Tashkent, Uzbekistan, Sept. 6
By Demir Azizov - Trend:
Amendments previously made to Uzbekistan's Administrative Liability Code came to force on Sept. 6, providing for the imposition of fines for offences during organization and conducting elections and referendums.
The amendments were adopted by both chambers of Uzbekistan's parliament, and approved by the country's president.
Under the changes, officials interfering in the activities of the Uzbek Central Election Commission, the electoral and referendum commissions, and hindering their work, will have to pay a fine of 10 to 15 times of their minimum wages.
Failure to implement these electoral bodies' decisions, or an unlawful refusal to review their appeals or violation of time requirements for reviewing their appeals, not stating any valid reason for this, also entails a fine on officials in an amount ranging from three to seven times of their minimum salaries.
In case of violating the rights of a candidate, a trustee, an observer or an authorized representative of a political party, the officials can face a fine of five to 10 times of their minimum salaries.
At the same time, the candidates, trustees, representatives of political parties and other officials who violate the terms and procedures of election campaigning or campaigning on issues put up for referendum, will have to pay a fine of seven to 10 times of their minimum wages.
Meanwhile, citizens spreading false information on candidates or political parties will have to pay a fine ranging from three to five times of their minimum wages.
Officials committing the same offence will face a fine of five to 10 times of their minimum salaries.
Fines in an amount of three to seven times of minimum salary are envisaged for intentionally destroying or damaging informational or campaigning materials.
For violation of the procedure of financing an election or a referendum, citizens can face a fine of five to 10 times of their minimum wages.
At the same time, officials can face a fine of 10 to 20 times of minimum wages for the same offence.
These are the largest fines, which can be imposed on citizens or officials.
Meanwhile, violation of the process of announcing the results of a public opinion poll or election forecasts will entail a fine ranging from 15 to 20 times of minimum salary.
Currently, the monthly minimum wage in Uzbekistan is 107,635 Uzbek Soms (UZS), which is near $46, according to the exchange rate for Sept. 6.
Previously, it was reported that on Dec. 21, 2014, Uzbekistan will hold election of people's deputies to the country's parliament, known as Oliy Majlis, as well as to regional, district and city councils.
The official exchange rate for Sept. 6 is 2351.84 UZS/1 USD.