At the Senate’s thirty-ninth plenary session, the senators reviewed the amendments to the Criminal Code of the Republic of Uzbekistan, aimed at ensuring the inevitability of liability for corruption crimes".

According to the parliament, the Criminal Code is to be supplemented with a new definition: “corruption crimes”, according to which the actions provided for by the relevant articles, parts and clauses of the code are recognized as corruption crimes, and punishment for these crimes are proposed to be harshened.

Apart from amending the relevant articles of the Criminal Code, release on parole from punishment and replacement of punishment with a milder one shall not apply to persons convicted of embezzlement by misappropriation or embezzlement, fraud, tax evasion or other obligatory payments and who have not fully compensated the damage caused by the crime and to persons who have committed such crimes as receiving a bribe, giving a bribe, mediation in bribery.

In accordance with the document, the imposition of punishment in the form of imprisonment for crimes related to bribery of an employee of a government body, a self-governing body of citizens, a non-state commercial organization shall be established. The amendments are important in that they are aimed at a consistent fight against corruption and ensuring the inevitability of punishment for the commission of this crime.

The senators stressed that the amendments would serve to clearly define corruption crimes and develop systemic measures to counter these types of crimes, prevent corruption crimes, establish fair punishment for those who have committed corruption crimes, as well as reliably protect the rights and interests of victims of the crime.

Following the discussion, the senators passed the amendments.