The WMD's Democracy Alert

From time to time, the World Movement for Democracy issues alerts concerning participants and other colleagues who are facing personal danger due to their work on behalf of democracy and for whom a vigorous response from around the world may be critical.

******************************************************************
May 20, 2005

World Movement Participants Express Concern about Events in Uzbekistan and Call for Full and Independent Investigation

The World Movement for Democracy expresses its deep concern over recent developments in the Uzbek city of Andijan and surrounding areas. According to media reports, on May 13, 2004, Uzbek troops opened fire on a crowd of nearly 1,000 demonstrators on the main city square in Andijan who were calling for justice and end to poverty. The majority of protesters were unarmed and included women, the elderly, and children. According to official sources, 169 people were killed as a result of the incident. However, many independent sources report over 500-700 killed. The circumstances around the attack remain unclear, with contradictory information coming from government and independent sources. A number of World Movement for Democracy participants have therefore called for a full investigation by international experts, including the Red Cross, Amnesty International, and others.

World Movement participants and other human rights activists around the world have issued statements expressing their concerns and solidarity with the Uzbek people.

* To sign the Urgent Appeal from the Centers for Pluralism, please review the attached documents, available in English and in Russian
* Also, attached is the statement issued by human rights activists around the World (in Russian)
* To view appeals from members of the Human Rights House Network: http://www.humanrightshouse.org/dllvis5.asp?id=3269

For More News and Information about the Events:
Amnesty International Press Release (May 16, 2005): “Uzbekistan: Only an independent investigation will reveal the truth of recent violence� http://web.amnesty.org/library/Index/ENGEUR620082005

Articles from Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty http://www.rferl.org/specials/uzbek_unrest/

UN calls for Uzbek deaths inquiry:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/4559031.stm

Information about the events in Andijan in Russian available on the Human Rights in Russia Internet portal:
http://www.hro.org/editions/2005/05/18-2.php

******************************************************************
To subscribe send an email to subscribe-democracynews@lyris.ned.org.

If you do not have access to the Web and would like to access the materials mentioned above, please contact us by e-mail(world@ned.org)or fax (202-293-0755).

DemocracyNews is an electronic mailing list moderated by the National Endowment for Democracy as the Secretariat of the World Movement for Democracy.