Uzbekistan: SCA DAS Krol Meets with Civil Society

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 TASHKENT 001597 SENSITIVE SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PREL PHUM ELAB PGOV UZ SUBJECT: Uzbekistan: SCA DAS Krol Meets with Civil Society Representatives REF: 09 TASHKENT 1591; 09 TASHKENT 1595 ¶1. (SBU) Summary: During his visit to Tashkent on November 18-21, DAS for South and Central Asian Affairs George Krol reached out to civil society representatives, GOU officials, and journalists to discuss human rights and other broad issues facing Uzbekistan. (Please see reftels for a readout of other meetings.) End summary. UN and OSCE ¶2. (SBU) DAS Krol met with UN Resident Representative and UNDP Chief Anita Nirody and OSCE Ambassador Istvan Venczel to discuss child labor and the working environment for international organizations. ¶3. (SBU) Child Labor: Nirody shared some of the UN's observations from this year's cotton harvest, noting that they have seen a reduction in the number of children in the fields this year, particularly in those children younger than age 15. Numbers were especially reduced in the Ferghana Valley, where one influential regional governor gave explicit instructions that children should not be called to the fields this year. Because government workers are mobilized, social services are reduced during the harvest, and both UNDP and OSCE grant projects are slowed or halted. Nirody advised that the best way to approach child labor is not to come at it with a political agenda, but rather to come from an economic perspective, emphasizing broad agricultural reform. She talked about mechanization being one part of a broader solution to the problem, noting that the GOU maintains that mechanization is too expensive and that machine-harvested cotton does not bring as high a price on the world market. Nirody suggested pressing for a statement from President Karimov, and stated that UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon may do so during his visit to Uzbekistan, planned for the first quarter of 2010. ¶4. (SBU) Operating Environment for International Organizations: Both Nirody and Venczel reported that although there are still significant challenges to working with the GOU, the working environment is improving in some areas. Both commented that there is a greater willingness to work together than there has been in the past, even on previously taboo subjects such as torture, domestic violence, and trafficking in persons. Still, hardships remain. Although the GOU has signed on to numerous international conventions and has several well-drafted action plans, implementation of those written constructs lags well behind. Also, banking regulations that require grant money to go through lengthy and bureaucratic procedures complicate funding of both NGOs and IOs: NGOs must wait several months for the money to come through and then face questions on their programming and tax filings for years afterward. Some IOs are beginning to consider grant funding futile, knowing that they may well be returned after lingering unspent. Nirody also mentioned increasing attention being given to the vague construct of Uzbek "cultural identity," and that this push is behind increased scrutiny of programming involving gender issues. ¶5. (SBU) Kazakh Chairmanship of the OSCE: On the occasional rumors that Uzbekistan may pull out of the OSCE under the chairmanship of Kazakhstan, Venczel stated that a pullout, while unlikely, would be attributable more to antipathy toward the OSCE than to rivalry with the Kazakhs, noting that high level GOU officials seriously considered a pullout last year. Venczel also noted that the GOU has quietly voiced its opposition to the proposed OSCE Summit, but a final decision on whether Uzbekistan would participate will most likely occur only after personal TASHKENT 00001597 002 OF 002 communication between Karimov and Nazarbaev. Ombudsman for Human Rights ¶6. (SBU) DAS Krol met with Ombudsman for Human Rights Sayora Rashidova to talk about the Ombudsman's role in accepting and investigating citizen complaints and influencing human rights legislation. The Office, which is directed by the parliament (based on the Scandinavian model),is increasing its role - recently signing an agreement with the Prosecutor General that allows the Ombudsman to file complaints regarding court trials, where it previously had no real voice. Rashidova highlighted her office's ties with NGOs and other ombudsman offices in Europe and Russia, and stated that the biggest problem her office faces is a lack of human rights education among officials. Through trainings and literature, her office is working to instill a legal culture that will not tolerate rights abuses. DAS Krol Leads Embassy's "Press Gap" ¶7. (SBU) DAS Krol led the Embassy's monthly "Press Gap" on November 20 with a record crowd of 62 journalists representing state and somewhat more independent media outlets. ("Gap" in Uzbek mean a regular meeting of like-minded or -experienced people. The Public Affairs Section has been hosting these monthly discussions with the local press since July 2007.) DAS Krol gave a read-out of his Tashkent meetings - with whom he met and the breadth of topics they discussed. He stressed that he was in Uzbekistan to build upon the constructive visits of U/S Burns and A/S Blake and to further the efforts of initiating a process of structured dialogue - or Annual Bilateral Consultations (ABCs) - between Uzbekistan and the United States. He spent over an hour answering journalists questions on issues ranging from the Northern Distribution Network to human rights, from prospects of greater American investment in Uzbekistan to regional water resource management. DAS Krol underscored that the ABCs will feature discussions on human rights, press freedoms, and civil society in Uzbekistan, but that the United States will not impose its views on any other nation, but rather pursue principled engagement on these challenging issues. DAS Krol expressed his appreciation for the chance to meet with the journalists, noting (to their surprise and pleasure) that they are a key sector of Uzbekistan's civil society. The media reports on the visit were overall relatively accurate, if sometimes covered by misleading headlines. A media reaction cable will follow septel. ¶8. (U) DAS Krol did not have an opportunity to clear this cable. NORLAND NORLAND