Today, on August 9, the OSCE Chairman-in-Office, Minister of Foreign Affairs of North Macedonia, Bujar Osmani, met with civil society activists during his visit to Uzbekistan.

During the meeting, Mr. Osmani expressed his views on the role and importance of civil society in carrying out socio-political and economic reforms, and that all the government’s efforts are ineffective without civil society. He said that he decided to meet with the activists in order to be closely informed about the situation related to human rights in Uzbekistan.

Representatives of NGOs participating in the event expressed their concerns about the rights of disabled people, legal and psychological problems in closed institutions, situations related to journalists and pedagogues, environmental problems, and the situation related to torture.

Gulnoz Mamarasulova, Director of the Representative Office of the Association Central Asia in Uzbekistan, also participated in the meeting and expressed her concerns about the threat to freedom of speech and freedom of association in Uzbekistan, the state registration of NGOs and various artificial problems they face, as well as the violation of labor rights and farmers’ rights in the agricultural system.

We think that the issues raised today during the meeting with the chairman of the prestigious international organization will not remain as such. We hope that they will discuss these issues during their next meeting with government representatives.