There is very little time left until the celebration of the quarter-century anniversary of the adoption of our country’s Constitution. “The people of Uzbekistan, solemnly proclaiming their commitment to human rights …” These are the first words that open the Basic Law and set the tone for the whole subsequent text, as well as the vast number of laws and other normative legal acts that are based on this fundamental principle.
It should be noted that over the years of independence, Uzbekistan has formed the main lines of policy in the field of human rights protection, including adherence to universally recognized principles of democracy, international obligations, development of international cooperation.
The Constitution of the Republic of Uzbekistan enshrines the principle of priority of universally recognized norms of international law. In our country they realize that without the participation of international organizations and accession to the basic acts on human rights, it is impossible to build a democratic legal state. To date, the republic has acceded to more than 70 international documents in this field. This, in turn, contributed to the creation of an effective system for the protection of human rights.
In particular, its own model for the gradual implementation of international standards in national legislation and law enforcement practice has been formed. Parliament adopted, in addition to the Constitution, 16 codes and over 700 laws regulating human rights and fundamental freedoms. The second section of the Basic Law can be called the Uzbek Bill of Human Rights.
As part of the consistent implementation of civil rights, cardinal reforms are being implemented, aimed at radical improvement and increasing the effectiveness of the judicial and legal system. On their basis, democratization, liberalization and humanization of public relations in the sphere of realization of citizens’ rights in the sphere of justice are ensured. Taking into account the recommendations of the UN Charter and Treaty Bodies, the independence and independence of the judicial system has been strengthened, the structure and principles of the judiciary have been revised, courts specialize through the introduction of courts in administrative and economic cases, the rights of the bar, victims and victims of crime, witnesses.
At the same time, a system has been established for monitoring compliance with constitutional human rights and freedoms and the implementation of international norms and principles. An institutional framework for the protection of human rights has been created. Along with the traditional law enforcement system, which includes the court, the prosecutor’s office, the legal profession, there are also national human rights institutions.
The issue of ensuring human rights and freedoms in Uzbekistan is under the scrutiny not only of the state, but also of civil society institutions that take an active part in improving legislation, conducting public monitoring of the rights of socially vulnerable sections of the population, and preparing periodic national and alternative reports on the implementation of international obligations. Human rights activists, in particular, are engaged in activists of various NGOs that defend the interests of not only their members, but also came to understand the importance of forming in the country a system of public monitoring and control over the activities of state bodies. Among them are children’s, women’s, environmental NGO’s, organizations of disabled and elderly citizens, gender centers, as well as professional societies, foundations, associations, unions, committees that unite citizens according to their interests.
Recently, public control over the activities of the judiciary, law enforcement and controlling structures has been developing through the expansion of the mandates of the Ombudsman institution, the National Center for Human Rights, the establishment of the Business Ombudsman institution, the introduction of a system for reporting power structures to the houses of parliament and the population. This was facilitated by the institutionalization of the institution of public control over the activities of state bodies in the country’s Constitution. Currently, the Parliament is working on the adoption of the Law “On Public Control in the Republic of Uzbekistan”.
Our country intends to continue to develop cooperation with the UN Charter and Treaty Bodies as a full-fledged subject of international relations, to take an active part in improving international and national monitoring of the human rights situation in Uzbekistan and other UN member states. By now, a solid experience of interaction with this organization has already been accumulated. This is evidenced by the fact that this year only UN Secretary-General António Guterres (9-10 June), UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad al-Hussein, regional representative of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights for Central Asia, Ryszard Komenda, UN Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief Ahmed Shahid.
The results of the visit to Uzbekistan from August 29 to September 11 of the delegation of the international non-governmental organization Human Rights Watch were fruitful, during which issues of ensuring human rights and the role of human rights organizations in this process were discussed, as well as possible areas of cooperation.
IA “Jahon”
(The material was prepared on the basis of information from the National Center for Human Rights of the Republic of Uzbekistan)
