Earlier this month, President Shavkat Mirziyoyev signed a legislative amendment increasing state funding for Uzbekistan's five legally registered political parties.

Under the current system, 40% of state funds for political parties are equally distributed among them, with the remaining 60% allocated based on the number of parliamentary seats held. This structure favours the ruling Uzbekistan Liberal Democratic Party (UzLiDeP), which is closely associated with President Mirziyoyev.

All five of the incumbent parties are closely associated with the executive and no opposition parties are represented in parliament. While Mirziyoyev economic reforms have been extensive and highly successful, as bne IntelliNews reported in the special report Uzbekistan rising, the political reforms have until been largely ignored.

However, there have been a few improvements on human right issues. Child labour used to bring in the cotton harvest has been ended. After Mirziyoyev took office in 2016 hundreds of political prisoners were released. International media has been welcomed back into the country after almost a decade of exile.

The biggest gain to date has changes to the constitution in April 2023 that improved labour and property rights guarantees, but most importantly enshrined a raft of women’s rights. However, writing women’s rights into the constitution is only the very first step in bolstering civil liberties that eventually leads to things like gay marriage and Uzbekistan is only at the very start of that long journey.

And it should be noted that the changes to the constitution also reset the term-clock allowing Mirziyoyev to serve another two terms in office.

The new parliamentary party legislation only reinforces the existing system and will also benefit smaller parties, like the Ecological Party of Uzbekistan, which holds 15 seats in the 150-member lower chamber of the Oliy Majlis, the legislature. Despite UzLiDeP's dominance, the revised funding formula provides significant support to smaller parties.

UzLiDeP, the party of President Mirziyoyev, registered him as its candidate for the 2023 snap elections, in which he secured almost 88% of the vote. UzLiDeP has similarly supported previous President Islam Karimov, who passed away in 2016. In the latest 2019-2020 elections, UzLiDeP increased its seat count by one, while the second-largest party, Milliy Tiklanish (National Revival), maintained its 36 seats.

Milliy Tiklanish appeals to more conservative voters, akin to Western culture war conservatives, while UzLiDeP targets youthful, reformist, and enterprise-focused demographics. The People's Democratic Party of Uzbekistan, catering to the poorer populace, saw a slight decline in support in the last election, reflecting Mirziyoyev’s leadership's impact on reducing poverty.

Additionally, the new legislation bans foreign political parties' operations within Uzbekistan – the local equivalent of Russia’s so-called foreign agents law. This move aims to limit the political activities of diaspora groups, particularly the sizeable Karakalpak community in Kazakhstan. The government has prioritised quelling any political mobilisation around Karakalpak autonomy issues since the unrest of July 2022.

As bne IntelliNews columnist Bruce Pannier recently wrote on the second anniversary of the unrest, Uzbek authorities have been working to silence Karakalpaks inside and outside Uzbekistan who would seek to serve reminders about what happened that month. Violence erupted after it was announced a constitutional right to ask for succession from Uzbekistan was going to be nixed and officially 21 people were killed in the ensuing protests although witnesses claimed the figure was several times higher. Since then the authorities have worked hard to smooth the ground and Karakalpaks have been unable to raise their voice or seek restitution for their injuries.

Nevertheless, despite the legislative changes, President Mirziyoyev claims to support opposition movements. “As president, I am not against the opposition,” he said in 2019. “But we need to create the conditions for it to materialise here, [for it to be an opposition] that understands the problems of the people, for them to have experienced the same things as the people, who have drunk water and eaten bread here.”

Most opposition figures, like Muhammad Salih, have lived in exile since the 1990s. Efforts to participate in domestic politics, such as Salih's attempted 2019 parliamentary bid, have failed. Similarly, Khidirnazar Allakulov faced threats and harassment for trying to register his Hakikat va Tarakkiyot (Truth and Progress) party. The unregistered Erk (Freedom) party also faced government pressure, leading singer Jahongir Otajonov to withdraw his 2021 presidential candidacy after threats and attacks.

In his July 2023 inauguration speech, Mirziyoyev vowed to uphold the right to “constructive opposition,” stating, “We guarantee the activities of the constructive opposition — I repeat, the constructive opposition — freedom of speech and the press, and the rights of citizens to receive, use and disseminate information.”

Nevertheless, improvements in press freedoms and the president’s call for more critical reporting have seen limited progress. The upcoming October elections will likely see the same five parties competing on unchanged platforms, with the results determining their share of state funding and parliamentary seats for the next five-year term.

