This Video Does Not Feature Child Trafficking By A Muslim Driver In Uzbekistan
The Claim
A video shows a Muslim driver traficking children in Uzbekistan.
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A video has recently surfaced on social media. It allegedly shows a Muslim driver in Uzbekistan who is said to have been detained. He is accused of transporting 25 children in a Chevrolet Spark car with the purported intention of selling them for sexual exploitation and organ harvesting.
The clip was shared along with the caption, “CHILD TRAFFICKING: A Muslim driver was detained while suspiciously transporting 25 children in Uzbekistan. He ended up admitting that the children were going to be sold for sexual purposes and organ harvesting.”
Misbar’s Analysis
Misbar investigated the circulating claim and found it to be misleading. The video has nothing to do with child-trafficking.
The Video Shows A Teacher Taking Her Pupils Home, Not A Muslim Trafficking Children
Reviewing the clip through an extensive reverse image search, Misbar’s team found that the incident features a female teacher claiming to take her pupils home, not a Muslim trafficking children.
An investigation about this incident was held by the Road Safety Service in Bukhara region and shared on the official YouTube Channel on September 16, where it was confirmed that the 25 children were crammed in the car by their teacher. The teacher claimed that she was taking them home and squashing them in the four-passenger car was the only way for her to take all of them home. The title of the investigating video reads, “The driver who took 25 young children into her car was identified.”
The same 48 seconds shared in the claim by X users were shared by several news agencies, like The Sun and Longview News Journal, where it was also confirmed that the driver was a teacher who claimed to be transporting her pupils home.
The name of the teacher and her face were not disclosed in the investigation, nor was her religion. Her punishment was decided during a public council meeting, involving community members. She has been sentenced for unsafe driving. However, the decision has not yet been reported.
Children’s Rights In Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan is the country with the highest population in Central Asia, where thirty-eight percent of this population are children (under 15 years old), according to statistics by The Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) Program. The rights of children in Uzbekistan are improving but there are still some problems, such as child labour.
More than a quarter of the population in Uzbekistan lives under the poverty line, affecting the living conditions of children and pushing them to labor. Although Uzbekistan has ratified the conventions on the prohibition of child labour, the children still work. In fact, this practice is a part of the traditions in Uzbekistan. The practice is integrated into education. Children should work during the harvest season and if they refuse to work they may get expelled from school.
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