The deputies of the Parliament of Uzbekistan intend to amend the Criminal Code and the Code of Administrative Responsibility, as well as the bill “On informatization”, which was another unpleasant surprise for journalists, network activists and bloggers. On March 3, at a regular plenary meeting of the Legislative Chamber of the Oliy Majlis, in the second reading, the draft law “On amendments and additions to certain laws and documents of Uzbekistan” was discussed.
According to the MPs, failure to comply with the law “using the media, telecommunication networks, Internet, publishing or other type of text reproduction” will result in a fine from $ 1,325 to $ 1,766. Crimes will be punished with correctional labor for a term of up to 2 years, restraint of liberty for a term of 3 to 5 years, and imprisonment for a term of 3 to 5 years.
Article 244 of the Criminal Code prescribes the following prohibitions: disobedience to the legal requirements of representatives of the hokimiyat, call for public disorder, call for violence.
Taking into account the fact that all legislative initiatives pass the filter of the President Mirziyoev’s administration, it’s quite realistic to expect that the Senate will adopt changes in the package of proposals.
The speaker of the Legislative Chamber Nurdinjon Ismailov immediately dismissed the persecution of freedom of speech.
“This bill was approved by those who understood it; and the rest think that this is a restriction on freedom of speech,” he said. “But we know that it’s not so. Everything is legal. This kind of legality exists in many countries of the world, but we don’t have it. We even had questions, why there was no such legality in Uzbekistan”.
The speaker’s complicated conclusion provoked a reaction from the well-known Uzbek journalist Yuri Chernogayev. He was quick to check his findings and wrote them on his Telegram.
“We trust Mr. Ismailov, but we have looked where there are similar requirements for the media,” the journalist wrote. “He is right, there are such norms in the KDPR, Burma, etc. So, now it’s better to fulfill the ‘legal’ requirements of the hokimiyat…”
While a whole team of Mirziyoev’s adherents is working to improve Uzbekistan’s position in international ratings, a part of the establishment is trying to ensure total subordination of media space, neglecting concern for the image.
The international human rights organization “Freedom House” once again assessed Uzbekistan as a “not free” country. In the new Freedom in the World 2021 rating, the level of freedom in Uzbekistan is estimated at 11 points out of 100 possible. Last year’s figure was 10 points.
Earlier, ACCA wrote about pressure when the Agency for Information and Mass Communications under the presidential administration issued 90 submissions and warnings to the subjects of the Uzbek media sphere.
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