On June 9-10, 2021, the National Human Rights Centre of the Republic of Uzbekistan jointly with the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) held an online seminar on international practice and experience in the implementation of the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees, which was a continuation of the seminar on the introduction of to the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees, held on June 1-2, 2021.

The purpose of the seminar is to exchange best practices and experiences of countries similar to the Republic of Uzbekistan that have acceded to the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and the 1967 Protocol thereto.

The 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and its 1967 Protocol are key documents for the international protection of refugees, they provide the legal basis for refugee assistance and form the basis of UNHCR work. The majority of countries in the world have signed or ratified the Convention and the Protocol to it, but some of the countries that host refugees have not yet done so.

During the seminar, the participants got acquainted with the best practices of countries that have ratified the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees, as well as the difficulties and positive aspects of ratification.

The seminar was opened by Akmal Saidov, Director of the National Human Rights Centre of the Republic of Uzbekistan and Hans Friedrich Schodder, UNHCR Representative for Central Asia.

As A. Saidov noted, one of the most difficult problems facing the world community on the threshold of the third millennium is the problem of refugees and displaced persons. This problem is global and multifaceted. Accordingly, both approaches to its analysis and methods of solving it should take into account all the variety of its aspects - from the causes of the mass exodus to the development of the necessary response measures in a wide variety of situations.

Hans Friedrich Schodder reconfirmed the support of the UN Refugee Agency for Uzbekistan to realize its ambition to join the family of 149 states, who are parties to and implement the Refugee Convention and Protocol: “UNHCR is looking forward to assisting and advising the Government and Parliament of the Republic of Uzbekistan in drafting, adopting and introducing according national legislation, practices, and institutions.”

The event was attended by representatives of the Ministries of Foreign Affairs, Internal Affairs, Justice, Employment and Labor Relations, the Department of Internal Migration and the Registration of Citizenship of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Uzbekistan, the Committee on Interethnic Relations and Friendly Relations with Foreign Countries, the Agency for External Labor Migration, the Border Guard Service state security of the Republic of Uzbekistan, the State Customs Committee of the Republic of Uzbekistan, the National Guard of the Republic of Uzbekistan and the office of the Oliy Majlis Commissioner for Human Rights.

National Centre
of the Republic of Uzbekistan
for Human Rights