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Uzbekistan and the War on Terrorism
Josh Machleder
Uzbekistan Country Director, Internews
Wednesday, March 13, 2002; 10 a.m. EST

On Tuesday, President Bush met with the president of Uzbekistan, Islam Karimov, whose government has been harshly criticized for its "very poor" record on human rights. The State Department, in its annual report on human rights, described Karimov's regime as "an authoritarian state with limited civil rights." But Uzbekistan has been a key partner in the war on terrorism and serves as a base of operations for an estimated 1,000 U.S. troops aiding the campaign in Afghanistan. The Post reports Assistant Secretary of State Lorne Craner said an improved human rights performance will be "an important byproduct of our alliance with them."

Josh Machleder, country director for Internews, was online from Uzbekistan courtesy of Transitions Online on Wednesday, March 13, to discuss the situation in the former Soviet republic. Transitions Online is an internet journal covering the countries of the former Soviet Union and Central and Eastern Europe. Internews is a grant-funded non-profit organization that works to develop independent media in developing countries

The transcript follows.

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washingtonpost.com: Greetings and thanks to Josh Machleder for joining us from Tashkent. Mr. Machleder: How do Uzbek citizens feel about cooperation between the United States and the Uzbek government in the war on terrorism?

Josh Machleder: It's hard to say exactly what Uzbek citizens are feeling, as it's a diverse population. This cooperation hasn't been widely publicized within the country. For example, the troops stationed here are kept on their base, and the base is completely closed off to the public. And the Uzbek authorities did not immediately announce to their own population what the extent of their cooperation would be until the Russian and foreign mass media began reporting it. I would say that the general public sentiment and that portrayed in the local media is supportive of the US-Uzbek cooperation, relieved to have some assistance in dealing with the threats that loomed in neighboring Afghanistan, and because the general sentiment here is pro-American. However, I do think that there are undercurrents here, particularly by pious Muslims, who out of fear do not broadcast their opinion, that this is an war against Islam.

Harrisburg, Pa.: Mow much freedom does the press have in Uzbekistan? Are political opponents provided fair coverage?

Josh Machleder: Let me first say that there are no political opponents in Uzbekistan. When Presidential elections were held in January, 2000, for example, the "opponent" to incumbent President Karimov, previously an unknown, was reported as telling journalists that he himself was voting for President Karimov.
The Uzbek President has created an environment that essentially stifles all opposition. All political parties that emerged during the Soviet Union's Perestroika period have their leaders living in exile and former members have gone mostly silent.
As for freedom of press, printing houses are owned by the state and the state keeps an in-house censor there. So there is pre-publication censorship. The main TV station in the Republic is state owned, and serves primarily as the mouthpiece of the government. There are, however several local, regional, privately owned TV stations that are able to do some critical journalism on local issues.

washingtonpost.com: Yesterday, Tom Malinowski of Human Rights Watch said in a discussion that political repression in Uzbekistan and intolerance of political dissent forces people to extremism. Do you agree? How would you describe this on the ground in Uzbekistan?

Josh Machleder: I believe that Malinowski's assessment is particularly correct in a historical sense, that having squelched intellectual or political opposition has forced the creation of some of the radical movements in the country, as there are no alternative constructive channels to turn to for the alienated and discontented sector of the population.
I would also say that in addition, we need to consider the economic factors, the high unemployment. There is a large young population that don't see a large future for themselves and are susceptible to joining religious, possibly extremist groups.
Also, there was always Islam in Central Asia, that was even able to operate somewhat freely during the Soviet Union. Now, since Uzbekistan's independence as a republic, this is no longer tolerated and is certainly a factor to discontent.

Washington, DC: Do you think Uzbekistan's new friendship with the U.S. will help the human rights situation or allow the leadership to continue its actions now that it has U.S. backing anyway?

Josh Machleder: The fear is that the US could be supporting an authoritarian regime. However, we have great hopes that small steps of progress have been made in recent history because of the US' lobbying. In the last year, the US lobbied strongly for the release of two human rights activists, who ultimately were released. Last week, Uzbekistan registered an independent human rights group -- the first of its kind to be registered in this republic. This is good news because, now that they are officially recognized they will have the right to publicize their activities and hold public discussions. Before, they were not working "legally" by the Uzbek legislation. Hopefully, through this mechanism, we will see and hear greater discussion within the republic and without about the situation of human rights here.

