13 April, TASHKENT – Today the Supreme Judicial Council of Uzbekistan, and the ‘Rule of Law Partnership in Uzbekistan’ joint project of the Supreme Court, USAID and UNDP, co-hosted the first quarterly/bi-annual meeting of the Community of Women Judges within the Club of Judges. This gathering launched the community’s first year of operation, during which it will seek to increase the number of women judges at national courts, and enhance their influence on the justice sector.

163 women judges attended today’s meeting both in-person and digitally from all regions of Uzbekistan. Within the framework of the Club of Judges established in December 2020 to advise judges in applying substantive and procedural law and legal ethics, the Community of Women Judges serves to consolidate the role of women judges in protecting the rights of women and girls.

A major outcome of the meeting was the drafting of an action plan for the Community of Women Judges of the Club of Judges for 2021, based on the established roadmap to build gender equality in Uzbekistan’s courts and apply related international experience. The meeting also resulted in the selection of 2 judges to be the community’s link to the Rule of Law project, and an agreement on the intended content of two films to document the role women judges play in Uzbekistan’s judicial system.

The event’s key speakers include Judge of the Supreme Court and Chairperson of the Women’s Wing of the Association of Judges S. Mamadalieva, Chairperson of the Supervisory Board of the Kyrgyz Association of Women Judges and Member of the International Association of Women Judges Ch.Aidarbekova, and PhD in Legal Sciences and Head of the Department of Civil Law and International Law Sciences of the Institute of State and Law of the Academy of Sciences of Uzbekistan F. Khamdamova.

The Community of Women Judges is an essential part of an initiative supported by the ‘Rule of Law Partnership in Uzbekistan’ project to strengthen gender parity among the staff and judges of national courts. This work will not only help courts better protect the rights of women, but will also build further public confidence in the judiciary system.

In the past year, alongside national and international partners the Rule of Law project has researched and presented international experience in creating gender parity within national bodies of judges. It has also conducted seminars on best practices in improving access to justice for women, and the development of indicators to assess the effectiveness of judiciary activities in ensuring and protecting women’s rights.

The project’s plans for 2021 in this direction will include hosting a summer school for women judges on gender-based violence, along with regional trainings and practical seminars for law students, the with details of these events to be released in the near future.