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Craig Murray; photo: uzland.info |
“Rupert Joy should be deeply ashamed of himself,” the former UK ambassador to Uzbekistan, Craig Murray, said when he learnt about Joy’s participation in the style.uz fashion week, organised by Uzbek President Islam Karimov’s eldest daughter Gulnara.
Karimova does not spare money for her pet project, turning the Uzbek capital into posh catwalks on which models show the collections of leading couturiers and inviting world-famous pop stars.
British ambassadors – Rupert Joy and Director of the British Council Uzbekistan Steve McNulty – fell victim to the jingling of coins of Gulnara, who is fond of luxury and glamour.
Both men took part in the style.uz fashion week in Tashkent between 9 and 14 October and gave a news conference jointly with Gulnara Karimova as organisers and guests of the fashion week.
Craig Murray, who was British ambassador to Uzbekistan between 2002 and 2004 and claimed the reputation of a principled and consistent fighter for human rights, thinks that cultural events are not wrong in themselves in promoting international understanding between peoples.
However, he warned that one should be careful in Uzbekistan with everything linked to the cotton industry because it relies on forced adult labour and on child slavery, and anything which
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Rupert Joy at the style.uz news conference |
glorifies the dictatorial regime of President Islam Kairmov.
“Joy should not have been at this event on both counts,” Murray said.
Cotton trade is enormously profitable for the Uzbek elite, the former diplomat said. This is because they use almost no capital equipment and a huge slave labour force. The margin from the farm price to the world price is 3,000%.
“Gulnara is at the top table of those who gain from this exploitation,” he said.
Having enslaved their country to ensure stratospheric profits for themselves, the Uzbek elite and Gulnara Karimova, in particular, cannot but be concerned with their image in the world which they are trying to improve by splashing huge money earned by others on this.
Craig Murray is convinced that Karimova wants to improve her image to strengthen her political ambitions. One of their means of doing this is to involve ambassadors of countries that enjoy a good reputation in the world in her events.
“Gulnara
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Gulnara Karimova; photo: gulnarakarimova.com |
“Joy’s attendance is in effect an endorsement of both Gulnara and of the whole regime,” the former ambassador added.
He does not think that the behaviour of Joy and McNulty is their private initiative.
The British Council’s partnership with Karimova’s Fund Forum and its sponsorship of the Uzbek foundation’s events indicate that they been approved by London, Murray believes.
“Unfortunately the British government does not care at all about the condition of the people of Uzbekistan or about the child labour exploited in the fields,” he said. “Their only priority is the use of Uzbekistan for road transport to supply NATO troops in Afghanistan.”
The British ambassador to Uzbekistan, Rupert Joy, has refused to answer Uznews.net’s questions.
Spokesman for the embassy Richard Pike who was engaged in correspondence with Uznews.net said that Ambassador Joy had nothing to add to what was in his his speech at the fashion week news conference.
In his speech, for which the British embassy no longer has a text, he gave full reasons for the British Council maintaining the programmes of cultural and educational exchange between Uzbekistan and Britain, Richard Pike said.
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