Ikram Yakubov, the Uzbek security service defector, has given his first UK media interview to the first class journalist Neil Mackay of the Sunday Herald. Ikram's testimony is very important, particularly that he personally witnessed a CIA officer present at the torture of Islamic suspects. Remember, the official position of the UK government remains that I was making it all up. They still officially deny the CIA was involved in torture in Uzbekistan, or that we knew about extraordinary rendition. Ikram Yakubov's testimony makes those government lies still harder to maintain. It would be nice to believe that one day there may be a serious parliamentary inquiry into the lies. THE CIA SENT ITS agents into Uzbekistan torture chambers to observe the abuse of alleged Islamic...

I have been worrying about the serious deterioration of civil liberties in the UK for five years now, but a small incident last night convinced me we are living in a country that must be classified as "Not free". I was travelling to the theatre on the tube, and the large majority of passengers were shrouded by copies of either London Lite or the London Paper. Some thirty copies of each banner headline screamed shrilly its message of fear through the train: "Five Suicide Bombers on the Loose in London!" "Jet Terror Plot!" "Terror Jury Holiday Farce Resulted in Acquittals!" The propaganda, which reflected uncritically the briefing the Security Services and Home Office have been manically pumping out since the non-existence of the "Bigger than 9/11" jet plot was confirmed, was so stark...

Haven't blogged much in the last week, so I thought I would take you through my day yesterday to show the kind of stuff I'm doing. It was a slightly busier day than usual, but really not much. 04.16 Helped Nadira start her day's Ramadan observances 04.45 Got up and dressed properly 05.15 Left home in Shepherds Bush 07.00 Flew London City Airport to Edinburgh 09.30 Meeting of Scottish University Rectors at University of Edinburgh to discuss reaction to Scottish future funding paper. Key points we make: - Overall funding for Scottish University sector inadequate compared to rest of Northern Europe - Lack of opportunity for student input in the "Consultation" process - No discussion of the key question of student support. Average debt for students leaving Scottish Universities now...

If it wasn't for the border crossings, an eight hour drive from the Eastern border of Uzbekistan would take you into China. There you would be among the Uighurs, a people culturally and linguistically extremely close to the Uzbeks. Like the Tibetans, the Uighurs are culturally, religiously and ethnically oppressed by the highly racist Chnese state. But the Uighurs are Muslims and they do not get the press coverage of the Tibetans, even though their oppression has been still more systematic and brutal. Over a million Uighurs have been displaced by the Chinese state in the last three years alone. Thousands are murdered - either executed or disappeared - every year. The Uighurs are one of a swathe of Turkic peoples across Central Asia, who fell into the thrall of foreign Empires...

I have been reflecting on La Fontaine, who used fables to reflect indirectly on the ways of the powerful. Some poets are more direct in their criticism. In May 2005, hundreds of unarmed demonstrators were shot and killed in Andijan, in Uzbekistan. The poet Yusuf Juma wrote these lines about those who died: The best men of the people were shot in Andijan. Elders like Dukchi-ishan, were shot in Andijan. People were shot in Namangana, shot in Fergana, the very best lions were shot in Andijan. The blind are alive, the jackals are alive, Sharifjan Shokurovs were shot in Andijan. Future Babarakhin Mashrabs were killed, tigers like Babur were shot in Andijan. In their hearts they were wild activists, endurers of the right way, let their graves be full of light, they were...

posted by kPoetry doesn't always translate easily. However, I am posting a complete poem by Yusuf Juma, about the Andijan massacre. The massacre took place on 13 May, 2005 when hundreds of unarmed protesters were killed by Uzbek security services for taking part in a demonstration against the government. Yusuf Juma wrote this poem about the event:The best men of the people were shot in Andijan.Elders like Dukchi-ishan, were shot in Andijan. People were shot in Namangana, shot in Fergana,the very best lions were shot in Andijan.The blind are alive, the jackals are alive,Sharifjan Shokurovs were shot in Andijan. Future Babarakhin Mashrabs were killed,tigers like Babur were shot in Andijan. In their hearts they were wild activists, endurers of the right way,let...

