In Historic First, Webster Human Rights Class Visits Uzbekistan’s Parliament

Students visiting Uzbekistan ParliamentA group of students from Webster University in Tashkent visited the Legislative Chamber of the Oliy Majlis (Parliament) of the Republic of Uzbekistan on Wednesday, June 23. The Parliament is typically closed for visitors, making this tour by Webster students a key event marking the changes in the country.

This unique opportunity was open exclusively to students taking an intensive summer International Relations course taught by Central Asia expert and human rights lawyer Steve Swerdlow, who is Associate Professor of the Practice of Human Rights at the University of Southern California, Los Angeles visiting Webster Tashkent this summer and teaching INTL 2000.

The field trip included a meeting with Members of Parliament. The MPs gave introductory remarks, after which the students had a chance to pose questions about human rights, including on critical issues such as women’s rights, freedom of the press, efforts to combat corruption and the importance of an independent judiciary.

Swerdlow shared, “I am very proud of the students, who in our more than one-hour sit-down with members of parliament posed some tough, probing questions on human rights in general and in Uzbekistan.”

The students were also given an exclusive tour of the legislative voting chamber, the historical archive and the parliamentary library. As Swerdlow explained, “none of the students had ever visited the Parliament, nor ever even thought about it, which again underlines for me how much of a breakthrough this was. Working to improve human rights begins with a good understanding of how government functions, and the role of parliament is key.”

The MPs who met with the group of students are experienced former civil servants – one was employed in the office of the Ombudsman for Human Rights and the other was the rector of two key Uzbek universities: Tashkent State Economic University and the University of World Economy and Diplomacy.

Dilnoza Abdieva, a junior, shared how the visit motivated her to become more involved in human rights advocacy. “We were received very warmly by the deputies who tried to answer our questions. We had an excursion to Oliy Majlis where we visited the museum and modern library and wonderful voting hall… we were given an opportunity to take some pictures at the main entrance, which I think was one of the rare cases of allowing to take some pictures near a state facility.”

The students who participated gained insights into the role of the Legislative Chamber of the Parliament in Uzbekistan’s government. Doniyor Mutalov, a sophomore, explained “parliamentarian [power is] still in the process of conception and acclimatization, even though significant progress has been made in the last years.” Abdieva said that coming out of the visit, she wants “to educate myself more about human rights,” and that “most importantly [the visit] motivated me to try to take some actions.”

Related News