Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs Erkebek Ashirkhodzhaev presented a bill concerning the tightening of punishment for recidivism, which was brought forward for the first reading.
Ashirkhodzhaev emphasized that the concept of recidivism was abolished in 2019 with the new edition of the Criminal Code; however, this decision did not yield positive results. Under current legislation, recidivists can expect probation and early conditional release, which does not take into account their previous offenses.
The new bill proposes the following measures to strengthen responsibility:
- The punishment for recidivism will be significantly increased: the minimum punishment will be half, for dangerous recidivism – two-thirds, and for especially dangerous recidivism – three-quarters of the maximum punishment provided for this crime.
- There will be no possibility to avoid criminal liability upon reaching an agreement with the victim for crimes committed during dangerous and especially dangerous recidivism.
- Recidivism will be recognized as an aggravating circumstance.
- Probation supervision will not apply to individuals convicted of crimes during dangerous or especially dangerous recidivism.
- Early conditional release will not be granted to recidivists.
- Additional qualifying features will be introduced for a number of crimes related to organized crime when committed during dangerous or especially dangerous recidivism.
Deputy Bekeshev inquired about which specific provision is being introduced into Article 18 of the Criminal Code.The Deputy Minister replied that according to the new provision, an action or inaction that formally falls under the signs of a crime will not be considered as such if it does not pose a public danger.
“Do you consider this correct?” Bekeshev clarified.
To this, Ashirkhodzhaev responded that this is precisely why this provision is being introduced.Bekeshev urged his colleagues to reject the bill, which he called "anti-people" and "cannibalistic."
He noted that, in essence, the proposed norms place the Criminal Code above the Constitution, as they grant law enforcement agencies the ability to justify their actions under the pretext of ensuring economic or informational security. “We are creating a precedent where crimes can be committed under any pretext,” he added.
The Deputy Minister, for his part, claimed that the bill does not violate the Constitution and that the composition of the crime will be determined by the Criminal Code.
Deputy Chairman of the Committee on Judicial and Legal Issues Suyunbek Omurzakov confirmed that the committee's decision proposed to exclude paragraph 2 of Article 18 from the bill.
Bekeshev also pointed out other aspects of the bill, such as the tightening of responsibility for tax evasion. “This will lead to negative consequences for business,” he emphasized, urging colleagues to reject the bill.
Elvira Surabaldiyeva clarified whether the article mentioned by Bekeshev would be excluded, to which Ashirkhodzhaev responded affirmatively, adding that the exclusion of Article 50 is also planned.
