriculture

The Bank’s support of agriculture in Uzbekistan has landed it in hot water suggesting that it does not take seriously the social implications of such lending. Ezgulik, an Uzbek NGO, issued a report in December 2010 documenting severe flaws in the Bank's assessments in providing the second phase of a $67.9 million loan to the Uzbek government. The loan, provided through IDA, the Bank’s low-income country arm, was a renewal of funding for the agriculture sector for 2010-2015.

The report documents a number of failures in the Bank’s support, ranging from assumptions made about reforms underway in the agricultural sector to overestimates of pay being $300 per month for adult labourers rather than the $100 reported by Ezgulik. According to Ezgulik, most disturbing is the Bank’s conclusion that their social assessment did not reveal extensive use of child labour, contrary to reports by other institutions including UNICEF. Child labour in the Uzbek cotton fields has been widely documented by national and international NGOs in recent years. “[S]chool kids are working in cotton fields in hazardous conditions ... while the agro-project managers of the World Bank keep reporting success stories about the situation in the farming sector of Uzbekistan,” concludes Ezgulik.

NGO Anti-Slavery International, whose European-wide campaign Cotton Crimes seeks to end slavery in the cotton sector has also raised concern about the Bank's support of Uzbekistan. "Uzbekistan's authorities' use of coercion to force adults and children into the cotton fields during the harvest has been well-documented, including by SOAS in their recent report 'What has changed?'," says Joanna Ewart-James. "It is therefore imperative that the World Bank has effective screening policies in place to ensure that funds for rural development do not support the ongoing practice of state-sponsored forced labour."

This article was first published by the Bretton Woods Project

European Council keen to expand trade in textiles with Uzbekistan

The Council of the European Union has announced that it has agreed changes to the Partnership and Cooperation Agreement (PCA) with Uzbekistan to extend the provisions of the PCA to the trade in textiles. This is of concern to the campaign as the proposed changes contradicts a strong and clear message to Uzbekistan that the priority must be to end the systematic use of forced child labour during the annual cotton harvest. However these changes have to be approved by the European Parliament and so this is an opportunity to call on the Parliament to block this process and at the very least, ensure that it is conditional on Uzbekistan ending this practice.

The Association for Human Rights in Central Asia has begun a petition calling for this decision to be reconsidered and for human rights concerns to be taken into account. The petition can be read and signed here. 

Petition progress

Thanks for signing the petition, we now have over 1,000 signatories and change.org, a website which aims to mobilise people to take action to support campaigns globally has also recently posted our petition on its site. We need more signatures to show the European Parliament that this is an issue of concern so please ask your friends to sign on too! 

Uzbekistan's President visits Brussels

Yesterday Uzbekistan’s President Karimov was welcomed by the European Commission President José Manuel Barroso to Brussels, amid strong condemnation from NGOs on Uzbekistan’s human rights record.

The EU is keen to strengthen relations with Uzbekistan and an agreement was signed to establish an EU Delegation office in Tashkent, Uzbekistan.

However President Barroso did raise human rights concerns and urged the President Karimov to allow an International Labour Organization monitoring mission to the country to address child labour. Anti-Slavery has called on the Government of Uzbekistan to accept this mission but they rejected the ILO’s recommendation late last year.

Karimov's visit drew a protest outside the European Commission headquarters yesterday, where several prominent Uzbek human rights defenders spoke up about the situation in their country.
 

Has the EU invited Uzbekistan's President to Brussels?

Anti-Slavery International has received reports, including from Eurasianet.org, that Uzbekistan's President Islam Karimov has been invited to Brussels to meet with the Council of the European Union at the end of this month.

The Paris-based Association for Human Rights in Central Asia (Asie Centrale), a group of emigres from Uzbekistan, distributed a press release January 10 citing "reliable sources" that Karimov's visit to Brussels is planned for January 31 - the day after his 73rd birthday.

The European Union raised concerns last year with the government about the use of state-sponsored forced child labour in the cotton industry last year. This invite would not be consistent with this message that this practice is abhorrent and should be immediately abolished, a practice which the President has the power to end.