Acknowledgements

This report was researched and written by a team of Human Rights Watch researchers.It was edited by Rachel Denber, deputy director of the Europe and Central Asia division, and Iain Levine, program director of Human Rights Watch. Dinah PoKempner, general counsel for Human Rights Watch, also reviewed the report.Valuable technical support was provided by Inara Gulpe-Laganovska and Victoria Elman, associates from the Europe and Central Asia division in New York. John Emerson designed the map.

Human Rights Watch expresses its sincere thanks to the brave women and men who shared their stories with us about the tragic events in Andijan.We extend our sympathies for the loss of life there.We also recognize the contribution that rights defenders in Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan have made to this report.They have faced great personal risk researching the events in Andijan and have shown deep commitment to the cause of human rights.