Uzbekistan

In 1991, Uzbekistan emerged as a sovereign country after more than a century of Russian and Soviet rule. A former Communist, Islam Karimov, became the president. He ruled the country as a dictator until he died in 2016. During that time, he exercised a ruthlessly authoritarian approach to all forms of opposition, invoking the threat of Islamic militancy to legitimize the suppression of civil liberties. His successor, President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, who remains in power at the time of writing, has implemented several liberalizing economic reforms and released dozens of political prisoners.¹ However, generally speaking, progress on human rights has been slow.² The state retains vast powers to harass and detain perceived critics, and thousands of individuals remain arbitrarily imprisoned on vague charges of spreading extremism.³

Although Uzbekistan does not adopt any state religion and asserts state secularism, over 90% of the population is Muslim – mostly Sunni of the Hanafi school.⁴ There has been no official census in the country since 1989,⁵ but according to estimations by the Pew Research Center, Christians make up around 2% of the population, while those who are unaffiliated with any religion—including atheists and agnostics—account for 0.6%. Smaller religious communities collectively represent around 1% of the population.⁶

The government allows religious practice, but it is still under serious supervision.⁷ Atheists and non-religious individuals also face the threat of imprisonment and social discrimination.⁸

Constitution and government

The Constitution of the Republic of Uzbekistan (2023 Amendment)⁹ defines Uzbekistan as a “sovereign democratic, legal, social, and secular state” (Article 1).¹⁰ Article 33 guarantees freedom of conscience, allowing individuals to profess or not to profess any religion, and prohibits the compulsory imposition of religion. However, Article 21 indicates that these rights and freedoms must not oppose the lawful interests, rights, or freedoms of other people, the state, or society. The same article also indicates that human rights and freedoms are limited to protect “the constitutional order, public health, public morality, the rights and freedoms of other persons, to ensure public safety and public order.”¹¹

The 1998 Law on Freedom of Conscience and Religious Organizations (amended in 2021)¹² reaffirms secularism and prohibits the establishment of a state religion. It affirms the right of individuals to choose, or not to choose, a religion and explicitly bans coercion, proselytization, and missionary activities. It also prohibits forcing children to participate in religious organizations against their own or their parents’ will. The law forbids the use of religion to undermine the state, infringe upon the rights of others, incite hatred, or harm the health and morals of citizens. Additionally, it bans the formation of religiously based political parties and the inclusion of religious materials in public school curricula.¹³

Registration of religious groups

According to the amended Law on Freedom of Conscience and Religious Organizations, all religious groups in Uzbekistan must register with the Ministry of Justice to operate legally. To qualify, they must meet strict requirements, including a presence in eight of the country’s 14 regions. At the beginning of each year, every religious group is required to submit a list of planned meetings to the Ministry of Justice and they must notify the government 30 days in advance of any planned religious activities that are not part of formal worship services.¹³ According to Human Rights Watch and Forum 18, the authorities use a variety of tactics to block groups from registering. For example, they have claimed that urban planning construction regulations prevent a particular building from being designated as a legal address for a Jehovah’s Witness community in Tashkent, and that the church leaders of a Protestant church in Samarkand region do not hold an educational qualification recognized by the Religious Affairs Committee.¹⁴

Unauthorized religious activity is criminalized under Uzbekistan’s Criminal Code, including the organization of or participation in unregistered religious groups (Article 216-2). Article 244-1 penalizes the production, storage, or distribution of materials deemed to threaten public order or security. This has been used to target individuals for sharing content related to religious or secular beliefs online. The state forbids banned “extremist religious groups” from distributing any type of publication and penalties range from from five to 20 years imprisonment.¹⁵

Persecution of religious groups

Despite constitutional guarantees of freedom of religion and belief, the state remains in tight control of religious expression, maintaining an overbroad definition of “extremism” resulting in the targeting of non-violent groups or individuals.​ Human Rights groups continue to criticize the Law on Freedom of Conscience and Religious Organizations as being overly restrictive on the exercise, teaching and sharing of religious beliefs.¹³ These organizations have documented numerous cases where individuals have been prosecuted for peaceful religious activities, such as distributing religious materials labeled as “extremist” by the state (See Freedom of Expression below).¹³

The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) has documented the cases of over 50 Uzbeks who remain in prison in 2025 on vague charges related to peaceful religious activity. In 2025, security officials arrested roughly 100 Muslim individuals in Kashkadarya for such activities.¹⁶

Police are reported to interrogate young men with beards, linking such a feature to unauthorized religious practice.¹⁷ For example, “beard raids” are conducted at the Malika market in Tashkent, where security officials have threatened to shave or detain bearded men. In 2024, singer Shokhzakhon Zhuraev was barred from participating in a broadcast musical contest due to his beard.¹⁶

In 2023, Forum 18 reported that authorities had raided the Easter services of a Baptist Church in Qarshi which had reportedly been previously raided. The Government stated that the organization was not registered and that authorities had not been notified of the performances taking place during the service.¹⁸

Atheists, Agnostics, and the Non-religious

Atheists also face a hostile environment both socially and legally. In March 2023, four Uzbek-language atheist Facebook group members were given a 3–5 year prison sentence by the courts in Tashkent for their online discussions.¹⁸ Moreover, no civil society and public forums promote non-religious rights. They are not represented officially or hardly represented in the public debate of tolerance or diversity compared to well-established religious communities.

