UZBEKISTAN AND DEMOCRATIC DEVELOPMENTS

Uzbekistan, country from which Anatolian Turks had their roots, had difficult problems when it stepped on the way towards independence in 1990. There is no doubt Uzbeks needed, before all else, to handle one leading problem, which is the fulfillment of the free market conditions, together with another, which was the transition from the Communist system into a more liberal and decentralized model, and therefore implement a great many institutional sine qua non of Western world.

When I visited Uzbekistan in 1993, it was most probable to see the concrete consequences of the system experiencing the problems characteristic to the beginning stages of her transformation process. However, it was also in those years that Uzbekistan was beginning to rapidly replace the artificially-democratic system that was limited by the Communist heritage, with essential and modern democratic institutions and work on the standardization in order to correspond to the modern world.
In that new modern era, Uzbekistan was obliged to compensate the socio-economic losses and distress of the population ? who were used to live below world standards and dependent on state support with little work as civil servant ? which would arise from the implementation of the new system. In order to reach that end, it was crucial to initiate democratic changes in the political arena, while on the other hand install new social institutions, in parallel with fulfilling the requirements of liberal economy. The year 1993 that I witnessed was experiencing the problems of this transition and opening process.
When I repaid a visit to Uzbekistan in 2006, I found myself in a country that proved to satisfy all standard requirements of a modern society. Plenty of modern hotels were built, thousands of factories and facilities operating in services sector were established and a modern finance sector together with its institutions was created. Furthermore, it was much more impressive to monitor those reforms and the initiatory steps that are introduced within the framework of fundamental legal principles on site.
However, considering this last development, I observed significant institutions that are to be taken seriously and did not exist even in Western countries, which from time to time had biased and unjust criticisms for Uzbekistan as well as Turkey. A genuine ?democracy?, which was solely based on popular participation and was like no other I experienced in the rest of the world was implemented. Besides, the new societal system is organized so as to prioritize democracy together with market economy in order to achieve a truly democratic society.
A Retrospective Democratic Approach
Scientists and historians found key elements of democracy in the historical political traditions of the Turkic societies that existed from the beginnings of history while searching for ways to improve democratization in Uzbekistan during the transition from the Communist regime to the new regime. Fundamentally, the democratic conception had always existed in the essence of those Turkic empires that spread throughout the world from Central Asia to the West, in the smallest administrative unit, which was called ?mahalla.? Throughout the history, strong Turkic states were built upon this conception. Provided that the small local units with comprehensive individual participation from below were strong, powerful Turkic states had emerged based upon the dynamism and passion stemming from such popular political participation.
Having considered this element, Uzbekistan president, far-sighted statesman Mr. Islam Kerimov gathered the prominent and respectful elders ?Aksakallar? (White-Beardeds) in order to consult them on the defects of Uzbek society. The resulting ideas made way to the establishment of ?Mahalle waqf? system and Uzbek government immediately began working on the system throughout Uzbekistan. The law on the establishment of ?Mahalle waqf? was enacted in 12/09/1992. In this way a truly democratic system lead by the ?Aksakallar? that was ordained to meet the all the basic needs of society was introduced. Such a system of cooperative institution did not exist under the Soviet era; because the ?Mahalla Waqf? system, which is built upon the traditions and customs of Uzbek people, while attaching importance to the conventional ethics, was perceived as a threat to the philosophy of the communist regime which opposed alternative cooperative social organizations. ?Mahalla? provided the proper conditions for the training and raise of youth for future, constituting the basis of social organization as it was based on traditional ?aile? (family) association. On the other hand communist system gave priority to dialectic materialist patterns for the training of the youth and the individual, rather than referring to their traditions. Ironically, Soviet Union prepared its own culmination by renouncing the individual mentality, motivation and the traditions and customs that empowered this mentality.
Mahalla Waqf and Aksakals
?Mahalla waqf? began operating for the moral, pedagogical and educational development of people, in the relatively small mahallas that were composed of approximately 5000-7000 individuals who closely know each other. Throughout with a new administrative approach, ?Mahalla Waqf? works out to solve the problems concerning education, social security, environment, health, employment etc. bearing in mind the basic presumption that ?mahalla is a big family.? Therefore, ?mahalle,? rather than the state, is positioned to watch out the individuals. Within the new waqf system, ?aksakal,? who is chosen via elections, serves for the sake of mahalla by appointing his secretary and advisors responsible from the religious, moral and traditional education.
