Embassy of Uzbekistan to the UK recently commented on “allegations” of forced child labor in the agriculture of Uzbekistan. I guess so-called allegations were made by BBC TV channel reporter, who went to Uzbekistan disguised as a reporter of a textile industry magazine and made a film about involvement of child labor in cotton industry in Uzbekistan.

A little about the BBC TV report that you can also watch online – a BBC reporter goes to Uzbekistan disguised as a reporter of a textile industry magazine and gets access to cotton fair in Tashkent. There he interviews several people, both organizers and participators (mainly businessmen), about the cotton industry in Uzbekistan and how much of Uzbek cotton people buy every year and whether or not the buyers are interested in the origins of cotton. Then the BBC reporter goes to the cotton fields and interviews couple of children about their work as cotton pickers. While filming the process of sending students to the cotton fields in Soviet-time old buses escorted by police, the reporter gets arrested. In the police office after three-hour interrogation, he is released and asked to leave the country. Back in UK, the reporter still continues his investigation to find the route of Uzbek cotton after it is sold in Uzbekistan and he finds some cloth companies in UK that use Uzbek cotton in manufacture. To the question whether or not they are worried about involvement of child labor in producing this cotton, these companies give different answers.

In the report, the Uzbek embassy to UK mainly argues that child labor is not involved in cotton production in Uzbekistan. Interestingly, it gives various arguments to prove the statement. The report says that the “information campaign” about Uzbekistan involving child labor in cotton production is done in purpose by those who want to drive out Uzbek cotton form world market, as “after lifting of the state subsidies for cotton producers in some of well-known countries,” they became less competitive in the global market.

There are many interesting points in the report, but I found three paragraphs the most astonishing.

Uzbekistan, being a member of the UN, OSCE, ILO and the number of other international organizations, is also a signatory to many important agreements and conventions. It also has an advanced legal system, in which the adherence to international norms for regulation of social-labour sphere, as a whole, and protection of the labour rights of the under-age citizens, in particular, is proclaimed.

Historically formed mentality of the Uzbek people, its love to children, which is reflected in the country’s legislation regulating labour affairs, is well known. The Labour Code of Uzbekistan (article 77) sets a minimal age for employment — from 16 years. Persons, who reached the age of 15, can be accepted to work by the written consent of one of the parents or substituting person.

At the same time, in order to prepare young people for labour and rendering assistance for their parents and farmer-relatives, upon reaching by children of the age of 14, it is allowed during the free-from-school period to employ comprehensive and secondary school pupils, students from professional, technical colleges and lyceums to perform an easy work, which would not cause any harm to their health and development.

I advise you to watch the BBC report and the youtube video given below and compare what is said in the report. Isn’t it an obvious hypocrisy of the government?