On November 13, 2017 the ILO Representative office in Tashkent hosted a meeting between officials of the ILO, the World Bank, Human Rights Watch (HRW), Uzbek Employment ministry and human rights activists of Uzbekistan.
Civil rights activists of Uzbekistan - Shukhrat Ganiev, Elena Urlaeva, Uktam Pardaev, Hayitboy Yakubov, A. Mukibov proposed to create an interaction mechanism and a feedback channel to increase the legal consciousness and awareness of the population about the inadmissibility of forced and child labor.
According to the Ministry, the Special adviser to the ILO Director General Kari Tapiola commended the efforts of the authorities this year to prevent forced labor in cotton fields.
HRW Regional specialist Steve Swerdlov said that HRW positively assessed the National statement by the President Shavkat Mirziyoyev at the 72nd session of the UN General Assembly, in which the cooperation with the ILO to eradicate child and forced labor was set as priority.
The attendees discussed a number of other issues on creating decent work conditions, preventing forced and child labor during the cotton campaign, and also expressed readiness to expand and strengthen cooperation with the Employment ministry.
