Oct 14, 2019 | Advocacy, Non-legal submissions
The ICJ has presented information to the UN Committee against Torture in preparation for the Committee’s examination of the fifth periodic report of Uzbekistan under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR).
In its submission, the ICJ addresses Uzbekistan’s legislation on extradition, its potential discrepancies with international law.
The ICJ welcomes the recent ratification of the Commonwealth of Independent States (hereafter, “CIS”) Convention on Legal Assistance and Legal Relations in Civil, Family and Criminal Matters 2002, known as the Chisinau Convention, as a positive step towards the compliance of the country’s extradition system with international standards
In it report, the ICJ formulates the following recommendations to Uzbekistan:
- Fully implement human rights and procedural safeguards and guarantees in extradition proceedings or in connection with other types of transfers, and interpret and apply such safeguards in accordance with Uzbekistan’s international human rights law obligations. In particular, Uzbekistan should take all necessary measures to fully implement the human rights guarantees featured in the Chisinau Convention into its domestic legislation.
- Implement the necessary reforms to give judicial authorities the central decision-making role in extradition proceedings, and ensure their full independence both at an institutional and personal level, in law and in practice. Extradition decisions should be taken by prosecutors only if they enjoy the same level of independence as judges, in law and in practice.
- Ensure that individuals extradited to face trial in Uzbekistan courts are awarded the full protection of the Convention.
- Take effective measures to prevent torture and other forms of ill-treatment, including by ensuring compliance with the non-refoulement principle in extradition proceedings.
- Carry out effective, independent and impartial investigations with a view to identifying persons directly and indirectly responsible for rendition operations and abduction practices, as they violate human rights and involve crimes under international law. Those responsible should be prosecuted, tried and, if convicted, sentenced to punishments commensurate with the gravity of their crimes, and to appropriate administrative sanctions to ensure non-repetition.
Uzbekistan-CAT-Advocacy-non legal submission-2019-ENG (download the submission in English)
Oct 3, 2019 | News
Today, the ICJ, the Regional office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) for Central Asia and the High School of Judges of the Republic of Uzbekistan (HSJ) are organizing a national training on “International law on economic, social and cultural (ESC) rights.”
This two-day training is one of series of similar trainings, held in 2019 and 2020, that will address international law on issues including rights to healthcare, education, housing and rights in the workplace.
The training sessions aim to build the capacity of judges, lawyers, prosecutors, legal academics and other representatives of the civil society on international standards on ESC rights, to share best practices on compliance by States with their international obligations, including through judicial practices related to ensuring access to justice for ESC rights.
The training sessions ensure diversity and networking opportunities between members of the judiciary and others legal practitioners.
Each training consists of four modules on (1) introduction to international law on ESC rights; (2) International obligations concerning access to justice and remedies for ESC rights in national courts; comparative examples of good practice; (3) Children’s ESC rights and (4) Women’s ESC rights.
Head of the EU Delegation in Uzbekistan Ambassador Eduards Stiprais pointed out, “Uzbekistan is taking serious international commitments to align its legislation with international norms and practices. Under Uzbekistan Constitution, these international commitments take precedence over the national law. They will reinforce the rights of Uzbekistan citizens and international investors. This will boost the economic and social development of the nation, but it will also put high demands to the judiciary system to ensure that its decisions fully comply with international norms and offer remedies against all breaches.”
Ryszard Komenda, OHCHR Regional Representative for Central Asia, noted that “Uzbekistan since 1995 has committed itself to ensure implementation of provisions of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR).
To date, Uzbekistan has already submitted three national periodic reports on implementation of the Covenant. The third national report was submitted in June 2019 and will be reviewed after 2020.
The UN Committee, tasked to oversee states’ compliance with their commitments under the ICESCR, has issued a number of recommendations for Uzbekistan.
Many of them highlight the instrumental role of training on economic, social and cultural rights as a means to build capacity of state actors to respect, protect and fulfil human rights.
Only through comprehensive understanding of the content of each right and realizing that all human rights are interrelated, indivisible and interdependent, it will be possible to guarantee holistic implementation of existing international human rights obligations of Uzbekistan”.
“These trainings are an important part of capacity building which is essential in ensuring the effectiveness of the reform of the judiciary,” said Róisín Pillay, Europe and Central Asia Programme Director of the ICJ.
