Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev said on Monday that the parliament should be more dynamic about solving society’s problems, and that the “opposition” should have more rights in the assembly. His comments were in line with the government’s reform push, but also reflected Mirziyoyev’s tight political control over Uzbekistan, because none of the five registered political parties pose a meaningful challenge to him.  

Mirziyoyev made the announcements in a speech to the Oliy Majlis, Uzbekistan’s parliament, in its first session since October 27 legislative elections. The elections were meant to underline the country’s evolution toward political liberalization, even though OSCE election observers said there was a lack of political competition and the vote “did not offer voters a real choice.”

Those elections introduced a mixed system in which half of 150 lawmakers were elected individually and half from party lists, the result of a constitutional change that is part of a broader government campaign to develop the Central Asian country in socio-economic, judicial and other areas. While Mirziyoyev promised more openness and accountability after taking power following the death of longtime leader Islam Karimov in 2016, opponents say the government is often heavyhanded in its response to dissent and efforts to form a genuine political opposition are kept in check.  

Mirziyoyev’s comment about giving more clout to the opposition came midway through a speech in which he reviewed the elections and urged parliamentarians to be more pro-active in “solving urgent problems” in Uzbekistan. He talked about legislative proposals to replace old residential buildings with modern ones, support private education and investors in energy, introduce mandatory health insurance and tackle themes related to artificial intelligence. 

“In order to boost the opposition, it was proposed to increase the number of guaranteed rights of the parliamentary opposition from 3 to 6, including giving it the positions of one committee chairman and two deputy committee chairmen, as well as additional rights to submit questions within the framework of the “government hour” and parliamentary inquiries,” Mirziyoyev’s office said in a statement. 

There are nuances between the government and some lawmakers on specific issues such as environmental policy or public pronouncements on Uzbekistan’s relationship with Russia, though the registered parties are essentially loyal to the president. In a constitutional referendum in 2023, voters approved measures that could let Mirziyoyev stay in power until 2040.