Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
05GENEVA2422
2005-10-07 10:01:00
UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY
US Mission Geneva
Cable title:  

MEETING WITH UN INDEPENDENT EXPERT FOR UZBEKISTAN

Tags:  PHUM UZ 
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This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.
UNCLAS GENEVA 002422 

SIPDIS


SENSITIVE

DEPT PASS TO IO/SHA, DRL/MLA

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PHUM UZ
SUBJECT: MEETING WITH UN INDEPENDENT EXPERT FOR UZBEKISTAN
MICHELE PICARD


SUMMARY
--------

UNCLAS GENEVA 002422

SIPDIS


SENSITIVE

DEPT PASS TO IO/SHA, DRL/MLA

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PHUM UZ
SUBJECT: MEETING WITH UN INDEPENDENT EXPERT FOR UZBEKISTAN
MICHELE PICARD


SUMMARY
--------------


1. (U) The French Permanent Mission in Geneva hosted a
meeting October 4 for UK, Russian and U.S. representatives
with Michele Picard, the UN Independent Expert on the
situation of human rights in Uzbekistan. The Independent
Expert's report to the Secretariat is due by December 15.
Judge Picard has not yet received authorization from the
Uzbek government for a country visit, and is concerned that
the authorization may not come, or may be so delayed as to
render a visit impractical. She sought assurances from the
UK, U.S. and Russian representatives of governmental support
for her mission, and asked pointedly what measures those
governments might be prepared to take if the Uzbek
authorities refused to cooperate with her work. End Summary.

RUSSIANS LEND QUALIFIED SUPPORT
--------------


2. (U) Judge Picard started by noting that it was not clear
that Uzbekistan would agree to allow her to visit the
country. She submitted a request to the Uzbek government on
September 15 but has had no reply to date. She also noted
that although she had requested a meeting with the Uzbek
Charge d'Affaires in Geneva, and had been flexible as to when
she could travel to Geneva to meet him, she had been told
that he was too busy to see her. She specifically inquired
if the U.S., UK and Russia supported her mission. We joined
the UK representive in assuring her that her mandate had our
governments' full support. The Russian response was more
equivocal, noting first that the Independent Expert's mandate
must be limited to the 1503 procedure, and could not expand
to include an investigation of the May events at Andijon.
The Expert's role, in the Russian view, must be limited to
responding to specific complaints. The Russian added
pointedly that the Belarus experience with Special Rapporteur
for Human Rights in Belarus Adrien Severin showed that an
expert deciding on his own to expand his mandate would likely
lead a country to refuse to cooperate.


3. (U) Judge Picard noted that, while she agreed that
Andijon was not included in her mandate, limiting her work to
responses to specific complaints was impractical. All
domestic remedies must be exhausted before filing a
complaint, and her report was due in mid-December. Picard
said that, if allowed to visit, she planned to stay two weeks
to allow sufficient time to meet with a broad spectrum of
people, including governmet officials and NGOs. In addition
to reviewing the human rights situation at present, Picard
said she needed to see what changes (deterioration) had
occurred since Andijon. She expressed particular interest in
the condition of Uzbekistan's judicial system, and asked
about U.S. assistance for judicial reform. Mission oficers
provided her with a copy of the August 17 fact sheet on U.S.
assistance to Uzbekistan.

SAFETY CONCERN
--------------


4. (SBU) Comment: In an aside after the meeting ended, and
after the Russian representative had departed, Judge Picard
commented that UNHCR had warned her that visiting Uzbekistan
in her role as Independent Expert could be hazardous. She
had been told that "accidents can happen quickly there," and
noted casually that the caution had given her pause.
Cassel