To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps the Government are taking to support the establishment of democracy in Uzbekistan.

Our ambassador in Tashkent, David Moran, has continued to impress upon President Karimov's Government the importance of social and political reform and our conviction that democracy, political pluralism and respect for the rule of law are essential for the long-term stability of Uzbekistan. We have made repeated calls on President Karimov's Government to allow free and fair elections in Uzbekistan. In a statement on 29 December 2004, my hon. Friend, the then Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Bill Rammell), made clear our view that Uzbekistan's most recent election, held on 26 December, had fallen far short of international standards in these respects.

We fund a number of projects aimed at promoting democracy, civil society, and human rights in Uzbekistan. For example, our embassy in Tashkent is supporting a Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) registration and capacity-building project. This provides a lawyer to unregistered NGOs, assisting them in preparing documentation for registration, and appealing in the case of refusal. We are also sponsoring an International Rehabilitation Council for Torture Victims (IRCT) project aimed at increasing the effectiveness of the Uzbek authorities' efforts in tackling the problem of torture.