 

Uzbekistan’s President Mirziyoyev signed a legislative amendment increasing state funding for Uzbekistan's five legally registered political parties in July.

Under the current system, 40% of state funds for political parties are equally distributed among them, with the remaining 60% allocated based on the number of parliamentary seats held. This structure favours the ruling Uzbekistan Liberal Democratic Party (UzLiDeP), which is closely associated with President Mirziyoyev.

All five of the incumbent parties are closely associated with the executive and no opposition parties are represented in parliament. While Mirziyoyev economic reforms have been extensive and highly successful, as bne IntelliNews reported in the special report Uzbekistan rising, the political reforms have until been largely ignored.

However, there have been a few improvements on human right issues. Child labour used to bring in the cotton harvest has been ended. After Mirziyoyev took office in 2016 hundreds of political prisoners were released. International media has been welcomed back into the country after almost a decade of exile.

The biggest gain to date has changes to the constitution in April 2023 that improved labour and property rights guarantees, but most importantly enshrined a raft of women’s rights. However, writing women’s rights into the constitution is only the very first step in bolstering civil liberties that eventually leads to things like gay marriage and Uzbekistan is only at the very start of that long journey.

And it should be noted that the changes to the constitution also reset the term-clock allowing Mirziyoyev to serve another two terms in office.

The new parliamentary party legislation only reinforces the existing system and will also benefit smaller parties, like the Ecological Party of Uzbekistan, which holds 15 seats in the 150-member lower chamber of the Oliy Majlis, the legislature. Despite UzLiDeP's dominance, the revised funding formula provides significant support to smaller parties.

UzLiDeP, the party of President Mirziyoyev, registered him as its candidate for the 2023 snap elections, in which he secured almost 88% of the vote. UzLiDeP has similarly supported previous President Islam Karimov, who passed away in 2016. In the latest 2019-2020 elections, UzLiDeP increased its seat count by one, while the second-largest party, Milliy Tiklanish (National Revival), maintained its 36 seats.

Milliy Tiklanish appeals to more conservative voters, akin to Western culture war conservatives, while UzLiDeP targets youthful, reformist, and enterprise-focused demographics. The People's Democratic Party of Uzbekistan, catering to the poorer populace, saw a slight decline in support in the last election, reflecting Mirziyoyev’s leadership's impact on reducing poverty.

Additionally, the new legislation bans foreign political parties' operations within Uzbekistan – the local equivalent of Russia’s so-called foreign agents law. This move aims to limit the political activities of diaspora groups, particularly the sizeable Karakalpak community in Kazakhstan. The government has prioritised quelling any political mobilisation around Karakalpak autonomy issues since the unrest of July 2022.

As bne IntelliNews columnist Bruce Pannier recently wrote on the second anniversary of the unrest, Uzbek authorities have been working to silence Karakalpaks inside and outside Uzbekistan who would seek to serve reminders about what happened that month. Violence erupted after it was announced a constitutional right to ask for succession from Uzbekistan was going to be nixed and officially 21 people were killed in the ensuing protests although witnesses claimed the figure was several times higher. Since then the authorities have worked hard to smooth the ground and Karakalpaks have been unable to raise their voice or seek restitution for their injuries.

Nevertheless, despite the legislative changes, President Mirziyoyev claims to support opposition movements. “As president, I am not against the opposition,” he said in 2019. “But we need to create the conditions for it to materialise here, [for it to be an opposition] that understands the problems of the people, for them to have experienced the same things as the people, who have drunk water and eaten bread here.”

Most opposition figures, like Muhammad Salih, have lived in exile since the 1990s. Efforts to participate in domestic politics, such as Salih's attempted 2019 parliamentary bid, have failed. Similarly, Khidirnazar Allakulov faced threats and harassment for trying to register his Hakikat va Tarakkiyot (Truth and Progress) party. The unregistered Erk (Freedom) party also faced government pressure, leading singer Jahongir Otajonov to withdraw his 2021 presidential candidacy after threats and attacks.

In his July 2023 inauguration speech, Mirziyoyev vowed to uphold the right to “constructive opposition,” stating, “We guarantee the activities of the constructive opposition — I repeat, the constructive opposition — freedom of speech and the press, and the rights of citizens to receive, use and disseminate information.”

Nevertheless, improvements in press freedoms and the president’s call for more critical reporting have seen limited progress. The upcoming October elections will likely see the same five parties competing on unchanged platforms, with the results determining their share of state funding and parliamentary seats for the next five-year term.