Preliminary investigation of cases of crimes related to cultural property will be handled by the State Security Service.
The draft law “On amendments to the Criminal and Criminal Procedural Codes in connection with the strengthening of measures to combat the illicit circulation of cultural property” has been promulgated.
The Law “On Amendments and Additions to Certain Legislative Acts in Connection with Strengthening the Protection of Material Cultural Heritage Objects” provides for increased liability for the destruction or damage to objects of material cultural heritage, the investigation of this category of cases was transferred to the prosecutor’s office.
The transfer to investigators of the prosecutor’s office of the case on non-return to the territory of Uzbekistan (CC 169-2) of objects that are considered artistic, historical and archaeological heritage of the peoples of Uzbekistan and foreign countries will lead to the formation of a unified investigative practice in this area. will lead to the formation of a unified investigative practice in this area. It is noted that the investigation under Article 169-2 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Uzbekistan is conducted by the prosecutor’s office.
Illegal possession of objects or documents, representing historical, scientific, artistic or other cultural value associated with the protection of cultural heritage (CC 169-1), is mainly committed in the form of theft by appropriation or embezzlement. At the same time, the appropriation of objects is carried out by replacing material objects of cultural heritage with their counterparts that have no value. Given that the methods of committing crimes fall within the competence of various investigative bodies, it is indicated that it is expedient to conduct a preliminary investigation on this category of cases by the preliminary investigation body that initiated the case.
According to Article 5 of the Law “On the State Security Service”, the protection of the cultural, historical and rich spiritual heritage of the people of Uzbekistan is one of the main activities of the State Security Service. Since the proposed Article 182-1 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Uzbekistan is connected with the state border, that is, the crimes under this Article are often committed together with the crimes under Articles 182, 246 of the Criminal Code, and are similar in other respects, the preliminary investigation in this area is supposed to be transferred to the SSS investigators.
Adoption of the bill will help protect the country’s material cultural heritage, prevent their illegal circulation, preserve Uzbekistan’s invaluable contribution to world culture and history, and pass it on to future generations.
