The Parliament of Uzbekistan approved the decree of President Shavkat Mirziyoyev on the introduction of a state of emergency (state of emergency) in the Autonomous Republic of Karakalpakstan in connection with the unrest.
This was reported in the press service of the Legislative Chamber of Parliament.
“In accordance with paragraph 19 of part 1 of Art.
78 of the Constitution of the Republic of Uzbekistan and part 3 of Art.
8 of the Constitutional Law of the Republic of Uzbekistan “On the state of emergency”, the legislative chamber and the senate of the Oliy Majlis (parliament. -
RT
) of the Republic of Uzbekistan decide: to approve the decree of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan dated July 2, 2022 NUP-164 “On the introduction of a state of emergency on the territory of the Republic of Karakalpakstan”, the press service said in a statement.
According to the decree of the President of the Republic, the state of emergency is introduced from July 3 for a period of one month - until August 2.
There is also a curfew for this period from 21:00 to 07:00.
As specified in the presidential press service, this measure was applied "in order to ensure the safety of citizens, protect their rights and freedoms, restore law and order in the territory of the Republic of Karakalpakstan."
The execution of the decree is entrusted to the National Guard, the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the State Security Service and the Ministry of Emergency Situations of the republic.
In addition, the forces of the Ministry of Defense of Uzbekistan were involved in the implementation of the presidential decree.
In accordance with the presidential decree, a number of temporary measures are being introduced in Karakalpakstan for the period of the state of emergency.
In particular, freedom of movement is restricted, including vehicles, as well as entry into and exit from the autonomy.
A ban is imposed on holding mass events and strikes.
The sale of weapons, ammunition and explosives is also prohibited, and verification of identity documents is introduced.
Popular discontent
Recall that the Autonomous Republic of Karakalpakstan is located in the north-west of Uzbekistan.
It is the largest region in the country and occupies 40% of its territory.
About 2 million people live in the autonomy.
Protests in Karakalpakstan began on July 1 in connection with the dissatisfaction of the local population with amendments to the Constitution of Uzbekistan - it was proposed to exclude from the main law the provision on the sovereignty of the republic and its right to secession through a general referendum.
Dissatisfied citizens gathered in the center of the autonomy's capital Nukus.
According to the press service of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Uzbekistan, a number of protesters tried to get inside the administrative buildings located in the center of Nukus and seize state authorities.
“Hiding behind populist slogans, manipulating the consciousness and trust of citizens, the organizers of the riots, not obeying the legitimate demands of the authorities, gathered the citizens of the republic on the square in front of the complex of administrative buildings of the Republic of Karakalpakstan,” the website of Jokargy Kenes (local parliament) says.
However, the instigators of the riots were rebuffed by law enforcement agencies, were detained by security forces and taken to the police.
“A group of organizers of mass riots and people who actively resisted law enforcement agencies were detained.
Investigative actions are underway against them now,” the statement says.
At the same time, the parliament of the autonomy expressed confidence that “external forces from abroad” tried to influence the situation in the republic.
Meanwhile, social networks were flooded with videos of shelling and clashes between protesters and police.
Eyewitnesses reported that law enforcement officers used rubber bullets and stun grenades to disperse the crowd.
According to some media reports, one of the reasons that provoked the riots in Nukus was also the detention of local activist Dauletmurat Tazhimuratov, who allegedly called on citizens to rally against the draft amendments.
In addition, according to journalists, the protests did not subside all night from July 2 to 3, despite the curfew introduced in the city.
At the same time, in a TASS commentary on July 3, National Guard spokesman Davron Jumaniyazov stressed that the first night of the state of emergency passed without incident.
At the same time, as President Mirziyoyev, who flew to Karakalpakia with the outbreak of riots in Nukus, said on July 3, as a result of clashes between security forces and protesters, there are casualties among both civilians and law enforcement officers.
Parliament building in Nukus, Uzbekistan
© Wikimedia
high attention
Arriving in the capital of Karakalpakstan, Shavkat Mirziyoyev met with deputies of the Jokargy Kenes, representatives of the older generation and activists of the autonomy.
After that, the president addressed the residents of the republic, in which he stated that the changes in the provisions of the Constitution would not affect the interests of the citizens of the autonomy.
Mirziyoyev stressed that the draft amendments to the basic law are still under discussion and will be finalized in the legislative chamber of the Parliament of Uzbekistan based on the opinions and comments expressed by the citizens of the republic.
© Press_Secretary_Uz/ social networks
Later, the authorities of the republic made a mailing to the mobile phones of residents with information that they would not accept amendments to the Constitution, excluding the secession of the autonomy of Karakalpakstan from the country.
Work on the draft amendments to the country's basic law has been underway since May.
According to the legislative chamber of the Parliament of Uzbekistan, since the draft was submitted for discussion, more than 20,000 proposals have been received from citizens.
Outside Interest
Experts interviewed by RT believe that insufficiently serious organization of public discussion of amendments to the Constitution led to speeches in Nukus.
At the same time, according to Leonid Vardomsky, head of the Center for Post-Soviet Studies at the Institute of Economics of the Russian Academy of Sciences, "activists" who pursued their own goals tried to take advantage of the situation.
“They managed to stir up the situation due to the fact that the population of Karakalpakstan was little aware of what amendments are proposed to be made to the Constitution and how they affect the republic.
Local authorities should have devoted more time to explanatory work among the population.
But this was not the case, and in the end they got what they got, ”he said in an interview with RT.
The analyst also admitted that the organizers of the protests could well have foreign sources of funding and receive instructions from abroad.
“This cannot be ruled out.
After all, there is no smoke without fire.
Someone tried to turn the situation around so that later they could fish in troubled waters,” Vardomsky said.
In turn, Doctor of Political Sciences Andrei Manoilo, in a conversation with RT, suggested that the local elites of Karakalpakstan, who are not interested in the republic losing its sovereign status, could be behind the protests.
“If Karakalpakstan loses its sovereignty, then its status will decrease, and after it the status of local elites will also decrease, and no one will stand on ceremony with them,” the expert explained.
At the same time, the expert doubts that external forces could be behind the protests in Nukus.
However, he did not rule out that these external forces might become interested in the current events in Uzbekistan in order to stir up the situation in the Central Asian region as a whole.
“These events are entirely related to the internal political situation in Uzbekistan itself.
They are a headache for the central leadership.
However, it should be noted that the situation in Central Asia as a whole is quite unstable, in this regard, any such speeches can be used by forces that are interested in weakening the region,” Manoilo concluded.