5th Annual Conference of the International Labour Rights Monitoring Mission for Central Asia

The Friedrich Ebert Foundation, in partnership with the International Labor Rights Monitoring Mission, held its 5th annual conference on the current state of labor rights in Central Asia on December 7-8, 2021. 

The 5th annual conference of the International Labour Rights Monitoring Mission for Central Asia took place during the XV International Human Rights Documentary Film Festival “Bir Duino Kyrgyzstan”. 

This year, delegates from Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan and Kyrgyzstan participated to discuss general trends and workers' rights in Central Asia. Independent trade unions and human rights organizations from Tajikistan, Russia, France, the United States, and Germany also joined the event online and offline. 

The participants pointed out that despite some progress in respecting basic workers' rights in Central Asian countries, such as the reduction of child and forced labor in Uzbekistan, the end of open repression of trade unionists in Kazakhstan, and the rejection of the anti-union "Law on Trade Unions" by the president of the Kyrgyz Republic, the overall situation with respect to labor rights in the region remains alarming. 

The International Labor Rights Monitoring Mission initiated this conference as a response to the weakening of trade unions and civil society in the region. At the end of the conference, participants signed a declaration on working together to protect and promote basic human and workers' rights. 

The purpose of the conference was to summarize the results and lessons learnt, as well as to set directions and priorities for the next 5 years.

The organizers of the conference also took part in the live podium discussion titled "The Role of Trade Unions in Kyrgyzstan. What is Next?" at TV1.kg. You can watch the live broadcast here: