The event was organized by the UN office in Uzbekistan, Sub-regional office of UN Women in Eastern Europe and Central Asia, UN Information office in Tashkent, Uzbekistan Women’s Committee, National human rights center, Justice Ministry of Uzbekistan, National Association of the NGOs of Uzbekistan, Women’s Council and Center for Supporting Civil Society.

To provide a snapshot of progress made towards women empowerment around the globe, including areas where efforts have been successful and where problems are still encountered, UN Women has this year published the report ‘Progress of the World’s Women 2011-2012 – In Pursuit of Justice’.

In order to launch this report in Uzbekistan, a nation which has taken steps to ensure women receive the same opportunities, rights and treatment as men, the United Nations Information Office and UN Women conducted a press conference on 3 February.

The group of prestigious speakers who attended this landmark event has shown the true extent of the report’s importance. Particularly honoured guests included Ms. Elmira Basitkhanova, Deputy Prime Minister of the Republic of Uzbekistan, and Ms. Anita Nirody, UN Resident Coordinator in Uzbekistan. Also present was Mr. Akmal Saidov, director of the National Center for Human Rights, Ms. Farozona Khashimova, gender advisor in Uzbekistan and a programme specialist at the Sub-Regional Office of UN Women in Eastern Europe and Central Asia, and Mr. Shukhrat Nazarov, executive director of the republic-wide Public Union ‘Ayollar Kengashi’. CISC Chairperson Ms. Dilovar Kabulova also attended the conference, while the proceedings were hosted by Mr. Bobir Komilov of the United Nations Information Office.

By opening the conference, Deputy Prime Minister Elmira Basitkhanova expressed her deep appreciation for the event’s organisers, specifically UN Women and the United Nations Information Office, in launching the report of global importance. In her opening speech she highlighted that legislation had been established in Uzbekistan to protect women’s rights, and the national situation will continue to improve in years to come. She expressed the national benefits that will result from the recently-launched report, and her appreciation of the work provided by supporting UN agencies. The comments made by Mr. Akmal Saidov, director of the National Center for Human Rights, re-emphasised the Prime Minister’s statements and the report’s great importance as a reference source for national initiatives.

UN Resident Coordinator Anita Nirody followed the statements made by Ms. Basitkhanova by showing her appreciation of work already conducted in Uzbekistan in regards to improving gender equality, while addressing the significance of the new UN Women report and its importance both in Uzbekistan and around the globe. A central message of her speech was that while Uzbekistan’s legislation may work towards protecting the rights of women, this legislation can only be successful if it is effectively enforced. She finished her speech by expressing gratitude to all the UN’s national and international partners who have worked towards the preservation of women’s rights, and expressed her anticipation of the report’s beneficial results.

‘Progress of the World’s Women 2011-2012 – In pursuit of Justice’ was described by UN Women representative Ms. Farzona Khashimova as an overview of global conditions for women in the previous year. Ms. Khashimova highlighted the report’s main message that while the world is making slow but regular steps towards the securement of universal human rights, the global occurrence of violence against women, domestic abuse, human trafficking, judicial restrictions and lack of empowerment still exist to varying degrees. One particularly worrisome point was that the reported number of rapes may in certain countries represent just 14% of the number of actual assaults, while in some locations this number can be as low as 5%. Another matter addressed is the vulnerability of women during modern conflicts, and the role women should play in post-conflict decisions.

Ms. Khashimova has indicated that the UN Women report has been developed with the intention of considering the situation of women around the world. This has involved a study of the progress made in terms of the empowerment of women, and an analysis of relevant data on the grounds of factors such as nationality and ethnicity. The report has provided case studies sourced from Ecuador to Kenya, Pakistan and Mexico, making comparisons between conditions in each nation, while it also contains a series of ten recommendations.

Following Ms. Khashimova’s summary of the new report, Mr. Artyom Gorokhov of the National Center for Human Rights, described Uzbekistan’s implementation of the international standards for the protection of women’s rights. Mr. Gorokhov reported that great progress had been made in the achievement of gender equality, specifically in regards to the fulfilment of international treaties associated with the protection of women’s rights. He also drew attention to the four national reports that have so far been submitted. Mr. Gorokhov likewise reported that the nation has worked to address concerns regarding maternal and early-childhood health, violence against women and human trafficking, while an adopted draft law guarantees equal rights and opportunities for men and women. A monitoring system has been created to ensure that adopted laws are thoroughly implemented, while 120 related international documents, including the Convention on the Rights of the Child and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, have been translated into Uzbek, Russian and Karakalpak.

The press conference continued with a presentation delivered by the Citizen Initiatives Support Centre Chairperson Ms. Dilovar Kabulova, which highlighted the importance of the Centers for Business and Social Engagement of Women, and the Civil Initiatives Support Center. Both centers have offered important services to women in Uzbekistan, the first providing education and training and the second a valuable source of psychological, legal and business support. In particular she commented on the success of the Civil Initiatives Support Center, in terms of its anonymous hotline, home consultancy support and on-site service. The demand for these centers has led to requests for their duplication across Uzbekistan.

Following a question and answer session, UN Women representative Farzona Khashimova once again detailed the importance of the report and the agency’s appreciation of its national and international partners. However it was the final comments made by UN Resident Coordinator Anita Nirody that summarised the importance of UN Women’s report and the advancements made towards gender equality in Uzbekistan. The Resident Coordinator mentioned that while Uzbekistan has made significant advancements in regards to legislation, the key to success lies in the insuring their application.