Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- On 14 July 2021, the National Center of the Republic of Uzbekistan for Human Rights (NCHR) together with partners held a presentation in Tashkent, issued in the Uzbek language, of the 1961 UN Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness.

The presentation was organized jointly with the Office of the UN Resident Coordinator in Uzbekistan and the UNHCR for Central Asia and is dedicated to the 60th anniversary of this document celebrated this year.

The Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness is a 1961 United Nations multilateral treaty whereby sovereign states agree to reduce statelessness.

The translations of such important international documents into the Uzbek language are an important contribution of Uzbekistan to the implementation of its international obligations in the field of human rights.

“Protecting people displaced from their homes is a tradition in all cultures of humankind and an important part of international solidarity and law. Uzbekistan also has a long honorable tradition of providing protection to those fleeing war or persecution, and in recent years Uzbekistan has taken impressive steps to address statelessness on its territory,” said Helena Fraser, UN Resident Coordinator in Uzbekistan.

She also stressed that the UN remains committed to supporting Uzbekistan's accession to the Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and its Protocol.

The translation and publication of the Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness was also supported by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights in Central Asia. According to the Head of the Representative Office, Hans Friedrich Schodder, this will bring the best international practices even closer to practicing lawyers, scientists and decision-makers.

“We hope these translations will contribute to the development of effective national legislation, practices and institutions to protect asylum seekers, refugees and stateless persons,” he said.

In tackling statelessness, partnerships are fundamental, in particular UNHCR support is key to preventing statelessness. This was noted in his speech during the presentation by the director of the National Center of the Republic of Uzbekistan for Human Rights Akmal Saidov.

“Translating publications of international documents into the Uzbek language will help people familiarize themselves with the general principles of international law on the issue of statelessness and find out how the provisions of the Convention are implemented, what rights and freedoms and what responsibilities stateless persons have,” the head of the NCHR stressed.

He also stressed that “knowledge in this area is more necessary for officials, as they play a leading role in promoting respect and tolerance for stateless persons and in promoting the promotion of people's respect for the situation of stateless persons, their acceptance as an individual , which will be able to contribute to the development of the host state”.

We add that the two Conventions adopted in the field of statelessness are key universal treaties that define who is a refugee and what are the rights and obligations of refugees in host countries. They set universal standards and legal frameworks for addressing causes and consequences of statelessness that are not covered by any other instrument.