Transforming Uzbekistan's Internal Affairs: A People-Centric Approach

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In Uzbekistan, since gaining independence and State sovereignty, giving the internal affairs bodies the status of a true people’s professional structure designed to protect the rights and legitimate interests of citizens has become one of the priorities of state policy.

In this direction, large-scale and fundamental reforms were implemented, and the entire system of internal affairs bodies was modernized, during which the main attention was paid to the introduction of democratic principles and the best police practices of developed countries into the activities of this law enforcement structure.

At the same time, this activity is characterized by the following main trends.

In the first stage of these reforms, the formation of the national system of internal affairs bodies took place, during which the main thing was to form the basic foundations of the functioning of this system. In this connection, in fact, in the first days of independence, the government's decision approved the legal basis for the activities of the internal affairs bodies – the Regulation of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and its structure. Measures were taken to strengthen the personnel of the internal affairs bodies by highly qualified specialists, create the necessary material and technical base, and introduce a system for training national personnel. In 1993, the Higher Technical School of Fire Safety was established, and in 1994 – the Academy of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Uzbekistan.

In 1994, Uzbekistan joined the international law enforcement organization Interpol, which created the possibility of cooperation with foreign countries, and the use of forces and means of neighboring states in the fight against transnational crime.

It was at this stage that the internal affairs bodies had a special responsibility for ensuring law and order and protecting the population due to the significant deterioration of the criminal situation in the country. These are mass riots in the Ferghana and Tashkent regions in the early 90s of the last century, and terrorist acts in the late 90s in Tashkent and Khorezm region.

In the late 90s-early 2000s, extremist forces became particularly active: the terrorist organization “Islamic Movement of Turkestan”, “Islom jihodiy e’tiqodi”, and the religious extremist movement “Akromiy".

This period also accounts for the "heyday" of organized crime, which sought not only to take control of trade and business structures but also to become a kind of "judge" in disputes between citizens.

Thanks to the resolute political will of the country's leadership, in a relatively short period of the early 2000s, the criminal situation in the republic has radically changed.

A resolute struggle was declared to eradicate all forms and types of organized crime, including those associated with religious extremism. As a result, from 2010 to the present, Uzbekistan has been among the leading countries in various rankings (The Rule of Law Index on a global scale of the international independent organization "The World Justice Project"; Gallup's Global Law and Order Index; Index of health and safety of the company International SOS, etc.).

In addition, in the early 2000s, resolutions of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan and the Government were adopted aimed at radically reforming the system of internal affairs bodies. These structural transformations concerned, first, the fulfillment of tasks related to the protection of public order, the prevention of offenses, the fight against any manifestations of crime, ensuring the duration and phasing of democratic reforms, in a word, the implementation of the principle: “From a strong state to a strong civil society”.

A completely new concept was introduced in the capital to ensure public order and the safety of citizens, according to which, instead of the previously existing precinct police inspectors, a staff of prevention inspectors was established, “Mahalla posboni” and “Reconciliation Commissions” were created. This contributed to strengthening the interaction of the internal affairs bodies with the public in the fight against crime and its prevention on the ground.

However, the most radical transformations in the system of internal affairs bodies have been implemented over the past seven years. Thanks to the initiatives of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Sh.M. Mirziyoyev, the general philosophy of all the activities of the internal affairs bodies was changed, in which the main goal of this structure was to serve the interests of the people.

Thus, it was at the initiative of the Head of State that, for the first time in our history, the Law of the Republic of Uzbekistan "On Internal Affairs bodies" was developed and adopted, which created new legislative bases for activities that meet international standards and best practices of developed democratic countries. At the legislative level, he clearly defined the duties and rights of internal affairs bodies, and strictly regulated the grounds and procedure for the use of coercive measures by internal affairs bodies, including the detention of persons, the cordon of areas, residential premises, the use of vehicles of organizations and citizens.

A special place in the law is given to the issue of ensuring the correct use of physical force, special means, and firearms by employees of the internal affairs bodies.

Another important document in the activities of the internal affairs bodies is the Action Strategy for the five priority areas of development of the Republic of Uzbekistan in 2017-2021. In the Strategy, one of such priorities was identified as ensuring the rule of law and further reforming the judicial and legal system, in which a special role is assigned to the internal affairs bodies. Here, for the internal affairs bodies, the most important thing is to strengthen guarantees of reliable protection of citizens' rights and freedoms, increase the effectiveness of the crime prevention and crime prevention system

Based on the large-scale reforms carried out during this period, 6 laws, more than 30 decrees, resolutions, instructions of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan, as well as more than 150 government and departmental regulatory legal acts were adopted.

The institutional approach to the tasks and functions of the structural services of the Ministry and regional divisions, the widespread introduction of modern information and communication technologies into the system, the strengthening of the material and technical base, the social protection of employees, the improvement of their living conditions - all these are practical measures that contribute to the full performance of official tasks.

Today, measures such as the report of senior personnel to the public on the results of their activities, and organizational measures aimed at ensuring the openness and transparency of the system serve to increase the responsibility of employees.

The transformations carried out in the system of internal affairs bodies are under the close attention of the head of state. During visits to the regions, the head of the country, as a rule, is interested in the activities of employees of internal affairs bodies, first, the work of prevention inspectors, and the social conditions created for them. Issues related to the activities of employees are constantly discussed at meetings with the participation of the President.

At a video conference held on January 10, 2019, under the chairmanship of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Sh. Mirziyoyev, work in this direction was critically discussed. The Ministry of Internal Affairs was assigned several tasks to improve its activities and was instructed to develop a “Road map” based on in-depth analysis to eliminate existing shortcomings.

