Cotton Campaign Hasn't Lifted Boycott of Uzbek Cotton

AKIPRESS.COM - The Cotton Campaign said it hosted the first-ever, high-level delegation of Uzbek government officials to join its annual strategy meeting on February 4.

The two sides agreed on broad areas of further progress that are necessary to achieve lasting reform. The Cotton Campaign and the Government of Uzbekistan also agreed to intensify direct dialogue in 2019 in order to encourage and accelerate the progress of reform.

Led by the Deputy Prime Minister Tanzila Narbaeva, the delegation included the Minister of Employment and Labor Relations Sherzod Kudbiev and the Chairman of the Uzbek Textile and Garment Association Ilkhom Khaydarov, along with the Ambassador of Uzbekistan to the United States Javlon Vakhabov. The delegation traveled to Washington, D.

3. at the invitation of the Cotton Campaign to meet with its partners including Uzbek civil society activists, international human rights and labor rights organizations, trade unions, academic experts, responsible investors, and apparel trade associations.

"We are encouraged by the Government of Uzbekistan's commitment to end decades of forced labor and we are focused now on the many dimensions of this historic task which remain to be completed," said Cotton Campaign co-founder Bennett Freeman. "Our discussions were substantive, constructive, and positive, highlighting both recent areas of significant progress and the major challenges still ahead.

" The Cotton Campaign said it will provide a roadmap outlining specific commitments and actions necessary to eliminate systemic forced labor while advancing structural reforms and enabling civil society. The roadmap will seek to complement and reinforce the important efforts being undertaken by the Government of Uzbekistan to end forced labor in the cotton sector, which are supported by the International Labour Organization.

A key point of discussion during the strategy meetings was the Uzbek Cotton Pledge, a commitment from 310 apparel brands to not "knowingly source" cotton from Uzbekistan until it is...