U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs Robert Blake visited Uzbekistan November 9-10, 2010, his third trip since assuming his current position. Little information was provided from the U.S. Embassy about his talks which involved "a range of issues of mutual interests, including the security, political, economic and human dimensions of the U.S.-Uzbekistan relationship."

No doubt high on the agenda was the Northern Distribution Network (NDN), the transit system set up by NATO to enable delivery of non-military goods to the troops in Afghanistan via Central Asia. Uzbekistan's government website gazeta.uz reported last week that the national airline has increased freight 83 percent in 2009, mainly because of the increase in cargo sent through the Navoi International Airport. This is likely due to Uzbekistan's role in the NDN; in September 2009, President Karimov revealed that the Navoi airport would be used to handle cargo bound for U.S. forces in Afghanistan, EurasiaNet reported.

In Tashkent, Blake also met with Abdumalik Boboyev, the correspondent of the U.S.-funded Voice of America who was convicted of charges of "defaming the Uzbek people" in his broadcasts and articles, and was sentenced earlier this month to a fine of at least $8,000. While welcome, the open expression of support did not prevent a judge from ruling to uphold Boboyev’s sentence upon appeal on November 12. The U.S. Embassy followed up with one of its most frank criticisms of the Uzbek government's mistreatment of journalists and activists to date: "Using the criminal justice system to punish journalists for freely expressed views is contrary to Uzbekistan's constitution and international obligations, and has a chilling effect on journalists throughout the country."

Observers have been concerned that preoccupation with energy and security issues and the need to establish cooperation with the Uzbek government for the sake of the NDN and other security goals would cause the U.S. to pull its punches on human rights issues. Yet on this case involving a reporter for a U.S.-funded radio station, who had also been given a U.S. award for his courageous journalism, the U.S. did step up to the challenge. Prof. Alexander Cooley told EurasiaNet that the U.S. had ”done a reasonable job” of communicating concerns about the case to the Uzbek government. The problem comes with all the other cases where there is no U.S. media connection. And of course there are the generic issues that continue to place Uzbekistan at the bottom of many ratings systems -- the dictatorship of President Islam Karimov and his suppression of any political, civic or religious activity outside the control of the state. The West has decided not to confront the dictatorship head-on, now that ties are being restored, but instead to convert human rights concerns into one of a number of topics discussed in bilateral meetings – with limited success.

German human rights activists led by the European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights (ECCHR) have been trying to bring to account European companies that continue to purchase cotton from Uzbekistan, citing evidence of the continuing use of forced child labor. The ECCHR filed a complaint with the Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development, a 33-member body devoted to economic development, sustainable growth and financial stability which has standards for corporate conduct. Last week, they received an encouraging response from Markus Löning, Germany’s federal commissioner for human rights, who publicly demanded that Uzbekistan cease using child labor in harvesting cotton, and has called for inspections to be carried out by the International Organization of Labor (ILO). Tashkent is a recent signatory to ILO conventions that seek to eliminate the use of child labor, but the Uzbek government has not ensured the implementation of their obligations.

A report released last week, Andijan Refugees Speak Out, brings new information to light about the Uzbek government's massacre of unarmed demonstrators in 2005. On May 13-14, 2005, thousands of citizens gathered on a public square in the provincial town of Andijan after a trial of businessmen, widely seen as unjust, led to a prison breakout in which several guards were killed and hostages taken. The 44-page report available in English and Russian, edited by Bakhtier Muhtarov of the refugee group Andijan Justice and Revival, validates the definitive 2006 report by Human Rights Watch. The refugees’ report also publicizes newly-available testimony and insights into the tragic events, and concludes with a claim that government troops made deliberate and deadly attacks on unarmed demonstrators.

The brutal response from the Karimov regime continues to haunt Uzbekistan five years later, and the injustices continue to foster both dissent and crackdowns. To date, the Uzbek government has not permitted international experts to conduct a commission of inquiry, and has harshly suppressed any independent internal accounts. The refugee account is an effort to prevent the issue from being submerged as the EU has dropped its call for an international inquiry as a requirement to better relations, and the U.S. also appears to have removed the demand from the list of human rights issues discussed with Uzbekistan.

Twenty-nine ethnic Uzbeks who fled persecution in Uzbekistan are awaiting the resolution of their fate by the Kazakh government, now in the world spotlight with the forthcoming summit December 1-2 in Astana of the Organization of Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). While the refugees in Kazakhstan tried to get help from the office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), Kazakh officials have ignored UNHCR inquiries and are vowing to extradite the Uzbeks. Human rights groups are concerned that they would face certain torture if returned.

Already, one ethnic Uzbek who was a citizen of Tajikistan has been extradited for trial in Uzbekistan, accused of participation in a 2004 terrorist attack. And another ethnic Uzbek who was from Osh was returned to Uzbekistan but is now missing, and his lawyer cannot find him in the prison system.