This letter outlines several areas of human rights concern and proposes recommendations to improve Uzbekistan’s compliance with its international human rights obligations.
Uzbekistan undoubtedly needs to continue implementing recent initiated reforms, but its progress is promising.
By
December 17, 2020
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The U.S. State Department’s decision to remove Uzbekistan from the Special Watch List for governments that engage or tolerate “severe violations of religious freedom” is a major achievement for Uzbekistan. Particularly significant in the context of the announcement was the State Department’s recommendation that other nations look to the “courageous reforms” of Uzbekistan and Sudan (which was also taken off the Special Watch List) as models to emulate. Such a high assessment undoubtedly testifies to the considerable progress achieved by Tashkent, but at the same time runs counter to the position of a number of human rights organizations.