Lgbt Rights In Uzbekistan

Same-sex sexual activity between men is illegal in Uzbekistan. The punishment is up to three years in prison. Uzbekistan is one of just two post-Soviet states in which male homosexual activity remains criminalised, along with Turkmenistan.

LGBT rights in Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan
Status	Male: illegal since 1926 (as Uzbek SSR) Female: not criminalised
Penalty	Up to 3 years in jail
Gender identity	No
Military	No
Discrimination protections	None
Family rights
Recognition of relationships	No recognition of same-sex unions
Adoption	No

Serious societal discrimination and abuse is directed towards LGBT persons, which includes mob violence, harassment, entrapment for the purpose of blackmail, and threats and use of violence. Despite the incidence of violence and intimidation, LGBT persons generally do not report these crimes to authorities for fear of further victimisation at their hands. There are reports of extortion by police, intimidation, arbitrary detention, assaults and other mistreatment of victims who have sought police assistance. Human rights violations by police also include torture, and severe beatings in detention. Vigilante attacks and mob violence, and other hate crimes, including murders, are targeted at LGBT individuals.

The Uzbek government has dismissed the need for action to protect sexual minorities, with one official declaring that even if same-sex sexual activities were decriminalised, LGBT persons could not be kept safe. Community attitudes that fuel such anti-LGBT activity stem from the Uzbek "mentality", with their "religion, culture, and traditions" making "gay men and women" unacceptable in the country, according to the spokesperson.

Laws criminalizing consensual same-sex sexual activity between men were enacted in the Uzbek SSR in 1926. It is criminalised in present-day Uzbekistan by Article 120 of Uzbek's criminal code (1994):

Besoqolbozlik, that is, voluntary sexual intercourse of two male individuals – shall be punished with imprisonment up to three years.

— § 120, Uzbek Penal Code 1994 (revised 2001)

Article 130 covers the distribution of pornographic materials. This provision and was strengthened in 2012:^[relevant?]

Production with a purpose of demonstration and dissemination of, as well as demonstration and dissemination of obscene objects to persons under twenty-one of age committed after imposing of administrative penalty for the same actions – shall be punished with fine from one hundred to two hundreds minimal monthly wages or correctional labor up to three years.

— § 130, Uzbek Penal Code 1994 (amended 2001)

In April 2023, the Constitution of Uzbekistan deliberately leaves out "sexual orientation" - despite all other categories are explicitly included - such as gender, race, religion and nationality.

• Human rights in Uzbekistan
• LGBT rights in Asia