New York, New York: What specific steps can the US take to promote civil liberties, press freedom and democratic reforms in Uzbekistan while maintaining a positive relationship with the government of Uzbekistan which has been serving as an ally against the terrorism bred by radical Islamism in the region?

Josh Machleder: To support democratization in Uzbekistan, I think that we need to promote and sponsor more exchanges, meaning student exchanges, study tours for professionals, for journalists particularly. As well as bringing in US specialists here. I think that cultural exchange and sharing experience is a very safe way of cultural indoctrination, which allows participants to take from their experience that which is useful for developing their region.

washingtonpost.com: In his address to Congress, President Bush mentioned the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan by name. How much of a threat is this group and how much of a presence do they have in Uzbekistan or elsewhere in Central Asia?

Josh Machleder: The Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan is actually a movement that begun in the republic by young muslims in the Fergana region, who were driven out of the country. For a time, they were based in neighboring Tajikistan and fought with the United Islamic Front in the civil war going on there. They later relocated their leadership into Afghanistan. Since 1999, in the summer, they have made incursions into Uzbekistan, through regions that intersect Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. They are primarily a threat to Uzbekistan as the rhetoric of their leadership is directed particularly against the regime of President Karimov.

Philadelphia, PA: How much did Uzbek Islamic extremists join al Qaeda's cause? were they a large contingent of the foreign fighters in afghanistan?

Josh Machleder: I answered some of this in my previous reply, which was incomplete. The military leadership of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU) became allied with Osama bin Laden's Al-Qaeda network. In November, reports came in that the groups commander, Juma Namangani was killed in battle in Northern Afghanistan. Thus, this threat to Uzbekistan is considered to be significantly reduced by some sources.

Harisburg, Pa.: What has been the reaction of the Russian government to the presence of American troops in Uzbekistan? What is the level of cooperation between America, Uzbekistan, and
Russia in the fight against international terrorism?

Josh Machleder: This has not really been very explicit, however it's been perceived that the Russian government is not pleased with the strong US presence in a region that had always been a part of its domain. Rumors have circulated in the Russian mass media that Uzbekistan leased away its air base for 25 years at the price of 8 billion dollars. This of course, is nonsense. Also, Uzbekistan has asserted a measure of independence from Russia, for example, in recent past pre-9/11, not accepting Russian military assistance.

washingtonpost.com: The Post's Dana Milbank reports that the U.S. agreed to triple aid to Uzbekistan to $160 million and guarantee $55 million in credit through the U.S. Export-Import Bank. How much will this help Uzbekistan?

Josh Machleder: Of course, it's difficult to say what will happen with this aid. However, if we consider how much assistance the US has delivered per-capita in Uzbekistan, it is significantly lower that in some of the neighboring republics and other former Soviet republics.

Alexandria, VA: What opportunities are there for cultural exchange with Uzbekistan? Has the State Department expanded these programs along with humanitarian aid to the country?

Josh Machleder: I believe that there has been an expansion of these exchange programs by State Department. Many of the alumni of these programs go on to perform important functions in Uzbekistan in developing civil society initiatives.

washingtonpost.com: Mr. Machleder, before we go, can you tell us how Uzbekistan can best help fight the war on terror and how through cooperation the U.S. can best help Uzbekistan?

Josh Machleder: The US could be instrumental in shaping up the economic situation in the country. Through US investment, credits and loans that are made conditionally based on liberalization in the sphere of human rights and democratization, as well as liberalization of the economy. Some major problems include the lack of a convertible currency. Also, there is a very difficult tax system that does not favor small and medium enterprises. Improving the economic situation would potentially give life to business and the population.

washingtonpost.com: That's all the time we have today. For more from Mr. Machleder, look to Transitions Online and Internews. For more on Uzbekistan and the war on terrorism look to washingtonpost.com for breaking news and analysis.

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