This as right now the UK government tries to deport a member of the opposition Jahongir Sidikov back to Uzbekistan where he will meet that ‘routine’ treatment, this is what our government thinks is a safe place for someone whose family has already been harassed by the authorities after he was filmed protesting in the UK by Uzbek government operatives- the bulk of the document six of nine pages expressed a range of serious concerns about what the committee termed “[n]umerous, ongoing and consistent allegations concerning routine use of torture committed by law enforcement and investigative personnel or with their instigation or consent,” and “[f]ailure to conduct prompt and impartial investigations into such allegations.”  The committee further...

If you can bear to see what happens to protesters in Uzbekistan, follow this link and watch the clip from Channel 4 News. Warning: some of the pictures are very disturbing.The Home Office reckons Jahongir Sidikov doesn't need asylum because he's "not a major player". The "minor players" at Andijan and elsewhere ended up just as dead. Relatively unimportant people suffer just as much pain from torture as the rich and famous. Torture and murder are routine in Uzbekistan. Dissidents like Jahnogir are at serious risk.It's time New Labour remembered old values. If government ministers don't believe in equality, simple humanity would do.I'm glad to see that Channel 4 has taken an interest in this case. I wish the government would...

This information comes from the campaign to stop the deportation of Jahongir Sidikov. Details of the Andijan massacre from an independent source can be found here. Jahongir Sidikov’s story Jahongir SIDIKOV was born on 10 June 1980 in the Zangiatin district of Tashkent province in Uzbekistan. He has a higher education in finance. He started his career in banking, getting his first job in the private bank “Pahtabank”. In September 1999 he arrived in London on a student visa and entered the City University, where he completed his B.Sc. in 2003. After completing his degree he got married in 2003. All his attempts to find a job failed. The massacre of more then a thousand innocent people in the Uzbek city of Andijan on May 13, 2005 became a turning point for Jahongir....

A helpful profile of Jahongir Sidikov from Aeropotiga that tells the story of Jahongir Sidikov;Jahongir SIDIKOV was born on 10 June 1980 in the Zangiatin district of Tashkent province in Uzbekistan. He has a higher education in finance. He started his career in banking, getting his first job in the private bank “Pahtabank”. In September 1999 he arrived in London on a student visa and entered the City University, where he completed his B.Sc. in 2003. After completing his degree he got married in 2003. All his attempts to find a job failed. The massacre of more then a thousand innocent people in the Uzbek city of Andijan on May 13, 2005 became a turning point for Jahongir. He started to be actively engaged in opposition activities and propaganda against the Uzbek regime. He became...

In 2005, American Quakers reported on a massacre at Andijan in Uzbekistan. Nobody knows how many protesters were killed by government forces, but eyewitness accounts tell of of a square awash with blood. No-one can be sure how many men, women and children were killed.Uzbekistan has a government which doesn't hesitate to kill its citizens. The opposition party is banned. Torture is common. Many critics of the regime have been killed.It's hard to understand how the British government and courts can authorise the deportation of an Uzbek asylum-seeker. Jahongir Sidikov, who belongs to Erk, Uzbekistan's banned opposition party, faces deportation. He's currently in a cell at Heathrow after passive resistance saved him from being deported yesterday. He's now threatened with forcible...

Last week Ewan McGregor lambasted Britain's "nanny state" following a motorbike journey across Africa with fellow actor and best friend Charley Boorman. The journey was filmed and will be shown as a series called the Long Way Down starting tonight. "Our trip opened my eyes to how insane the rules are in Britain - CCTV cameras everywhere, congestion charge - a ludicrous nanny state. If anything drives me out of the country it will be that - not tax, I don't earn enough." Referring to a boat stunt performed in 2005 by Daniel Craig when was unveiled as the new James Bond (he was made to wear a life jacket) "Today, health and safety are out of control. In Africa, garage attendants smoked as they filled the bikes. I took great pleasure in that." Yes there are plenty of things that...

