U.S. Government Reports
Supporting Human Rights And Democracy: The U.S. Record 2006 (04/05/2007)
Uzbekistan
The directly elected president, Islam Karimov, has led the government since 1990. His current term in office expires in 2007. Past elections were neither free nor fair. The president dominates the government, and the bicameral parliament has no independent authority. The government of Uzbekistan's human rights record remained extremely poor. There were no independent political parties, and the few opposition groups faced official harassment. The judiciary was under government control, and trial verdicts were usually predetermined. In 2003 the UN's special rapporteur on torture concluded that torture was systematic in prisons and other places of detention. The government has taken few steps to address the rapporteur's concerns, and prison conditions continued to be harsh. With the exception of one visit by European Union officials, the government did not admit independent observers to monitor prisons. It was impossible to estimate the number of political prisoners, but as of 2004 there were an estimated 5,000 to 5,500 such prisoners in the country. Other than a few often-blocked Internet news sites, there were no independent media, and self-censorship was widely practiced.
The government continued to resist international calls for an impartial investigation into the violence that took place in Andijon in May 2005. However, officials discussed their investigation of the Andijon events in meetings with European Union representatives in December, and they indicated willingness to resume dialogue on human rights issues. The government continued to convict and imprison individuals for alleged involvement in the Andijon tragedy. The government pressured other countries to return refugees who had fled the country and jailed several who were returned. All Andijon-related trials during the year were closed and failed to meet international standards. The government exerted relentless pressure on local and international NGOs, ordering many to close voluntarily. Unregistered religious activity was outlawed, and legal religious activity was tightly controlled. Trafficking in persons to other countries for labor and sexual exploitation was an ongoing problem. The government conducted an array of prevention programs to raise awareness of trafficking in persons. However, due to weak legislation, few traffickers were jailed, and most of those convicted were later amnestied.
U.S. democracy and human rights goals are to promote a strong civil society sector and encourage political pluralism, legal reform, and accountability. During the year the United States, in cooperation with other diplomatic missions, international organizations, and human rights groups, encouraged transparency in human rights practices and urged the government to allow an international investigation of the 2005 Andijon violence. The United States pressed the government to end harassment of U.S. implementing partners and local NGOs and to eliminate restrictions on U.S. grants to local NGOs. The United States also supported democracy and human rights through diplomacy and programmatic support to activists and disseminated democracy and human rights materials to the media, civil society, and government.
U.S. democracy and human rights efforts suffered serious setbacks as opportunities for U.S.-sponsored organizations and local partners significantly decreased. The government reacted to U.S. criticism of its human rights record by severely restricting contact with U.S. officials. The government also closed down six out of 12 U.S.-supported democracy promotion programs. Those programs that were not shut down experienced varying degrees of government interference and pressure. The government prohibited some organizations from operating in certain regions and refused others registration. Some expatriate staff were denied entry visas, and officials threatened or otherwise pressured local staff members of some organizations. Local experts estimated that government pressure forced between two-thirds and three-fourths of local NGOs to cease operation. With some exceptions, U.S. funding to local NGOs remained paralyzed, subject to approval or denial by a government-appointed banking commission. The government hampered the operation of U.S.-funded student educational and other exchange programs, although most exchange programs continued. The United States continued to withhold funding to programs involving the government because the secretary of state could not certify that the country had made progress on commitments it made to the United States in 2002, including on human rights. Exceptions were made for government participation in U.S.-supported programs to promote democracy and human rights and to prevent trafficking in persons. The United States invited military officials to take part in training programs at the George C. Marshall Center in Germany that were focused on human rights and rule of law issues, but the government refused to participate.
Despite these obstacles, the United States continued to engage with the government where possible and to support human rights and democracy programs. At meetings of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), U.S. officials decried human rights abuses and called on the government to cease them and to hold perpetrators accountable. In statements to the OSCE's Permanent Council on November 9 and December 14, the United States criticized government restrictions on human rights and civil society programming by international organizations, including the OSCE and U.S.-supported NGOs. The Ambassador and officials in Washington consistently delivered the message that respect for human rights is a crucial element of the bilateral relationship. In August the assistant secretary of state for South and Central Asian Affairs met with President Karimov and emphasized that the bilateral relationship must include a dialogue on democracy and human rights. U.S. officials in Tashkent frequently attended trials of human rights and religious figures that were open to observers. The United States monitored human rights abuses, maintained contact with human rights organizations, and supported those organizations with small grants.
During the year opportunities for political party development were significantly reduced. While the law prohibited registered parties from participating in foreign-sponsored training programs, a U.S.-sponsored program maintained contact with independent political parties and provided them with informal advice. The U.S.-sponsored organization cooperated with the country's Regional Policy Fund to organize a forum on issues relating to a draft law on political parties. When the government prosecuted opposition party members, U.S. officials coordinated with other diplomatic missions and human rights groups to monitor their cases and to press the government to hold trials meeting international standards.
The United States supported freedom of the press through a variety of programs and activities. However, the government forced the U.S.-supported primary implementer of independent media development programs to close in 2005, thus severely complicating further programming during the year. Despite government pressure, the United States supported the production of informational programs on events in the country as well as a report on the situation of its print media. Journalists continued to participate in U.S.-sponsored training sessions and exchange programs focused on media freedom. The United States also supported Internet access and training programs in several cities.