The ?aksakal? agency, which is the third elected agency in Uzbekistan after the president and parliamentarians, is an administrative regime motivated by the parole ?mahalla is a family? that existed since Emir Timur. The agency is the realization of the idea that ?aile?, and ?mahalla? as its product, constitute the nucleus of society and the state. The training programs and courses, which procure productive and inventive development of the youth and adults in line with the motto ?economic development begins from the mahalla,? constitute the most precious treasure for a society that hopes for a better future. Considering the basic premise of education and that the ?mahalla is the cradle for education?, the pupils in crèche, primary, secondary schools and university students are trained for the future by the teachers of the education commissions of mahalla waqf, bethinking the basic traditional and customary principles. Thus, schools, although being state institutions, are controlled in the ?mahalla.?
Social Function
?Mahalla Waqf?, which has important social functions, firmly institutionalized the ab aeterno social solidarity of the Turkic world by the establishment of the new system. ?Mahalla waqf? supports the aids for families, elders, needy and ailing people. Moreover, waqf may even help the entrepreneurs/businessmen to establish businesses when necessary.
Observing a system that resembles the Anatolian Turkish ?Ahi? organization still functioning in Uzbekistan may also help us understand the core of the Turkic social traditions and social life.
The financial resources provided by the state in order to help the needy people can also be used most efficiently and optimally, since mahalla would be well aware of those who require relief.
Another important eminence of social solidarity within the mahalla structure can be observed in the importance given to the women and their problems. Particularly, doctors, lawyers and other professional members of the ?Women?s Commission,? which works in order to help women participate in the social life, contacts girls and young women in order to guide them to adopt social life. Subsequently, their specific demands are noted and addressed to the Aksakal for their adequate fulfillment.
The election of ?Mahalla Waqf? (a truly democratic institutional approach of local organization) administration for 2.5 years is explicitly addressed in the Constitution of Uzbekistan. A particular number of delegates that are chosen among the streets of a mahalla substantiate the first chain of the realization of the common will through democracy by participating into a ?kurultay? (assembly) of the delegates. Mahalla waqf, counting 474 in Tashkent and 9941 throughout Uzbekistan, provides an exemplary basis for the appropriate coordination of information between the state, the government and the local divisions. In that respect, it presents a pilot model that should be followed by modern societies.
Other Civil Societal Institutions in Uzbekistan
In addition to mahalla waqf that represents the ideal type of participatory administrative approach, it is observable that Uzbekistan is beginning to accomplish an orderly and systematic social system in terms of establishing an essential civil society with firm bases.
Organizations, such as the ?Institute for Civil Society Studies,? which works in order to contribute for the development of civil societal organizations, increase the level of public participation to government and society for further democratization and liberalization, together with ?Kemalet Youth Movement? (Kemalet meaning maturity) that works for the endorsement of promising contribution of youth to society, appear to be noteworthy institutions pioneering the civil societal progress in Uzbekistan.
?Institute for Civil Society Studies? making striving efforts for the restructuring and enhancement of political parties by working hand in hand with the mahalla waqf, contributes to democratic development of Uzbekistan. Additionally, efforts concerning the development of independence of media institutions are issues worth mentioning in that respect.
?Kemalet Youth Movement,? which was founded in 2001, prepares youth aged 14-28 for future by affiliating them to the movement as members. The movement having 4.5 million members and bureaus in every province of Uzbekistan operates through agencies in schools, universities, colleges and military institutions.
This brilliant movement, aiming to unite youth, protect their interests, increase their competence in social life, solve their problems, inform them of their socio-political rights, guide them through entrepreneurship, facilitate their sports abilities and most importantly prepare them for life, has valuable efforts in addition to publication of 3 gazettes and 5 magazines, which is to be considered as an exemplary endeavor for those societies having problems concerning the future condition of their youth.
Uzbekistan, as one of the most stable societies of the world in terms of internal security, facilitates ideal urbanization projects. Also being free from foreign debt and in addition to her successful efforts for the institutionalization of democratization, it stands in an inspiring position even to arouse jealousy for the Western societies. This is a great achievement thanks to the successful efforts for the protection of independence of Uzbekistan through the implementation of democratization and secularization reforms by the respectful president of Uzbekistan Mr. Islam Kerimov. His Excellency, being well aware that foreign powers? attempt to interfere with the internal affairs of independent countries, implement imperialist policies in order to repress through ?weaken and control? principle, successfully established a commendable principle of independence that we, Anatolian Turks envy and yearn for, by keeping away those foreign powers away from Uzbekistan. Our wish is the initiation of new policies for cooperation between two powerful countries in order for unitary, solidarity and development, which would remind us of the old Turkish saying ?What does one hand do? But when two hands clap makes a sound.? Moreover, it is both crucial and advantageous that cooperation, economic and political solidarity, between Turkey and Uzbekistan, which the Western states always feared of, is enhanced and improved further. We have to draw lessons especially from the delinquency of the previous coalition governments in Turkey and push for serious reformation of the foreign policy agenda of the current government.