The house magazine for US diplomats, Foreign Service, has published its September 2007 issue on "Human Rights Promotion in the Post-9/11 Era". It contains a number of excellent essays, and also one by me on the lessons of my time in Uzbekistan, which I reproduce here: The Folly of a Short-Term Approach By Craig Murray Ambassador Craig Murray resigned from the British Diplomatic Service in February 2005. He is now rector of the University of Dundee and an honorary research fellow at the University of Lancaster School of Law. His memoir of his time in Uzbekistan, Murder in Samarkand, is available from Amazon.co.uk. Paramount and Brad Pitt’s production company Plan B are producing a movie based on that memoir, with filming scheduled to begin in February 2008 under British director...

The three alleged "terrorists" arrested in Germany, aimed to blow up US military airports, civil airports, bars, discos and other targets, according to the German authorities, motivated by a fanatical hatred of the United States. They have been identified as coming from the "Islamic Jihad Union", an alleged offshoot of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan. This organisation was first heard of in intelligence passed by the Uzbek intelligence services to the United States during alleged "Terror attacks" in Tashkent in spring 2004. Those attacks were in fact largely fake and almost certainly the work of the Uzbek security services, from my investigations on the spot at the time. These are detailed in pages 325 to 339 of Murder in Samarkand. These "attacks" were followed by the arrest of...

On 14 May the German Presidency of the EU will push hard again to persuade the EU to lift the limited sanctions imposed on Uzbekistan after the massacre of at least 700 demonstrators at Andijan two years ago. Not only has Uzbekistan not agreed to the international inquiry the EU demanded, but since Andijan there have been thousands of new political arrests, including of many high profile human rights defenders I worked with. Here is a report from Human Rights Watch on the sentencing of their activist and interpreter Umida Niyazova. Uzbekistan; Rights Defender Sentenced to Seven Years EU Should Demand Release Before Sanctions Decision (New York, May 1, 2007) – The sentencing of Umida Niazova, an Uzbek human rights defender, should compel the European Union to make the release of...

Just after blogging yesterday that I had received 317 emails from people who had read "Murder in Samarkand", I received the 318th. This one is unusual in that it is from someone I know slightly, an Uzbek I tried to help four years ago. I publish it because I think it is important, not least in what it says about the British Embassy in Tashkent no longet helping the oppressed. I have removed all details that may help the Uzbek government identify the sender. Dear Mr Murray, My name is... I wonder if you still remember me. I met you in Uzbekistan in ... I was uzbek student who studied ... I remember I came to you desperately seeking for help from aggressive and abusive actions of uzbek police and you helped me that time. You even went to police station with me trying to protect me...

From ZA@Play Drew Forrest reviews Murder in Samarkand, a rollicking autobiography laced with jokes, racy incident, political gossip and colourful travelogue At one level a rollicking autobiography laced with jokes, racy incident, political gossip and colourful travelogue, Murder in Samarkand is also a kind of 21st century morality play. British ambassador to the former Soviet republic of Uzbekistan between 2002 and 2004, Craig Murray is a philandering party animal who is finally ditched by his long-suffering wife when he falls for a beautiful Uzbek nightclub dancer. But exposure to the horrors of President Islam Karimov’s dictatorship, and growing disquiet over the appeasement policies of his Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) bosses, force to the surface an under­lying...

Uzbekistan is surrounded by five other '-stans' - Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan (the word 'stan' means land) – and more strategically located between the giants of Russia and China. It is one of only two countries in the world that has the dubious honour of being doubly landlocked (that is, goods must pass through two other countries to reach a port) - the only other country which shares this trait is Liechtenstein. In August 1991, Uzbekistan reluctantly declared independence from the Soviet Union. In subsequent ethnic tensions, two million Russians left the country for Russia. The current population of Uzbekistan is 26 million, making it the most populous Central Asian country. Most of these (around 70%) are actual Uzbeks and many of these...

From EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS The EU is likely to drastically scale down sanctions against Uzbekistan at the upcoming EU foreign ministers' meeting in Brussels on 13 November, as Europe seeks to establish a long-term energy and security foothold in Central Asia. The sanctions - which consist of an arms embargo, a visa ban on 12 Uzbek officials and freezing high-level bilateral talks - were imposed after last May's massacre in Andijan, but elapse automatically on 17 November unless renewed by a consensus of all 25 member states. Uzbekistan has not met any of the conditions stipulated in last year's EU resolution - such as setting up an independent inquiry into the shooting of at least 180 civilians in Andijan - with European politicians and NGOs agreeing that human rights abuses have...

By Stephen Castle in The Independent Sanctions imposed by Europe on Uzbekistan over human rights abuses are likely to be scaled back this month, prompting divisions over EU efforts to expand its influence in Central Asia. Although an arms embargo is almost certain to remain in place, there is pressure to lift a visa ban on 12 Uzbek officials, and to unfreeze high-level talks. The measures were taken in protest at the shooting of at least 180 civilians in Andijan. But unless there is agreement from all 25 EU nations, the sanctions will expire on 17 November. At a meeting with the EU this week, Uzbekistan is expected to offer to hold a human rights dialogue and to discuss Andijan. Many EU members want a judicial investigation into the massacre, and punishment of those responsible. But...

From neweurasia I know what you were thinking: “It’s about time for another post about Craig Murray, because we haven’t had enough of those.” Well you are in luck, because I just read his new book, Murder in Samarkand, and am about to — somewhat reluctantly — share my thoughts on it. But first I should note that, according to Mr. Murray, there are currently no plans to release the book in the States. Luckily, American readers can buy it on the UK Amazon site, although I wouldn’t recommend it as in-flight reading. Love Murray or hate him, the book is an interesting read that anyone interested in Central Asia or the War on Terror should be familiar with. If you’ve been living in a cave, Craig Murray is the former British Ambassador to Uzbekistan during 2002-2004. He...

From ">UN News Centre 1 November 2006 – Painting a very grim picture of the human rights situation in Uzbekistan, including torture, harassment and a lack of access and independent investigation into the killings in Andijan in 2005, United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan today warned there has been no progress over the past year and urged the Government to improve things. While welcoming the Uzbek decision to abolish the death penalty as of 2008, Mr. Annan encourages the authorities to immediately introduce a moratorium on the passing of death sentences, stresses the importance of implementing recommendations by UN treaty bodies and urges them to cooperate with UN experts and officials, particularly in allowing access. “The lack of response from the Government of Uzbekistan...

The United Nations Human Rights Council, which was established in June 2006, has just had its second session and the outcome is a real disappointment. As explained here, Peggy Hicks, global advocacy director of Human Rights Watch accuses that: “In the face of atrocities in the Sudan, attacks on civilians in Sri Lanka, and impunity for mass murder in Uzbekistan, this council was largely silent. As the premier international human rights body, the council needs to demonstrate its credibility by taking robust action against violator states.” Since I've recently returned from a holiday in Uzbekistan, I was particularly disappointed to read that, despite the Uzbek government’s abusive crackdown following the massacre of hundreds of unarmed protesters in Andijan in May 2005, the...

From The Congress of Democratic Uzbekistan (CDU) Uzbek Foreign Affairs Ministry announced that the next group of Uzbek citizens, who fled the country after the Andijan events in May 2005, made a request to the Uzbek embassy in the USA to render assistance to return home. All of these refugees have been staying in Boyce, Idaho. At the same time the mysterious death of two Uzbek refugees in Idaho has raised suspicion and concern. According to Akram Mahmedov living in Idaho (1444 W Jacksnipe Dr Meridian, ID 83642 ; Ph. #:208-895-0206 ; 208-713-4659), a 29 year old Uzbek citizen Alimjan Sabirov (Olimjon Sobirov, Garden city, ID) died on August 1, 2006. Doctors announced his death as suspicious for he had mysteriously died in his sleep, especially because Mr. Sabirov was a healthy...

