2019–2020 Uzbekistan Protests
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The 2019–2020 Uzbekistan protests were a series of spontaneous demonstrations and peaceful protest movements over social and political issues. Civil unrest has ravaged the country for a long time from July 2019, after a series of scandals and home demolitions caused severe anger. One reason for the massive demonstrations in the winter of 2019 was energy/fuel shortages in the region of
Karakalpakstan Karakalpakstan, / officially the Republic of Karakalpakstan, / is an autonomous republic of Uzbekistan. It occupies the whole northwestern part of Uzbekistan. The capital is Nukus (' / ). The Republic of Karakalpakstan has an area of , and ...
. After a plan was set out to demolish illegal homes and mines in
Tashkent Tashkent (, uz, Toshkent, Тошкент/, ) (from russian: Ташкент), or Toshkent (; ), also historically known as Chach is the capital and largest city of Uzbekistan. It is the most populous city in Central Asia, with a population of ...
, six days of protests unleashed.


Background

Protests in Uzbekistan are a rare event given the country's authoritarian history. Uzbekistan's security forces under President
Islam Karimov Islam Abduganiyevich Karimov ( uz, Islom Abdugʻaniyevich Karimov / Ислом Абдуғаниевич Каримов, italics=no; russian: link=no, Ислам Абдуганиевич Каримов; 30 January 1938 – 2 September 2016) was t ...
suppressed most public or digital expressions of discontent. After current President
Shavkat Mirziyoyev Shavkat Miromonovich Mirziyoyev ( Uzbek Latin: ''Shavkat Miromonovich (Miromon o‘g‘li) Mirziyoyev'', Uzbek Cyrillic: Шавкат Миромонович (Миромон ўғли) Мирзиёев ; born 24 July 1957) is an Uzbek politician ...
began his tenure, careful digital protests directed against government officials and government policies began to emerge. Three years after Mirziyoyev took over, in the fall of 2019, small public protests are emerging. The majority of public protests so far have been tied to temperature drops. As the temperature dropped, so did the patience of people unable to satisfy their basic needs for
electricity Electricity is the set of physical phenomena associated with the presence and motion of matter that has a property of electric charge. Electricity is related to magnetism, both being part of the phenomenon of electromagnetism, as describ ...
and natural gas. The protests have been isolated and uncoordinated, but in a way each small demonstration reinforces others. Their goals are the same: To attract the attention of officials.


Wave of protests

Rare street protests began on 2–3 April 2019 when illegal houses were demolished, sparking anger. A wave of protests started on 26–30 July, protesting the treatment of poor people and the demolitions of mosques, homes and houses. Many say they've been treated like dogs. Hundreds demonstrated in the areas surrounding
Tashkent Tashkent (, uz, Toshkent, Тошкент/, ) (from russian: Ташкент), or Toshkent (; ), also historically known as Chach is the capital and largest city of Uzbekistan. It is the most populous city in Central Asia, with a population of ...
. Mass protests were quashed by the security forces. One man said that "The police has treated us like dogs, The president is losing power". Between 6–12 August 2020, a series of national protests in
Tashkent Tashkent (, uz, Toshkent, Тошкент/, ) (from russian: Ташкент), or Toshkent (; ), also historically known as Chach is the capital and largest city of Uzbekistan. It is the most populous city in Central Asia, with a population of ...
was met with a police presence and scuffles. Mild protests were held nationwide in support of the protesters in Tashkent, protesting a new plan and bill set in place and demanding the resignation of president
Shavkat Mirziyoyev Shavkat Miromonovich Mirziyoyev ( Uzbek Latin: ''Shavkat Miromonovich (Miromon o‘g‘li) Mirziyoyev'', Uzbek Cyrillic: Шавкат Миромонович (Миромон ўғли) Мирзиёев ; born 24 July 1957) is an Uzbek politician ...
. These protests ended with the scrapping of the plan on 12 August, when the protest movement ended. On 28 November-14 December, a wave of protests struck
Andijan Andijan (sometimes spelled Andijon or Andizhan in English) ( uz, Andijon / Андижон / ئەندىجان; fa, اندیجان, ''Andijân/Andīǰān''; russian: Андижан, ''Andižan'') is a city in Uzbekistan. It is the administrative, ...
, a city which experienced a national crisis, the
2005 Andijan unrest On 13 May 2005, protests erupted in Andijan, Uzbekistan. At one point, troops from the Uzbek National Security Service (SNB) fired into a crowd of protesters. Estimates of those killed on 13 May range from 187, the official count of the governmen ...
. Thousands of people attended a series of rallies in the eastern region. One was hurt when a tree was pulled down as a blockade to halt traffic. Agencies had been pulled in to quell the protests. President
Shavkat Mirziyoyev Shavkat Miromonovich Mirziyoyev ( Uzbek Latin: ''Shavkat Miromonovich (Miromon o‘g‘li) Mirziyoyev'', Uzbek Cyrillic: Шавкат Миромонович (Миромон ўғли) Мирзиёев ; born 24 July 1957) is an Uzbek politician ...
called on protesters to stop and pause their demands for a non-authoritarian government and democracy, with justice and an end to shortages.


See also

*
2005 Andijan unrest On 13 May 2005, protests erupted in Andijan, Uzbekistan. At one point, troops from the Uzbek National Security Service (SNB) fired into a crowd of protesters. Estimates of those killed on 13 May range from 187, the official count of the governmen ...


References

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