“It is vital to build capacity of different actors of the justice system: members of the judiciary, law enforcement agencies, lawyers and civil society, to ensure a greater impact. Together with the OHCHR and the Supreme School of Judges and the great support of the EU Delegation in Uzbekistan, we could provide the space necessary for learning about international human rights law and, in particular, its various aspects related to economic, social and cultural rights,” she added.
The Director of the Higher School of Judges briefly spoke about the activities of the Supreme School of Judges (SSJ), and also noted the recent arrival of the UN Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers, Mr. Diego Garcia Sayan, who paid special attention to the establishment of the SSJ, along with other judiciary reforms in Uzbekistan.
“The international seminar in which we have gathered today gives us the opportunity to establish networking with other organizations and bodies through promotion of economic, social and cultural rights. The exchange of ideas and experience in the necessity of the modern world, for the mutual development of the judiciary, education and the society as such,” said Khodji-Murod Isakov, the Director of the Higher School of Judges.
The national trainings are organized in the framework of project “Advancing Civil Society in Promoting ESCR Standards (ACCESS)” funded by EU through the European Instrument for Democracy and Human Rights (EIDHR).
There will be two more similar trainings in 2020 and all trainings materials at the end will be translated into Russian and Uzbek languages for further reference and use. Moreover, the trainings materials will be publicly available in 2020 for wider outreach and promotion of international law and ESC rights standards.
Contact
Dilfuza Kurolova, ICJ Legal consultant, t: +998 90 9050099 ; e: dilfuza.kurolova(a)icj.org
Download
Uzbekistan-National Training ESCR-News-2019-ENG (full story in PDF)
International law on economic, social and cultural (ESC) rights (4 training modules in Russian – PDF).
Oct 2, 2019 | News
Today, the ICJ, Regional Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) for Central Asia and the Nationwide Movement “Yuksalish” are holding an Expert Discussions on economic, social and cultural rights (ESC) rights and standards in Uzbekistan.
The topic of the Fourth Expert Discussions is “Access to justice for housing rights: international and national perspectives.” This discussion will be focused on the right to adequate housing.
The Expert Discussions are aimed at increasing awareness about the implementation of international law and standards on ESC rights by national courts, to facilitate access to justice in relation to ESC rights and effective use of international human rights law for ESC rights at the national level.
Each Expert Discussion is supported by presentations of international and national experts.
The first experts’ meeting was held in September 2018 on international standards in labour rights, the second meeting – held in December 2018 touched upon the principle of non-discrimination in courts and court decisions, and the third meeting – held in March 2019 – was dedicated to the rights of people with disabilities.
These three events brought together lawyers, defense lawyers, individual experts, civil society activists, NGOs, academia representatives and law students via interactive discussions, research papers, peer review articles and policy papers.
“In recent years, large-scale work has been carried out in Uzbekistan to provide housing for the rural population through the construction of affordable residential buildings according to updated standards. However, participatory decision-making is in need to guarantee housing rights. It is vital to create opportunities for various groups to speak out on the topic and establish an open dialogue. We hope that today`s platform is one of such tools for exchange of opinions,” said Akmal Burkhanov, Chairperson of the Nationwide Movement “Yuksalish”.
Head of the EU Delegation in Uzbekistan Ambassador Eduards Stiprais said: “Economic, social and cultural rights are fundamental rights for every individual. They are also fundamental for the economic development of the society. No man and no company will invest in improving its situation unless it can rely on its right to appropriate the fruits of its investment.”
Helena Fraser, UN Resident Coordinator, noted in her opening remarks that “under Sustainable Development Goal 11 by 2030 all UN member States commit to “make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable. The nationally adopted SDG targets for Uzbekistan are to ensure access to affordable housing for all; and to increase the scale of participatory planning of human settlements”.
“These, our fourth expert discussions on economic and social rights, are devoted to the important issue of the right to adequate housing, a right that is well established in international human rights law. We aim to hold a constructive discussion, informed by international law as well as national best practices, to find ways to address an array of issues linked to housing rights in Uzbekistan. We would like to thank the EU Delegation for their support, as well as our partners – the Regional UN Human Rights Office (OHCHR) for Central Asia and the Nationwide movement “Yuksalish”,” said Róisín Pillay, Europe and Central Asia Programme Director of the ICJ.