From Light Matter Craig Murray's Murder in Samarkand tells the story of one diplomat who fought the system and lost. First a timeline. Way back in post 9-11 2001, when the civilized world was united by a desire to eradicate the planet of the scourge of terrorism, it seemed that global alliances were being realigned and the bad guys were on the run. The US set up airbases in Uzbekistan with Uzbekistan's full -- and Russia's tacit -- approval. So soon after the US-led NATO campaign in Kosovo, when relations between Washington and Moscow were strained to Cold War levels for the first time since the fall of the Soviet Union, such cooperation was unheard of. American boots in Russia's near abroad at any other time would have signaled the final dissolution of the Russian homeland let alone...

From Fox23 News TASHKENT, Uzbekistan (AP) - A dissident Uzbek folk singer has been given a three-year suspended sentence for writing a song about last year's bloody crackdown of an uprising in the city of Andijan, his lawyer said Monday. Dadakhon Khasanov was convicted Friday by the Tashkent Criminal Court, which then suspended his sentence provided he does not write politically motivated songs or poems, defense attorney Surat Ikramov told The Associated Press. Ikramov dismissed the trial as "theatrical" and "absurd." Khasanov, 66, whose trial began in July, was forced to sign away ownership of his house and car, and he turned down legal defense after pressure from the Interior Ministry, Ikramov said. Khasanov faced official accusations of insulting President Islam Karimov and...

From the Washington Post The courtroom provided a telling introduction. I had recently arrived as British ambassador in Uzbekistan's old Silk Road capital of Tashkent, where I was watching the trial of a 22-year-old dissident named Iskander Khuderbegainov. The gaunt young man was accused with five other Muslims of several crimes, including membership in a terrorist organization linked to al-Qaeda. The six sat huddled in a cage guarded by 14 Kalashnikov-wielding soldiers. The judge made a show of not listening to the defense, haranguing the men with anti-Islamic jokes. It looked like a replay of footage I'd seen of Nazi show trials. The next day, an envelope landed on my desk; inside were photos of the corpse of a man who had been imprisoned in Uzbekistan's gulags. I learned that his...

By Mary Raftery in The Irish Times He was accused of corruption, of taking bribes, being an alcoholic and sleeping around. Pretty hairy stuff, if you happen to be the UK foreign office's youngest ambassador, a high flyer well on your way to a glittering career. The story of Craig Murray, British ambassador to Uzbekistan from 2002 until 2004, is a salutary tale for anyone thinking of doing the right thing, of defending people against murder and torture, of standing up and speaking out in the face of duplicity, hypocrisy and evil. For this is what Murray did when he publicly condemned the Uzbek regime in 2003 for its systematic use of torture - "on an industrial scale", as he has described it. He also implicitly criticised his own UK government and that of the United States, who...

By Christian Neef in Spiegel Online See also Germany's dialogue with the Uzbek regime: a disgrace for German democracy While many Westerners have been forced out of Uzbekistan, the German army continues to operate a base in the border city of Termez. Oppenents of President Karimov's despotic regime are now accusing the Germans of looking the other way. In the Surchon discotheque, a dark basement club on the main street of Termez, the dance floor glitters in the disco lights, but it's almost empty. Business isn't good. A few bronze-skinned Uzbek women sit at two of the tables. Seven young men, their pale skin an obvious indication that they aren't locals, sit at a third table. The boys are German soldiers from faraway Europe. They're waiting for their next round of beers and hoping...

From Literary Review, August 2006 Murder in Samarkand: A British Ambassador’s Controversial Defiance of Tyranny in the War on Terror Put aside the clunky subtitle and the garland from moral pimple John Pilger – the anti-Establishment Antipodean’s a hero until you meet him – and what you have here is an amazing narrative, beautifully written, of one man’s war on the War on Terror. Craig Murray was the youngest British ambassador when he was appointed to represent Her Majesty in the Central Asian tyranny of Uzbekistan. Brilliant, unorthodox, committed to championing the causes of the United Kingdom, free trade and human rights, Murray had served his country with aplomb in Poland, Ghana and in the Citadel in Whitehall, playing real-life, real-time war games against Saddam’s...