ELECTION OBSERVATION MISSION Republic of Uzbekistan – Early Presidential Election, 9 July 2023

The decree of the president on the priority measures to implement the new edition of the Constitution requests the Ministry of Justice to conduct complete review of the legislation and assess its compliance with the principle of proportionality provided in the Constitution. [...] 20 The Decree of the President “On measures to fundamentally improve the system of financing the activities of judicial bodies” regulates remuneration of judges, mass events are regulated by the Decree of the Cabinet of Ministers, limitations on the operation of civil society organizations are imposed by the decrees of the Minister of Justice. [...] 66 See paragraphs 2.a and b of the 2011 Joint Declaration on Freedom of Expression and the Internet by the UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Opinion and Expression, the OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media, the OAS Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression and the ACHPR Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression and Access to Information. [...] 83 The president maintains extensive influence on the formation of the judiciary, including the powers to appoint the majority of the members of the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC), the presidents and vice-presidents of the regional and Tashkent city courts, upon the proposal of the SJC, and nominate chairperson and deputy chairpersons of the Supreme court, chairperson of the SJC as well as justice. [...] The final assessment of the election will depend, in part, on the conduct of the remaining stages of the electoral process, including the count, tabulation and announcement of results, and the handling of possible post-election day complaints or appeals.