Uzbek ministry calls Tashkent court to close US NGO

UzReport May 2 The Justice Ministry of Uzbekistan submitted statement on 1 May to the Tashkent civil court to consider shutting down the representative office of the US non-governmental organization Counterpart International. The Justice Ministry said Counterpart International had been systematically violating laws of the country and its own charter. The staff of its representative office has been not only setting up but also heading local NGOs, publishing and distributing printed materials without a licence. They also refused to present financial documents on their activities to the authorities. The Uzbek Ministry said it warned the NGO twice on violation within 2005 and called to eliminate them. But inspection of activity of Counterpart International in January 2006 showed that the violations were not eliminated. Justice Ministry said that Counterpart International also violated legislation of other ex-Soviet states, including in Belarus, Kyrgyz Republic and Kazakhstan. The headquarters of Counterpart International is in Washington. The organization is financed by the US Department of State and the United States' Agency for International Development (USAID). Counterpart International has been working in Uzbekistan since 1995.