UNICEF LAYS OUT IDEAS FOR UZBEKISTAN TO ADDRESS

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 TASHKENT 000234 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PHUM PGOV ECON ELAB SOCI UZ SUBJECT: UNICEF LAYS OUT IDEAS FOR UZBEKISTAN TO ADDRESS CHILD LABOR IN COTTON INDUSTRY TASHKENT 00000234 001.2 OF 002 SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED -- PLEASE PROTECT ACCORDINGLY. ¶1. (SBU) Summary: The new head of UNICEF in Uzbekistan told the Ambassador that the Uzbek Government is concerned about international accusations regarding child labor in the cotton industry and has asked UNICEF and the International Labor Organization (ILO) for advice in addressing the problem. The ILO response urged the government to ratify relevant international conventions (138 and 182) and report its implementation under conventions it has ratified (29 and 105). UNICEF stressed the importance of the Convention of the Rights of the Child, and recommended the Government of Uzbekistan establish a multi-agency commission to oversee its implementation. The UNICEF Chief also told the Government of Uzbekistan that increased transparency on the child labor situation could help ease international pressure, especially since the situation is not much different than in India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh. It is significant that the Uzbeks actually reached out to ILO and UNICEF, which demonstrates concern about the heightened international attention to the issue. End summary. ¶2. (SBU) In a February 19 courtesy call on Ambassador, newly arrived UNICEF director for Uzbekistan, Mahbub Sharif (a Bangladeshi National who has served the past five years as UNICEF Chief in Turkmenistan),indicated that Uzbek Foreign Minister Norov had written both UNICEF and the International Labor Organization to ask for an assessment of whether Uzbekistan is in compliance with international standards on child labor or the international Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC). Both organizations have responded to Foreign Minister Norov (full texts e-mailed to SCA/CA and DRL). ¶3. (SBU) International Labor Organization Response: Elaine Fultz, Director of the ILO's Subregional Office for Eastern Europe and Central Asia, responded to Foreign Minister Norov on January 18. The ILO's response noted that Uzbekistan had not ratified relevant ILO conventions (138 and 182) and had not provided reports in regard to other relevant conventions which it had ratified (29 and 105). The ILO expressed its readiness to work with the Government of Uzbekistan to ratify and implement appropriate conventions. ¶4. (SBU) UNICEF response: Mahbub Sharif responded to Foreign Minister Norov on January 31. He recommended that the Government of Uzbekistan consider the following course of action: within the framework of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, establish a multi-agency special commission to oversee CRC implementation, "and in particular review the existing situation regarding the use of child labor in the cotton industry by conducting an extensive and systematic assessment;" develop an action plan to ensure "that the involvement of school-age children in cotton harvesting is in full compliance with Uzbekistan's law and the CRC and suggest measures for prevention of this practice at the local level;" establish a mechanism for the effective monitoring of the enforcement of existing legislation and compliance with international standards on the protection of children; and carry out nationwide awareness-raising campaigns for the families and local administrators to consolidate initiatives on the prevention of child labor. UNICEF also suggested that the Government of Uzbekistan consider establishing an office of the Ombudsman for Children. ¶5. (SBU) UNICEF Chief Sharif told Ambassador that he had also presented his recommendations in a Power Point brief to senior Government of Uzbekistan officials on February 18. He did not yet have an official response. He offered that greater transparency by the Government of Uzbekistan on this issue could serve its interests in trying to forestall boycotts of Uzbek cotton. Sharif said his sense is that the TASHKENT 00000234 002.2 OF 002 child labor issue here resembles that in Bangladesh, Pakistan, and India, in that ongoing problems reflect pressure by families rather than the government -- yet here the government, probably for reasons of "face," is reluctant to even admit there is a problem. He also pointed to the long tradition going back to the early days of the Soviet era of forcibly employing people to harvest cotton -- the challenge, as he sees it, is to help Uzbekistan more rapidly wean itself from this outdated tradition. Ironically, privatization of cotton fields has forced some families to draw on their own resources now that state support has ebbed. Comment -------------- ¶6. (SBU) It is interesting that the Uzbeks have broached the issue at all with UNICEF and the International Labor Organization. This likely reflects the Government of Uzbekistan's genuine concern about the potential economic impact of boycotts of Uzbek cotton. Cotton-picking is enshrined as a national duty in the Uzbek psyche -- even the national soccer team is called "Paxtakor" (which means cotton-pickers in the Uzbek language),but in our field observations the use of pre-teens such as depicted in last October's BBC documentary is much more the exception than the rule. Nevertheless, until the Uzbeks understand that denial is not a strategy, they will continue to face problems on this issue; their approach to UNICEF and ILO is the first sign they may be starting to understand this. NORLAND