Sick Mothers and Abandoned Children

Mothers who have been hired to pick cotton instead of teachers and medical staff in the Quyichirchiq District of the Tashkent Region, have had to abandon their children in desperate conditions. Malohat Eshonqulova and Yelena Urlayeva, who carried out monitoring in this district on October 3, came across unattended children and women who had fallen ill in desperate conditions.

“When we arrived at that place we found out that mothers were picking cotton and the children were left in the half-ruined building of secondary school № 7,” said Malohat Eshonqulova. According to Eshonqulova, women “volunteers” are people from the Fergana and Andijan regions who have been hired by teachers and medical staff to pick cotton based on orders from the head of the Parkent District administration.

 

 

 

 

Monthly Salary of 500,000 soms.

Teachers and members of staff of other state-funded organizations who were sent to the cotton fields, have complained to human rights activists about cold weather, food and non-compliance of hygiene requirements. The rights activists say that this year’s cotton-picking campaign is being carried out under strict secrecy. Teachers and medical staff have to hide their real profession and have been warned not to tell anyone about their work.

 

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Original source: http://www.bbc.com/uzbek/uzbekistan-41528202

October 6, 2017