I carefully listened to the deeply meaningful speech of President Shavkat Mirziyoyev at the meeting with members of the Constitutional Commission on the formation of proposals for introducing amendments to the Constitution of the Republic of Uzbekistan and the implementation of organizational measures. I was inspired by the opportunities created in the name of the interests of people and human dignity.

Much is known in comparison. As the Head of our state noted, today the worldview and political activity of Uzbekistan people differ significantly compared to what it was six years ago. In this regard, the President emphasized that our people, deeply aware of the fundamental changes taking place in the country, support the decision of the chambers of the Oliy Majlis on constitutional reform.

Recognizing and protecting the value of the human personality, its universally recognized rights and legitimate interests, is extremely important to improve the well-being of citizens and serve the development of our society and state.

The speech of the President showed that the basis of the constitutional reforms is the principle – “Human interests are the highest value”. Undoubtedly, this indicates that the interests of a person are above all, and the state should work for the sake of the happiness and well-being of a person.

The proposals put forward by the President during the meeting made a huge impression on its participants. We carefully listened to every word of the Head of the state and felt that it comes from the heart.

In particular, when the President spoke about the unacceptability of restoring the death penalty: “If you support it, I propose to introduce another important rule prohibiting the death penalty in Uzbekistan into our Constitution”, I think he expressed the thoughts of each of us. Since a person, his life and dignity are the priceless wealth of each state and our planet as a whole. Of course, a person who is the crown of nature, first of all, has the right to a safe and prosperous life.

Indeed, in this context, the death penalty is unacceptable either for the model of a just social state or for the ideology of New Uzbekistan. In addition, the legislation of our country instead of the death penalty provides for punishment in the form of either life imprisonment or many years of imprisonment. As a result, the prisoner receives not only moral, but also physical punishment. There are cases when, due to the fault of the preliminary investigation or the judiciary, an innocent person was erroneously sentenced to death, there were also those who were acquitted posthumously. Such mistakes are not forgiven. In this regard, bringing clarity to the solution of this issue has become the subject of the unanimous consent of our people with their President.

From now on, the Constitution will act as a guarantee that the death penalty, which was abolished in our country many years ago, will not be applied. In this regard, it is clearly expressed that humanity is one of the greatest values ​​for our people, and the dignity of a person in New Uzbekistan is above all.

Shavkat Mirziyoyev’s proposal to reflect in our Basic Law the “Miranda warning”, which is reflected in the constitutions and laws of many countries of the world, as well as in international human rights documents is of great importance.

The brief content of this rule is as follows: during detention, the detainee must be informed of his rights. In particular, law enforcement officials are required to inform the detainee of the following: “You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can be used against you in court. You have the right to talk to a lawyer for advice before we ask you any questions. You have the right to have a lawyer with you during questioning. If you cannot afford a lawyer, one will be appointed for you before any questioning if you wish. If you decide to answer questions now without a lawyer present, you have the right to stop answering at any time”. The implementation of this norm will certainly be of great importance in ensuring human rights.

The President’s next proposal relates to the inclusion in the Constitution of the principles of habeas corpus, according to which a person cannot be detained for more than forty-eight hours pending a court decision. If the court does not decide to detain or otherwise restrict the freedom of the detainee, this person must be immediately released. The reflection of this norm in the Constitution will serve as an important guide to action in ensuring human rights by the preliminary investigation bodies.

The President’s proposal to delegate to the Senate the powers to appoint the chairman of the Accounts Chamber of the Republic of Uzbekistan also makes a lot of sense. The Accounts Chamber will become an independent object of parliamentary control over the formation and execution of the state budget.

As is known, the current legislation enshrined the right of Parliament to introduce amendments to the Constitution. However, our Basic Law, the only source and author of which is the people of Uzbekistan, in the full sense of the word was and remains a reflection of the will of our people. Therefore, the President proposed to consider the draft law, developed by the Parliament based on the Commission’s proposals, at a nationwide discussion through a referendum. This decision is fully supported by the activists of the SDP “Adolat”.

It should be noted that the issues raised at the meeting, including those regarding education, science, medicine, the social state and politics, were deeply studied, therefore, the proposals made by the Head of our state did not leave anyone indifferent.

As is known, the main motto of the Social Democratic Party “Adolat” is “Justice, equality and solidarity”. The opinions expressed by the President on solidarity and unity are very important for Uzbekistan, in which representatives of over 130 nations and nationalities live, will serve as a call for us. We will always support the Head of the state on the path of maintaining peace and tranquility in our country and unite around a common goal – the creation of New Uzbekistan.

In conclusion, it should be noted that the ideas and proposals voiced at the meeting on strengthening democratic and fundamental relations between the state and citizens, the focus of which is human rights and interests, will be carefully studied and the opinions of the people, representatives of the general public and experts will be obtained.

Bakhrom Abdukhalimov,

Chairman of the Political Council of SDP “Adolat”