Closer co-operation between the Ombudsman
and Uzbek judicial and law-enforcement agencies on human rights issues is
the focus of a workshop that started in the Khorezm Region of Uzbekistan
today, reported OSCE.
The event, organized by the OSCE Project Co-ordinator in Uzbekistan and the
Authorized Person of the Oliy Majlis of the Republic of Uzbekistan for Human
Rights (Ombudsman), also marks the 60th anniversary of adoption of the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights. It brought together representatives
of the regional departments of the Interior and Justice Ministries, the
Prosecutor's Office, judges, lawyers and non-governmental organizations.
As of 1 January, Uzbekistan abolished the death penalty, replacing it with
life imprisonment. The new legislation also introduced habeas corpus, under
which a person can seek relief from unlawful detention for themselves or
another person.
It is an important instrument for safeguarding individual freedom against
arbitrary state action, said Bernard Rouault, Senior Project Officer at the
OSCE Project Co-ordinator in Uzbekistan. "Today's workshop will provide an
opportunity to exchange views on the new role that the Ombudsman Institution
can play in this respect," he added.
The OSCE Project Co-ordinator in Uzbekistan will hold a series of workshops
in different regions of the country in 2008 and 2009 as part of a project
aimed at building the capacity of the Ombudsman Institution. An
international conference on the interaction of the Ombudsman with judicial
and executive bodies, organized by the OSCE in Tashkent in September 2007,
will serve as the foundation for the regional workshops.