“Agro-Terrorism” in Uzbekistan: Farmers Punished for Planting Onions
In the Shurchi district of Surkhandarya region, around 80 farmers were forced onto buses late at...
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Human Rights Alerts
Phone Lines Cut, Voices Blocked: How Uzbekistan Silenced Critics During the UNESCO Conference
The 43rd session of the UNESCO General Conference is currently taking place in Samarkand. As local...
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Uzbekistan’s Water Crisis Spells Debts for Farmers
Uzbekistan’s drip-irrigation drive has left farmers with loans, sham installations, and missing subsidies. The Abdullaev case illustrates how poor oversight and patronage can turn conservation funding into debt risk.
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Samarkand journalist: “Why I don’t trust UNESCO.”
On the eve of UNESCO’s 43rd General Conference in Samarkand, a local voice questions funding opacity and on-site neglect: protected zones face demolitions, plaques become décor, and real care falls to residents—not ceremonies, fireworks, or international prestige.
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School Principal Tortured by Police in Foiled Attempt to Frame Tax Inspector
Police in Fergana’s Furqat district beat school principal Gulirano Kosimova and tried to force a false rape claim against tax chief Kurbonali Abdurakhmonov. Surveillance footage disproved the setup. The district police chief was fired and charged; prosecutors say the case has been sent to court.
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Arbitrary Police Brutality Against Farmers is not Compatible with a Sustainable Cotton Sector
Rishton farmers faced gunpoint threats and fabricated charges; appeals overturned key counts while probes stalled. Systemic impunity makes official claims of a sustainable cotton industry untenable.
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Punished for Obedience: Officials Become Victims of Uzbekistan’s Cotton System
Dilfuza Toshmatova, deputy hokim of Sariosiyo district of Surkhandarya region, became the first...
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Deputy hokim of Sariosiyo district, Surkhandarya region, forces mahalla employees to find pickers
A video has surfaced showing a local Uzbek official coercing community workers to pick cotton and recruit others under threat of job loss. The footage reveals deep-rooted pressure tactics amid a labor shortage, despite legal prohibitions on forced labor.
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Uzbek Farmer: “I would like the truth to be told.”
Farmer Shavkat Kudratov from Uzbekistan’s Shakhrisabz district describes how the local hokim deprived him of water, crops, and even his car in retaliation for criticism. He warns that if he is arrested or disappears, the responsibility lies with hokim Samad Khasanov. Uzbek Forum calls for urgent investigation.
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Police violence in Uzbekistan: two cases, few answers
A new investigation highlights two recent incidents of police violence in Uzbekistan, with victims suffering severe injuries backed by medical records. Despite legal obligations to investigate torture, authorities delay inquiries, fail to suspend implicated officers, and allow evidence to disappear — reinforcing a system of impunity.
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From Forced Labor to Forced Dependency – The Struggle of Uzbekistan’s Cotton Cooperatives
Chairman of the Hosildor Oltintola cooperative, Abdurasul Haitov © Kun.uz Uzbekistan’s cotton...
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Conferences Alone Won’t Fix the Struggle of Uzbekistan’s Farmers Amid Unpaid Debts, Exclusion, and Violence
While official conferences praise “leading” farmers, many across Uzbekistan report years of unpaid debts for crops, intimidation, and even violence from cluster representatives. Excluded from national forums, these farmers see little real support. The gap between official optimism and harsh rural reality threatens stability and livelihoods.
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