Karimov’s independence and presidency
During the Second World War (November 1944) from Georgia to Uzbekistan (including to the Fergana Basin), the Turkic Meshes were affected by bloody pogroms in 1989 (afterwards evacuation). Uzbekistan declared its sovereignty on June 20, 1990 and its independence on August 31, 1991; On December 21, 1991, Uzbekistan joined the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) without initially being too closely integrated into the confederation of states dominated by Russia. Under the leadership of I. Karimov (1989–91 first secretary of the Central Committee of the Uzbek CP, head of state since 1990, confirmed by elections in December 1991) the communist nomenclature in Uzbekistan, which now subscribed to a nationalist ideology, remained largely in power. The CP was transformed into the People’s Democratic Party of Uzbekistan in 1991; The opposition organizations Birlik and Erk were forced into illegality in 1992/93 on charges of “anti-government” or “subversive activities” (1997 entry into force of a law that banned parties on an ethnic or religious basis). Karimov whose term of office was extended for a further five years by referendum (March 27, 1995) and by re-election (January 9, 2000), increasingly expanded the authoritarian presidential system; an attempted assassination attempted against him in February 1999 was attributed to Islamist terrorists and served as an occasion for intensified crackdown on the opposition. In the summer of 2000, armed units of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, allied with the Afghan Taliban, advanced from the Tajik border area to the vicinity of Tashkent; After fighting with Uzbek security forces, the government arranged for thousands of people to be forcibly evacuated from the affected mountainous region and trials of Tajik residents in the area for supporting terrorism. By means of a referendum on January 27th, 2002 the Karimov again extend his presidential term (from five to seven years) and at the same time vote on the introduction of a bicameral parliament. In the parliamentary elections held in December 2004, the opposition was not allowed. Against the background of authoritarian government policy and persistently great poverty of a large part of the population, Islamist movements (Hizb-ut Tahrir al Islami and the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan) gained increasing popularity. At the same time, after several suicide attacks in 2004, the government used the argument of fighting terrorism to continue to take action against opponents of the regime. Karimov caused unrest in the city of Andizhan, located in the Fergana Basinbloodily knocked down by troops; on May 13, 2005, hundreds of participants in a demonstration were believed to have been killed (officially 187 dead). While human rights organizations described the events in Andizhan as a massacre, the Uzbek government regarded them as a “conspiracy of Islamist terrorists” and sentenced alleged leaders to long prison terms. A V. a. The international investigation of the events demanded by the US and the EU was rejected, but repression against members of the opposition was intensified.
According to aceinland, President Karimov’s term of office officially expired in 2007. Contrary to the provisions of the constitution (only two consecutive terms in office), the electoral commission allowed Karimov to run for office in November 2007, in the new elections scheduled for December 23, 2007. He was officially elected for a third term with 88.1% of the votes cast. In the parliamentary elections in December 2009 and January 2010, the Liberal Democratic Party won 53 seats. The People’s Democratic and Democratic Parties received 32 and 31 seats, respectively, and the Social Democratic Party received 19 seats. The Ecological Movement, an organization v. a. to represent the Uzbek interests in the management of water resources in Central Asia, was given the 15 seats in parliament that had been reserved for them and had to be filled indirectly. On March 10, 2011, Uzbekistan officially closed the branch of the non-governmental organization Human Rights Watch (HRW) in Tashkent. A December 2011 report by HRW accused Uzbekistan of using torture in prisons and criticized Western states for continuing to cooperate with the regime. On July 9, 2013, Gulnara Karimowa (* 1972) , the daughter of the President, was recalled as Uzbek Ambassador to the UN in Geneva and lost her immunity. Karimova , who was believed to be her father’s possible successor, was suspected of being involved in a bribery and corruption scandal. The indictment brought against Karimova bythe Uzbek public prosecutor’s office in September 2014 was seen in Western media as evidence of a power struggle in the presidential family.
In the parliamentary elections on December 21, 2014 and January 4, 2015, only the parties supporting the Karimov regime were able to participate. The Liberal Democratic Party won 52 seats. The Democratic Party won 36 seats, the Social Democratic Party 30 seats and the People’s Democratic Party 21 seats. According to official information, Karimov was confirmed in office in the presidential elections on March 29, 2015 with 90.4% of the votes. Opposition candidates critical of the regime were again unable to take part in the election. After Karimov’s death on September 2, 2016, Prime Minister S. Mirsiyoyev took overtemporarily the government. On December 4, 2016, according to the electoral commission, the population elected him as Karimov’s successor with around 88.6% of the votes. On December 14, 2016, Mirsiyoyev was sworn in as president.