Background
Uzbekistan ratified the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) in 1995. In 2014, the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights recommended Uzbekistan “to take appropriate measures, including legislative and other measures, to provide all evicted persons with alternative accommodation or adequate compensation”.
The third national periodic report of Uzbekistan on implementation of provisions of the ICESCR was submitted in June 2019. The list of questions regarding the submitted report will be adopted in March 2020.
The Expert Discussions are organized in the framework of the project “Advancing Civil Society in Promoting Economic, Social and Cultural Rights’ (ESCR) Standards (ACCESS)” funded by the EU through the European Instrument for Democracy and Human Rights (EIDHR).
Contact
Dilfuza Kurolova, ICJ Legal consultant, t: +998 90 9050099 ; e: dilfuza.kurolova(a)icj.org
Download
Uzbekistan-Expert discussions ESCR-News-2019-ENG (full story in PDF)
Sep 20, 2019 | News
The ICJ welcomes this week’s visit to Uzbekistan of the UN Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers, Diego García-Sayan, during which he will assess reforms of the judicial system, the independence of the judiciary and the independence and role of lawyers.
“The visit of the Special Rapporteur to Uzbekistan, at the invitation of the government, is an indication that the Uzbekistan authorities are serious about the ongoing reforms of the justice system. This visit is only a starting point for the deep reforms needed to establish an independent and fair justice system in Uzbekistan. Realising these reforms will require sustained commitment of all institutions of government, lawyers and civil society,” said Temur Shakirov, Senior Legal Adviser of the ICJ Europe and Central Asia Programme.
The ICJ, along with other NGOs and IGOs, met with the Special Rapporteur in Tashkent yesterday on the first day of his visit, and drew his attention to issues concerning the independence of judges and lawyers in Uzbekistan.
“The visit will be followed by the report of the Special Rapporteur containing findings and recommendations. These recommendations should be effectively implemented and the ICJ is committed to provide expert and other support in the Uzbekistan’s effort to bring its justice system in line with the recommendations,” Shakirov added.
Background
The visit of the UN Special Rapporteur on independence of judges and lawyers takes place from September 19-25, 2019.
The Special Rapporteur will hold meetings with representatives of the government, judiciary, prosecutors, lawyers and civil society and is expected to issue a report analyzing the independence of judges and lawyers in Uzbekistan, following his visit.
The Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers is one of the special procedures of the United Nations Human Rights Council, appointed as an independent expert to monitor the compliance of UN Member States with international standards on the independence of judges and lawyers.
Aug 27, 2019 | News
The ICJ welcomes yesterday’s ratification by Uzbekistan of the CIS Convention on Legal Assistance and Legal Relations in Civil, Family and Criminal Matters 2002, also called the Chisinau Convention. The law on ratification was signed by President Shavkat Mirziyoyev.
The ICJ calls on the Uzbek authorities to take measures to make the Convention’s protective guarantees effective.
“This is a major step forward by Uzbekistan to get its extradition system up to standard with the rest of the world”, said Massimo Frigo, ICJ Senior Legal Adviser. “. “Its ratification of this treaty considerably steps up human rights guarantees in extradition.”
The Chisinau Convention enshrines several human rights guarantees to protect against extraditions that may breach the human rights of the transferred person, including the prohibition to transfer persons where they risk the death penalty or torture or cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment.
“The ratification of the Convention is a very important first step. An effective implementation of these guarantees in the legal and law enforcement systems is necessary now.” said Dmitry Nurumov, ICJ Central Asia Legal Consultant.
Background
Last May, the ICJ held, together with the General Prosecutor’s Office of Uzbekistan, UNODC Regional Office for Central Asia and the Regional Office for Central Asia of OHCHR, a regional and a national seminar on comparative practices in extradition in the CIS and European legal systems, including with regard to human rights guarantees in these procedures.
In 2017, the ICJ issued a report documenting the shortcomings in the Russian Federation, Central Asia and European countries in their extradition systems and other transfer procedures.
The ratification by Uzbekistan of the Chisinau Convention meets part of the recommendations formulated by the ICJ in these occasions.
Contact:
Massimo Frigo, Senior Legal Adviser, e: massimo.frigo(a)icj.org , t: +41229793805
