Activists Fear NATO Return to Uzbekistan
Activists Fear NATO Return to Uzbekistan
Uzbek activists fear their government may exploit an emerging thaw in security relations with the West to abuse human rights with impunity.
They were commenting on news that Uzbekistan may be about to allow the United States military to deploy forces in the country again after a major political rift lasting nearly three years.
On March 5, NATO’s special envoy for the Caucasus and Central Asia, Robert Simmons, noted that Tashkent had indicated it would let other countries use its airbase at Termez on the Afghan border; the base is already used by the German military.
"As far as I understand, the United States is beginning to use this facility," said Simmons at a press conference in Moscow, in remarks disseminated by Russian media.
From 2001 to 2005, the United States military used an airbase at Karshi-Khanabad in southern Uzbekistan to support Coalition operations in Afghanistan.
But the relationship ended in 2005, when Tashkent demanded that the US contingent leave after Washington called for an international investigation into the violent suppression of a demonstration in the eastern city of Andijan in May that year, when several hundred protesters were killed.
Western news agencies have subsequently confirmed that Simmons was talking about the possibility that US forces could use Termez, not that they would be returning to Khanabad. The Termez facility is currently used by German aircraft supporting NATO’s International Security Assistance Force, ISAF, in Afghanistan.
The Uzbek authorities have not reacted to the reports of improved ties with NATO, except to deny the rumours that Khanabad was back on the table.
Local human rights activists and political observers have expressed concern at the implications of renewed defence cooperation with the West.
One Tashkent-based human rights activist told NBCentralAsia he feared that Uzbekistan’s woeful reputation on human rights might be forgotten altogether in the flurry of excitement about a rapprochement on security issues.
“Human rights will recede into the background,” he warned.
A lawyer in Tashkent agreed, noting that the reports of a rapprochement with NATO came in the run-up to the European Union’s discussions in April on whether to lift sanctions against Uzbekistan.
“We are worried that in light of these developments, the sanctions might be lifted,” said the lawyer.
In November 2005, after the Uzbek authorities refused to countenance an international investigation into the shootings in Andijan, Brussels imposed an embargo on arms sales and banned senior officials from visiting EU countries.
However, the sanctions were relaxed in October 2007, with the travel ban suspended for six months.
Analysts believe Tashkent may be wooing NATO with promises of military assistance in the hope of getting the slate wiped clean.
Orozbek Moldaliev, who heads the Politics, Religion and Security think tank in neighbouring Kyrgyzstan, predicts that “an even greater relaxation” of sanctions is on its way.
“It is very likely that the bulk of sanctions will be lifted,” he said. “And they will probably say this is being done in response to Tashkent’s active role in counter-terrorism operations in Afghanistan”.
Unlike some local activists, Nadezhda Ataeva, head of the Human Rights in Central Asia Association based in France, is not opposed to NATO returning to Uzbekistan. She views this as a matter of global security that affects the interests of Uzbekistan and the West alike, not least because of the resurgence of Taleban activity in Afghanistan.
But Ataeva insists any western engagement in Uzbekistan must be used as leverage to talk about human rights, so that what happened in Andijan is not forgotten,
“Human rights defenders, journalists and civic activists must intensify their monitoring of international human rights conventions to which Uzbekistan is a party, and do everything that is needed to ensure that the voices of victims of human rights violations do not go unheard,” she said.
(NBCentralAsia is an IWPR-funded project to create a multilingual news analysis and comment service for Central Asia, drawing on the expertise of a broad range of political observers across the region. The project ran from August 2006 to September 2007, covering all five regional states. With new funding, the service is resuming, covering only Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan for the moment.)
They were commenting on news that Uzbekistan may be about to allow the United States military to deploy forces in the country again after a major political rift lasting nearly three years.
On March 5, NATO’s special envoy for the Caucasus and Central Asia, Robert Simmons, noted that Tashkent had indicated it would let other countries use its airbase at Termez on the Afghan border; the base is already used by the German military.
"As far as I understand, the United States is beginning to use this facility," said Simmons at a press conference in Moscow, in remarks disseminated by Russian media.
From 2001 to 2005, the United States military used an airbase at Karshi-Khanabad in southern Uzbekistan to support Coalition operations in Afghanistan.
But the relationship ended in 2005, when Tashkent demanded that the US contingent leave after Washington called for an international investigation into the violent suppression of a demonstration in the eastern city of Andijan in May that year, when several hundred protesters were killed.
Western news agencies have subsequently confirmed that Simmons was talking about the possibility that US forces could use Termez, not that they would be returning to Khanabad. The Termez facility is currently used by German aircraft supporting NATO’s International Security Assistance Force, ISAF, in Afghanistan.
The Uzbek authorities have not reacted to the reports of improved ties with NATO, except to deny the rumours that Khanabad was back on the table.
Local human rights activists and political observers have expressed concern at the implications of renewed defence cooperation with the West.
One Tashkent-based human rights activist told NBCentralAsia he feared that Uzbekistan’s woeful reputation on human rights might be forgotten altogether in the flurry of excitement about a rapprochement on security issues.
“Human rights will recede into the background,” he warned.
A lawyer in Tashkent agreed, noting that the reports of a rapprochement with NATO came in the run-up to the European Union’s discussions in April on whether to lift sanctions against Uzbekistan.
“We are worried that in light of these developments, the sanctions might be lifted,” said the lawyer.
In November 2005, after the Uzbek authorities refused to countenance an international investigation into the shootings in Andijan, Brussels imposed an embargo on arms sales and banned senior officials from visiting EU countries.
However, the sanctions were relaxed in October 2007, with the travel ban suspended for six months.
Analysts believe Tashkent may be wooing NATO with promises of military assistance in the hope of getting the slate wiped clean.
Orozbek Moldaliev, who heads the Politics, Religion and Security think tank in neighbouring Kyrgyzstan, predicts that “an even greater relaxation” of sanctions is on its way.
“It is very likely that the bulk of sanctions will be lifted,” he said. “And they will probably say this is being done in response to Tashkent’s active role in counter-terrorism operations in Afghanistan”.
Unlike some local activists, Nadezhda Ataeva, head of the Human Rights in Central Asia Association based in France, is not opposed to NATO returning to Uzbekistan. She views this as a matter of global security that affects the interests of Uzbekistan and the West alike, not least because of the resurgence of Taleban activity in Afghanistan.
But Ataeva insists any western engagement in Uzbekistan must be used as leverage to talk about human rights, so that what happened in Andijan is not forgotten,
“Human rights defenders, journalists and civic activists must intensify their monitoring of international human rights conventions to which Uzbekistan is a party, and do everything that is needed to ensure that the voices of victims of human rights violations do not go unheard,” she said.
(NBCentralAsia is an IWPR-funded project to create a multilingual news analysis and comment service for Central Asia, drawing on the expertise of a broad range of political observers across the region. The project ran from August 2006 to September 2007, covering all five regional states. With new funding, the service is resuming, covering only Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan for the moment.)
