News

Kazakhstan: Independent Union Under Threat of Suspension

The Kazakhstan authorities’ attempt to have an independent trade union’s operations suspended is a violation of workers’ fundamental rights to organize and associate, Human Rights Watch said today. On February 1, 2021, a Shymkent court is scheduled to resume consideration of the Shymkent City Administration’s lawsuit against the Industrial Trade Union of Fuel and Energy Workers (ITUFEW) claiming violations of Kazakhstan’s trade union law. “The improvements to the trade union law are nothing but lip service if Kazakh authorities are still trying to paralyze independent trade unions in practice,” Rittmann said. “The Shymkent City Administration should immediately withdraw its claim against ITUFEW, and the authorities should create an environment in which trade unions can work without fear.”

Rights Groups In Kazakhstan Hit With Fines, Face Pressure Amid Crackdown

The operations at two human rights organizations in Kazakhstan have been suspended and they may face closure amid a crackdown on rights groups in the Central Asian state. The head of the Kazakhstan International Bureau for Human Rights and Rule Of Law (KMBPCh), Yevgeny Zhovtis, told RFE/RL that tax officials in Almaty ruled on January 25 to suspend the group's activities for three months and ordered it to pay 2 million tenges ($4,700) in fines, citing "financial irregularities."

Kazakhstan: Another Sectoral Union Faces the Threat of Compulsory Dissolution

The Specialised Inter-District Economic Court of the City of Shymkent has received a claim seeking a court order to suspend the activities of the Sectoral Fuel and Energy Workers’ Union. The claim was filed by the Akimat (the municipal authorities) of Shymkent following a representation of the Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

Uzbekistan: Registration Barriers for Independent Groups

Uzbek authorities are severely hindering the work of independent nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) with excessive and burdensome registration requirements, violating their right to freedom of association, Human Rights Watch said today. Uzbekistan has carried out some human rights reforms in recent years under President Shavkat Mirziyoyev. But the government has refused to allow the registration of NGOs that seek to work on sensitive issues such as human rights and forced labor. The Uzbek government should amend its legislation and allow independent groups to register.

Kyrgyzstan: Increased Interference in Trade Union Activities

Kyrgyz authorities have increased their scrutiny of trade union members of the federation over the last year. In October 2019, parliament formed a commission tasked with the vague mandate of “studying the implementation of the trade union law” in Kyrgyzstan. Eldiyar Karachalov, chair of the trade union of construction workers, a union member of the federation, said that the commission asked trade union leaders to provide extensive information about their organizational, financial, and economic activities.

Eliminating Forced Labor in Uzbekistan’s Cotton Sector – A Work Still in Progress

Uzbekistan has made enormous progress in eliminating forced labor, but has yet to fully eradicate it. After 10 years of monitoring and reporting on forced child and adult labor in Uzbekistan’s cotton sector, cataloging the journey toward the significant improvements that have been achieved through Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev’s ambitious reform program, there is a glimmer of hope that a historic moment may be on the horizon.

China’s ‘tainted’ cotton

China is forcing hundreds of thousands of Uighurs and other minorities into hard, manual labour in the vast cotton fields of its western region of Xinjiang, according to new research seen by the BBC. Based on newly discovered online documents, it provides the first clear picture of the potential scale of forced labour in the picking of a crop that accounts for a fifth of the world’s cotton supply and is used widely throughout the global fashion industry.

Turkmenistan: Man Gets Four-Year Prison Term for Reposting Photo of WHO Delegation

On September 15, Nurgeldi Halykov was sentenced to four years’ imprisonment by Bagtyyarlyk district court in Ashgabat. The 26-year-old had sent turkmen.news a photograph of members of a visiting World Health Organization delegation, though he had not taken the picture himself. Nurgeldi was actually convicted on a fabricated charge of fraud after a friend wrote a complaint about his alleged failure to repay a loan.

Global Wage Report 2020-21: Wages and minimum wages in the time of COVID-19

This ILO flagship report examines the evolution of real wages around the world, giving a unique picture of wage trends globally and by region. The 2020-21 edition analyses the relationship of minimum wages and inequality, as well as the wage impacts of the COVID-19 crisis.

Turkmen Doctor Stripped of Her Profession for Challenging Malpractice

Cards on the table: we thought long and hard at turkmen.news about publishing the contents of this letter to us for fear of harming the author. There are plenty of examples in Turkmenistan of a complainant to state bodies or human rights organizations abroad being punished rather than the target of the complaint. In order to minimize the risk of punishment we have decided not only to publish the story, but also to report the situation to the International Labor Organization, International Trade Union Confederation, and human rights organizations.