Education and children’s’ rights

Uzbekistan maintains a secular education system, prohibiting private teaching of religion and restricting religious education to state-sanctioned institutions.¹⁹ The Law on Freedom of Conscience and Religious Organizations maintains these restrictions, allowing only officially registered religious organizations to provide religious education.¹³ Religious content cannot be part of public school curricula, and unlicensed religious instruction, especially for children, is forbidden.¹³

In February 2025, Uzbekistan adopted amendments to the Law on Guarantees of Children’s Rights²⁰ expanding state oversight of the religious education of children. Parents are now prohibited from sending their children to religious schools that are not registered or placing them under unapproved religious teachers. Fines are from 5 to 15 base calculation units²¹ or 15 days detention for repeat offenses. Officials contend the law is designed to protect the rights of children and access to state education.²²

Child marriage

Although the Family Code of Uzbekistan²³ sets the legal age of marriage at 18, child and arranged marriages remain prevalent, particularly in rural areas. In 2024, 37.5% of women married before the age of 20, compared to 1.4% of men, indicating an enormous gender disparity in early marriages.²⁴ In 2024, a study funded by UNICEF indicated that 62% of children aged 1–14 experienced violent disciplining, and 33% of girls aged 15–19 believed that a husband is justified in beating his wife. However, in August 2024, the Senate of Uzbekistan approved the Law on Ending All Forms of Violence Against Children²⁵ to protect children from violence, abuse, neglect, and exploitation.²⁶ Nonetheless, a growing number of parents circumvent the law by organizing religious marriages (nikah) for their underaged children without official registration. These marriages leave girls without legal protection, especially in the case of divorce.²⁷

Family, community and society

Women’s rights

According to UNDP (United Nations Development Programme), conservative and religious beliefs were strengthened following Uzbekistan’s independence from the Soviet Union and progress on women’s rights stagnated. Harmful attitudes about gender equality continue to prevail in the country and women are widely considered as “possessions of the family unit” with little agency over who they marry, what they study and whether they can work outside the home. Many women and girls are also victims of domestic abuse and violence.²⁸ 

Women who exercise freedom of religion or belief are likely to be targeted by male officials. There are intense social pressures working against women and many have reported being silenced when raising concerns about human rights violations.²⁹ Women who convert from Islam to another religion, particularly Christianity, can become social and familial victims of persecution. This includes house arrests, forced marriages, and sexual assault – occasionally in the form of coercion to force them back to Islam. The social stigma can extend beyond the converts themselves.³⁰

In 2023, a law imposing fines on religious dress in public was abolished. In its place the government adopted a law banning the wearing of garments that cover the face to such an extent that it would prevent identification of the wearer. The new law is reported to represent a de facto ban on full-body burqas and niqabs.³¹

LGBTI+ rights

Consensual homosexual relations between men are criminalized under Article 120 of Uzbekistan’s Criminal Code and are punishable with a maximum three-year prison term. The article was enforced actively between 2016 and 2020 in which 44 people were prosecuted and 49 are currently serving prison terms at the time of writing. In 2023 alone, 27 individuals were convicted under this article. Although same-sex relations between women are not illegal, lesbian and bisexual women are still subject to considerable social stigma and discrimination.³²

The LGBTI+ population faces systematic discrimination by society. They are victims of violence at the hands of neighbors, family members, and extremist hate groups. They are humiliated in public, physically attacked, and even killed in some cases. The fear of this forces many into hiding, never disclosing their identities. Human Rights Watch documents an atmosphere of fear fueled by arbitrary arrest, police brutality, extortion, outing, violence, and homophobia, sometimes abetted or overlooked by authorities.³³

Apostasy

Apostasy is not a criminal offense under Uzbekistan’s criminal law. However, individuals who leave Islam face strong social persecution. They can experience family threats, social ostracism, forced confinement at home, or even forced marriage for women. Conversion away from Islam is seen as a betrayal of cultural and national identity. Converts are often pressured to return to Islam under social and family threats.³⁴

Freedom of expression, advocacy of humanist values

The laws of Uzbekistan impose extensive state censorship. Legal provisions have been utilized to target both religious and secular expression through law enforcement and judicial actions.

