Human Rights Watch and the Uzbek Forum for Human Rights argue that Uzbekistan’s agricultural reforms have not dismantled the state-driven model governing cotton and wheat, and that farmers remain trapped in what they describe as an “coercive” production regime.
In a report published on 17 February 2026—“Farmers Have No Freedom: Abuse and Exploitation of Cotton and Wheat Farmers in Uzbekistan”—the groups say local authorities continue to enforce mandatory crop quotas and use intimidation tactics and penalties, including land confiscation, against farmers who fail to hit targets. The report also alleges farmers are required to sell harvests at state-set prices, limiting their ability to operate as independent businesses within the Uzbekistan cotton farming coercive system.
The findings are based on field research conducted between October 2023 and December 2025, including interviews with 75 farmers and experts across five regions, as well as reviews of court records, legislation, media coverage, social media posts and official statements. According to the NGOs, quota enforcement can include abusive behaviour by local officials. Some farmers described being slapped or beaten, or having objects thrown at them, during meetings. Others said officials used degrading insults—calling them “donkeys,” “scumbags,” or “pigs”—if they failed to deliver the required volumes.
Uzbek Forum for Human Rights director Umida Niyazova said: “The Uzbekistan government needs to end the coercive and exploitative conditions in which hard-working farmers are expected to produce cotton and wheat.
“Authorities should commit to agricultural reforms that offer real protections for these farmers and heed the advice of farmers themselves as to what changes are actually needed.”
The report also claims that private cotton-textile and wheat production companies often delay payments or pay less than farmers are owed, creating financial stress that can result in tax penalties or even bankruptcy. While courts have sometimes sided with farmers, the NGOs say government authorities do not consistently enforce decisions requiring companies to settle outstanding amounts.
Land insecurity is presented as another structural pressure point. Farmers told researchers that lease arrangements do not protect them from arbitrary seizures if quotas are missed. Legal challenges to land confiscation rarely succeed, the report says, and even favourable rulings can go unenforced. One dispossessed farmer described the system’s power dynamics bluntly: “The judge does what the governor says,” adding that “The court cannot help in the matter of land.”
The NGOs further allege that police have detained farmers for several days without charge over missed quotas and that authorities have targeted bloggers reporting on these problems, with courts issuing short custodial sentences after arrests.
The Uzbek government has pointed to progress on ending forced labour among cotton pickers and says reforms are underway through initiatives such as the 2020–2030 Agriculture Development Strategy, including laws aimed at protecting rights in agriculture. It has largely rejected the report’s conclusions. Human Rights Watch and the Uzbek Forum counter that, despite legal changes, the underlying structure still prevents farmers from operating independently and keeps them subordinate to state priorities—an argument they say is evidenced by testimonies like that of a cotton farmer in Khorezm: “It is as if we have become hired workers for someone, not landowners.”
Calls for reform and international leverage
Uzbekistan ratified major international labour-rights agreements in 1995 and joined International Labour Convention 87 in December 2016. The NGOs say compliance with these commitments requires ending abusive quota enforcement, abolishing quotas, and consulting farmers directly on reforms—steps they argue are necessary to dismantle the Uzbekistan cotton farming coercive system.
They also urged international partners to increase pressure on Uzbekistan to end coercive agricultural practices. The groups specifically called on the European Union to insist on human-rights compliance as a condition of bilateral agreements signed in 2025.
Human Rights Watch Central Asia adviser Mihra Rittmann said: “It’s appalling that Uzbekistan’s cotton and wheat farmers work in such exploitative and coercive production conditions.
“Uzbekistan’s partners, international financial institutions, and potential investors in Uzbekistan’s agricultural sector should use their leverage to ensure that the Uzbek government implements reform that genuinely protects farmers and their rights.”