To prevent offenses and effectively combat crime, based on local conditions, a system of “practices of a separate region" has been introduced. Research work has been carried out at sites with a complex criminogenic situations. Tasks have been set to develop methodological manuals on criminogenic forecasting of the state of crime.

To increase the effectiveness of crime prevention in the field, special attention is paid to working with unorganized youth and women. In addition, based on the Law of the Republic of Uzbekistan “On Protection of Women from Harassment and Abuse” dated September 2, 2019, a protective order is provided for women who have suffered from harassment and abuse.

To solve the problems of our population, special attention is paid to the issues of the widespread introduction of modern information and communication technologies into the activities of the Department of Internal Affairs. For the convenience of the population, an electronic queue system has been introduced during the receipt of passports and registration of citizenship.

An opportunity has been created for citizens to file a complaint about inappropriate actions of some employees of the internal affairs bodies, to report facts related to human trafficking.

To ensure the openness and transparency of the activities of the internal affairs bodies, there are more than 20 websites in the system, and over 100 web pages in social networks.

Other fundamental transformations have been implemented in the system of internal affairs bodies.

Thus, its structure has been significantly optimized, departments have been created in the most important areas of activity.

Sufficiently effective mechanisms have been created to protect the rights of citizens and prevent illegal actions against them in pre-trial detention centers and investigative offices.

The grassroots links of the internal affairs bodies have been significantly strengthened, which, at the initiative of the Head of State, have become important links in the implementation of various state concepts for the development of regions: "Safe City", work based on the principle of "Mahallabay", "Iron books" on the registration of women, youth, young families in need of social support.

The most important transformations in the activities of the internal affairs bodies are related to the constitutional reform carried out in 2023 and the adoption of the Strategy "Uzbekistan-2030".

At the constitutional level, the principles of law enforcement activity generally recognized in international law and the democratic community are enshrined, such as:

1) The right to life is an inalienable right of every human being and shall be protected by law. Infringement against human life shall be regarded as the gravest crime;

2) Human honor and dignity are inviolable. Nothing may be a basis for their derogation. No one shall be subjected to torture, violence, or other cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment;

3) No one may be arrested, detained, imprisoned, taken into custody, or otherwise restricted in freedom except on lawful grounds. Arrest, commitment, and confinement are allowed only by a court decision. Without a court decision, a person may not be detained for more than forty-eight hours. During detention, the person must be informed about his/her rights and the reasons for detention in a language he/she understands;

4) Everyone, accused of committing a crime, shall be presumed innocent until proven guilty by a public trial in accordance with the procedure prescribed by law and established by a court verdict that has entered into legal force. The accused person shall be given every opportunity for his/her defense. All doubts about guilt, if the possibilities of eliminating them are exhausted, shall be resolved in favor of the suspect, accused, defendant, or convicted person. A suspect, accused, or convicted person shall not be obliged to prove his or her innocence and may exercise the right to remain silent at any time. No one shall be obliged to testify against himself/herself or his/her close relatives. A person may not be convicted or punished if a confession of guilt is the only evidence against him or her. The persons deprived of their liberty shall be entitled to humane treatment and respect for the honor and dignity inherent in the human person. A person’s criminal record and the legal consequences arising therefrom cannot be grounds for restricting the rights of his or her relatives.;

5) The suspect, accused or defendant shall have the right to be informed about the essence and grounds of the accusation, to demand the interrogation of persons giving evidence against him/her or in his/her favor, to use the assistance of an interpreter. No evidence obtained in violation of the law may be admitted in the administration of justice. The rights of victims of offenses shall be protected by law. The State shall provide victims with legal defense and access to justice, create conditions for compensating the harm caused to them;

6) No one shall have the right to enter into the house against the will of the persons residing in it. Entry into the house, as well as seizure and inspection therein, shall be permitted only in cases and in the manner prescribed by law. A search of the residence may be permitted only in accordance with the law and on the basis of a court decision.

The institutions of Habeas Corpus and the Miranda Rule were significantly strengthened.

The leadership of the Ministry of Internal Affairs has taken all necessary measures to ensure that these constitutional provisions become the norm of life, the basic rule for every employee of the internal affairs bodies.

The strategy "Uzbekistan-2030" has not only strengthened the importance of these constitutional provisions but also provides a mechanism for their implementation in the daily life of every employee of the internal affairs bodies.

Thus, two of the five main ideas of the Strategy are the construction of a fair and modern state serving the people, as well as the guaranteed provision of the sovereignty and security of the country, which concern, among other things (and maybe first) such a state body as the internal affairs bodies.

To implement these ideas, the Strategy defines specific goals and a mechanism for achieving them. Thus, to achieve such a goal as directing the activities of law enforcement agencies to protect the interests, honor, dignity, and human rights, it is provided:

introduction of the possibility of monitoring the process through an individual number and QR code - from the initiation of a criminal case to sentencing by creating a single electronic register;

full digitalization of the collection and consolidation of evidence through the introduction of modern technologies and the latest scientific achievements;

reduction by at least 50 percent of the number of road accidents with serious consequences;

maintaining an electronic version of 100 percent of criminal cases and materials, ensuring electronic document flow on these cases.

Of course, the constitutional reform carried out and the adopted Strategy "Uzbekistan-2030" are only the first steps towards the formation of a new image of the country – a New Uzbekistan and its important body – the internal affairs bodies. There is still a long way to go and systematic measures to finally form the internal affairs bodies as a true people’s structure that protects the interests of the people. However, it can be stated with confidence that all the reforms we are implementing indicate the irreversibility of these processes aimed at ensuring that the internal affairs bodies become an integral and important component of Uzbekistan as a democratic State governed by the rule of law.

 

Rakhimovich Alimzhan,

Doctor of Law, Professor of the Academy of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Uzbekistan