In the face of relentless government pressure, the United States continued to support the development of civil society in the country. During the year, four out of seven U.S.-supported resource centers that had closed in 2005 resumed limited activities after being registered as commercial entities. Before the U.S.-sponsored civil society support program was closed down in the middle of the year, it provided institutional and advocacy grants to 18 civil society organizations, and trained 16 civil society groups. The United States also rendered legal assistance to NGOs and civil society groups through a cadre of professional nonprofit lawyers. During the year, the United States awarded small grants to 33 NGOs for projects designed to develop civil society institutions and mass media. These grants supported reporting and advocacy work in the regions. The United States also supported programs in rural communities that enabled citizens to take collective responsibility for management of resources at the local level, sowing the seeds of civic responsibility and accountability. By the end of the year, however, the government closed two of three U.S. programs providing support to rural communities.
U.S. programs to promote the rule of law significantly decreased, and activities were severely limited due to the government crackdown on NGOs. The government denied accreditation to the Embassy's resident legal adviser, forcing him to leave the country. The American Bar Association's Central European and Eurasian Law Initiative supported legal resource centers in the Ferghana Valley and Samarkand that conducted education and training programs for young lawyers; however, the government forced the organization to close during the year. The United States sponsored a delegation of legal specialists to a regional legal conference at the Central European and Eurasian Law Institute in Prague to promote awareness of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and support the incorporation of its standards into national legislation.
Combating torture, which continued to be frequently alleged in pretrial investigation, remained at the top of the U.S. human rights agenda. The United States continued to support a project to foster dialogue between civil society actors and law enforcement agencies responsible for many human rights abuses. The program maintained working relations with law enforcement agencies, despite government harassment and hostility toward international organizations and civil society. The program trained and supported human rights activists, lawyers, doctors, educators, and others attempting to engage the government in a dialogue on human rights issues. In Bukhara and the Ferghana Valley, with U.S. assistance, local groups monitored the human rights situation and collaboratively resolved some human rights issues with local authorities.
To promote the rights of the disabled, a U.S.-funded program sponsored local participation in two study tours to Turkey focused on advocacy for the rights of the disabled. U.S. small grants supported local and national NGOs dedicated to promoting the rights of the disabled.
The United States actively engaged in highlighting respect for religious tolerance and pluralism through exchanges, contact with religious leaders and institutions, and distribution of informational materials. These efforts were hampered by the government's closure of NGOs, as well as its denial of accreditation and visas to Embassy employees responsible for monitoring and promoting religious freedom and tolerance. Despite these difficulties, the United States continued to advocate for religious freedom by maintaining contact with imams, priests, educators, journalists, and independent religious leaders and actively monitoring the state of religious freedom. U.S. officials raised issues of religious freedom with their local counterparts, including the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Muslim Board, and the Committee on Religious Affairs. U.S. officials consistently emphasized that religious tolerance and political security should be complementary goals. On November 13, the secretary of state designated the country one of particular concern for religious freedom violations; following the designation, the U.S. ambassador at large for international religious freedom renewed discussions with senior officials to seek greater religious freedom.
U.S.-funded exchange and educational programs promoted religious tolerance and religious freedom. A three-year University Partnership Program, which organized exchanges of experts and professors from local Uzbek universities and institutes, culminated in a September conference that summarized the work done under the partnership. The project developed school curricula to promote religious tolerance through instruction in comparative religious studies. The United States sponsored training in three cities for defense advocates and human rights activists on international religious freedom standards, as well as a follow-up roundtable. A religious leader participated in a regional conference in Tajikistan; the conference focused on the role of religion in promoting peace and social partnerships. The United States also sponsored locals' participation in the "Law, Religion and Social Change" conference at the National University in Canberra, Australia.
The United States continued to support programs to prevent trafficking in persons and provide shelter for trafficking victims. The United States, in cooperation with the government and local and international NGOs, supported several public awareness campaigns on trafficking. With U.S. funding, a nationwide NGO network provided counseling and information on human trafficking through 10 public hotlines, which received more than 16,000 calls, as well as through seminars and discussions in schools, religious communities, and neighborhood committees. Official television regularly aired documentaries aimed at raising public awareness; antitrafficking messages and public service announcements appeared frequently in newspapers and on radio and television broadcasts. During the year U.S.-supported NGOs provided repatriation assistance to 368 trafficking victims. A second U.S.-funded shelter was opened to provide medical, psychological, legal, and educational assistance to repatriated human trafficking victims. The United States assisted in establishing a network of 10 NGOs which provide shelter, counseling, and other services to trafficking victims. The United States also supported the establishment of a Central Asian regional NGO network to facilitate cooperation and information exchange on cross-border trafficking issues. U.S.-supported programs provided training in trafficking issues to more than 30,000 participants, including religious leaders. The United States sponsored a visit by local officials and NGO activists to the United Arab Emirates, a major destination country for Uzbek victims of trafficking. The visit resulted in the identification of 206 trafficking victims. U.S.-sponsored partners worked to persuade government officials to classify labor exploitation, including the procurement of labor through force, fraud, or coercion, as human trafficking.
Released on April 5, 2007
