On March 3, President Shavkat Mirziyoyev signed a decree strengthening the system for protecting the rights of women and children, as well as preventing cases of harassment and violence against them.
In Uzbekistan, continuous attention is devoted to preventing early marriages and births, as well as violence against women and children, as key priorities in strengthening the institution of the family and fostering a healthy social environment.
The decree toughens penalties for sexual harassment by introducing administrative arrest for up to five days; establishes punishment for pedophilia of up to life imprisonment; transfers investigative authority over sexual crimes under six articles of the Criminal Code from internal affairs bodies to the prosecutor’s office; involves specially trained lawyers, investigators, and judges in the investigation of crimes related to violence against women and children; enhances the protection of women who have suffered from violence and received a protection order by installing a special “SOS” application on their mobile devices (when the panic button is pressed, internal affairs officers within a five-kilometer radius will arrive in ten minutes).
Furthermore, considering that 40% of marriages in the country involve young people aged 18–19, while international recommendations identify 21 as the optimal age for marriage — when an individual typically attains financial independence and social maturity — the following measures have been introduced:
– additional financial support mechanisms to encourage marriage between individuals who have reached the age of 21;
– tax incentives to promote the signing of prenuptial agreements;
– increase in the effectiveness of detecting early marriages by introducing a procedure whereby 15 percent of the fine for violating marriage-age legislation is paid to the person who reported the violation;
– establishment of an interdepartmental notification system to inform internal affairs bodies of cases of early marriage and pregnancy under the age of 16, while introducing administrative liability for concealing such cases;
– provision of female students who are pregnant or raising a child under the age of three with the opportunity to continue their education, thereby preventing them from dropping out.