In 2023, a student at Tashkent State University of Economics received three years in prison for sharing a religious song with his classmates. Earlier in the year, another individual who had been imprisoned for downloading and sharing a banned religious song saw his sentence reduced and he was released. According to a BBC report, his mother alleged he was tortured by police during pretrial detention and forced to confess to participating in extremist activities.¹³

The Law on Informatization³⁵ permits the restriction of content that incites national, racial, ethnic, or religious hatred. The broad and vague language used in this law allows for the arbitrary blocking of online content.​³⁶ Resolution No. 707 (2018)³⁷ grants authorities the power to block websites and social media platforms that are deemed to promote extremist, propagandistic, or hateful content. The expansive and undefined criteria for what constitutes such content can lead to the suppression of legitimate expressions, including those related to atheism and secularism. (See Highlighted Cases below)³⁸

Media freedoms

The media space remains tightly controlled in Uzbekistan, with drastic restrictions on freedom of the press and limited space for independent journalism. Media freedoms have improved slightly under President Mirziyoyev, but censorship and surveillance are still rife.³⁹ The state firmly grips the reins of the major media, and independent reporting is brutally silenced. While modest decreases in media repression have been recorded since President Mirziyoyev came to power, disparagement of those in authority remains very difficult.⁴⁰ In 2024, Reporters Without Borders ranked Uzbekistan at 148, down from its ranking the previous year by 11 places in the World Press Freedom Index of 180 countries. The report changed the rating from “problematic” to “very problematic” and indicated worsening conditions in the country for journalists.³⁹

Freedom of Assembly

Uzbekistan continues to severely restrict the right to freedom of assembly. Authorities regularly suppress gatherings and detain participants. For instance, in the 2022 Karakalpakstan protests against proposed constitutional amendments that would have reduced the region’s autonomy, security forces responded with lethal force, resulting in significant numbers of deaths and injuries. Activists such as lawyer and editor, Dauletmurat Tazhimuratov, were sentenced to long prison terms after trials criticized by international observers for being politically motivated. International human rights organizations continue to condemn Uzbekistan’s suppression of fundamental human rights and civil liberties.⁴¹

Highlighted cases

In March 2021, Miraziz Bazarov, an Uzbek blogger and human rights activist, was attacked by unknown persons after he publicly advocated for LGBTI+ rights, against corruption in the government, and in criticism of religious conservatism. Instead of investigating the attack, the authorities charged Bazarov with slander for his social media posts criticizing teachers and pro-government bloggers. He was sentenced in January 2022 to three years of limited freedom, banning him from using the internet, making public speeches, or traveling beyond Tashkent without permission. According to human rights organizations, including the Uzbek Forum for Human Rights and Human Rights Watch, his prosecution is in response to his activism for LGBTI+ rights and open criticism of political and religious leaders.⁴²

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2. Aram Terzyam, “Human Rights in Uzbekistan: Progress within Limits under Shavkat Mirziyoyev”, Modern Diplomacy, 25 January 2025 https://moderndiplomacy.eu/2025/01/25/human-rights-in-uzbekistan-progress-within-limits-under-shavkat-mirziyoyev/ [↩]
3. “Charting Progress in Mirziyoyev’s Uzbekistan”, Human Rights Watch, 7 October 2019 https://www.hrw.org/news/2019/10/07/charting-progress-mirziyoyevs-uzbekistan [↩]
4. Niginakhon Saida, “Uzbekistan’s Tightrope Between Individual Religious Expression and Secular Governance,” The Diplomat, 27 August 2024 https://thediplomat.com/2024/08/uzbekistans-tightrope-between-individual-religious-expression-and-secular-governance/ [↩]
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11. va faqat konstitutsiyaviy tuzumni, aholining sog‘lig‘ini, ijtimoiy axloqni, boshqa shaxslarning huquq va erkinliklarini himoya qilish, jamoat xavfsizligini hamda jamoat tartibini ta’minlash maqsadida zarur bo‘lgan doirada cheklanishi mumkin.[↩]
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17. Daphne Beal, “Finding the Heart of the Ancient Silk Road in Uzbekistan,” Condé Nast Traveler, November 16, 2017, https://www.cntraveler.com/story/finding-the-heart-of-the-ancient-silk-road-in-uzbekistan [↩]
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    https://www.hrw.org/news/2023/05/24/uzbekistan-backsliding-religious-freedom-promises [↩]
20. Law of the Republic of Uzbekistan on Guarantees of Children’s Rights, January 7, 2008,
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21. A standard monetary reference amount set by a government and used to calculate fines, taxes, salaries, social benefits, and administrative penalties[↩]
22. “Uzbekistan Expands State Control over Children’s Religious Upbringing,” KUN.UZ, 21 February 2025 https://kun.uz/en/news/2025/02/21/uzbekistan-expands-state-control-over-childrens-religious-upbringing [↩]
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34. Open Doors, Uzbekistan: Persecution Dynamics, December 2024 https://www.opendoors.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/WWL-2025-Persecution-Dynamics-Uzbekistan.pdf [↩]
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