The Uzbek parliament’s upper house approved the draft law "On introducing amendments and addenda to some laws of the Republic of Uzbekistan in connection with improving the election legislation".

Another important innovation in the election legislation is abolishing the practice of nominating candidates from citizens’ initiative groups to representative bodies of power.

It should be reminded that in line with former election legislation, citizens, along with political parties, could nominate candidates to the post of MPs by setting up initiative groups and collecting a certain number of signatures in support of their candidacy.

Such forms of participating in elections were typical of early stages of democratic societies’ development. There is no need for such an imperfect practice like nomination of candidates from citizens’ initiative groups today, when an effective multiparty system has been created and is developing in Uzbekistan and when social, political institutions have developed highly.

Various organized criminal groups can use the practice to nominating their own candidates with the aim of gaining immunity.