U.S. disappointed by Uzbek response to Andijon trials report

U.S. Department of State April 28 The United States is disappointed by Uzbekistan's response to a report by international monitors on trials that grew out of violence in the Uzbek city of Andijon in May 2005. Fifteen men tried and convicted in relation to the Andijon violence did not receive a fair trial, according to the report, which was released April 24 by Europe's largest human rights body, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe's (OSCE). The United States previously has expressed concern about the trials and the increasing repression of Uzbek civil society. The OSCE report recommends that "the verdicts on the 15 defendants be set aside, due to identified fair trial rights violations and serious misgivings about the overall fairness of the proceedings against the defendants," according to a statement on the report by the OSCE's Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR). "The ODIHR urges the Government of Uzbekistan to proceed to a retrial of the defendants subject to the findings of an independent impartial investigation." Addressing the OSCE in Vienna, Austria, April 27, U.S. diplomat Kyle Scott praised Uzbekistan for allowing international monitors to attend the trials but expressed disappointment that "the Government of Uzbekistan continues to fail to abide by its numerous OSCE and international commitments." Scott cited in particular the failure of Uzbek authorities to ensure defendants' right to a lawyer in pre-trial stages and the right to effective legal counsel. He rejected as "offensive and downright false" Uzbek government comments questioning the sincerity of the OSCE in promoting the ideals of freedom and human rights. "Many of the criticisms leveled against the way Uzbek authorities reacted to the Andijon events and the conduct of the subsequent trials have been corroborated by numerous sources, including independent media reports, human rights organizations, and the observations of our own diplomats in Tashkent," said Scott. "ODIHR specifically, and the OSCE more generally, are not seeking advantage over Uzbekistan, nor are they working against it," Scott continued. "On the contrary, we all want to see a stable, free, and prosperous Uzbekistan." "The criticisms and, more importantly, the recommendations of this report are intended to help Uzbekistan meet its OSCE commitments, commitments that all participating States have agreed to as the best way to achieve security and prosperity," he said. "Ignoring or actively thwarting these commitments are in no one's interests, including Uzbekistan's." Scott concluded by reiterating U.S. condemnation of the violent attack on government facilities and hostage-taking that took place in Andijon in May 2005 and by urging Uzbek authorities to "re-engage with the OSCE." "From our considered perspective, it appears that such engagement is in the long-term interest of the Uzbek government and its people," Scott said.