Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- The exchange of experience between Uzbekistan and the United Kingdom in developing parliamentarism and improving the activities of national human rights institutions was the goal of a visit to the UK by a delegation of the National Center for Human Rights of the Republic of Uzbekistan headed by the First Deputy Speaker of the Legislative Chamber of the Oliy Majlis, Director of the NCHR Akmal Saidov.

On 12-14 February 2020, members of the delegation held a number of meetings, during which the role of parliament and human rights institutions in the implementation of international obligations in this area, the implementation of relevant recommendations of the UN bodies were discussed.

During the visit of the delegation, the First Deputy Speaker of the Legislative Chamber of the Oliy Majlis of the Republic of Uzbekistan A. Saidov met with the Vice-Speaker of the House of Commons of the Parliament of Great Britain Eleanor Laing. She noted the positive achievements of Uzbekistan in raising the status of parliament, the introduction of a mechanism for roll-call voting and online broadcasting of meetings in the legislative body.

The Vice-Speaker welcomed the reforms in the electoral system of Uzbekistan, the adoption of the Electoral Code and the enshrining in it of the right of convicted persons to participate in parliamentary elections, while in the United Kingdom a complete ban on this right was introduced.

Eleanor Laing noted that British parliamentarians are interested in sharing experience on the development of parliamentarism. According to her, "for us the greatest interest is a comparative analysis of our democracy as the oldest and your democracy as the youngest."

Strengthening the role of civil society in ensuring and protecting human rights, interparliamentary cooperation were the main topics of negotiations held by the delegation of Uzbekistan with a member of the House of Lords, Baroness Alison Satti. She expressed great interest in the Address of the President of Uzbekistan to the Oliy Majlis, which defines the strategic directions of the country’s development.

Following the meeting, the parties expressed interest in organizing joint events with the participation of parliamentarians, lawyers, and civil society representatives.

During the visit of the delegation of Uzbekistan, a meeting was held with the head of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Uzbekistan, Andrew Bridgen and co-chairman of the group, Lord Waverly. The parties discussed the results of the first meeting of the new composition of the Higher Military Pedagogical University, the main purpose of which is to promote the development of Uzbek-British relations, inter-parliamentary relations and dialogue.

Andrew Bridgen noted the importance of the Message from the President of Uzbekistan to the Oliy Majlis, emphasizing the strategic nature of this document. British parliamentarians praised the initiatives of the head of state to abolish the institution of registration, providing citizenship to people living in the country since 1995, as well as measures taken by the Government of Uzbekistan to protect the rights of Uzbek citizens working abroad.

During the meetings, the British side highly appreciated the international initiatives of Uzbekistan on the adoption of the UN Convention on the Rights of Youth. There was also interest in participating in the Samarkand Human Rights Forum, scheduled for May 2020.

The visit program of the delegation of Uzbekistan also included meetings with representatives of the Joint Parliamentary Committee on Human Rights, the Commission for Equality and Human Rights, the Inspection of Prisons of Her Majesty, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Justice of Great Britain, the NGO Partners for Global Governance, and the NGO Equality Now, as well as experts from British research and educational centers.