On December 2, 2024, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control designated three former Uzbek officials – Yulduz Khudaiberganova, Anvar Kuryazov, and Aybek Masharipov – for allegedly using their power and position to engage in human trafficking and gender-based violence. According to OFAC, the designees engaged in repeated instances of physical and sexual abuse and the trafficking of children in a state-run orphanage in Uzbekistan.
The State Department concurrently designated the same three officials for gross violations of human rights pursuant to Section 7031 (c) of the Department of State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 2024. Section 7031 (c) enables the State Department to subject designees and their immediate family members to visa restrictions that make them ineligible for entry into the United States.
The designations, which were announced on the International Day for the Abolition of Slavery, were imposed pursuant to Executive Order 13818, which builds upon and implements the Global Magnitsky Human Right Accountability Act that targets those who engage in serious human rights abuse and corruption around the world. As a result of these designations, all property and interests in property of the designees within the United States or within the possession or control of a U.S. person are blocked, and U.S. persons are generally prohibited from engaging in transactions involving the designated persons. In addition, entities owned 50 percent or more by one or more designated persons are also blocked, unless they are exempt or authorized by a general or specific license issued by OFAC.
U.S. Department of Treasury Press Release