Formation of the commitment to national and human values in children and youth is an important priority of the essential law

The current turbulent time in the world community is characterized not only by economic instability, as well as by a spiritual crisis that manifests the youths. Scientists emphasize the fact that the totality of value attitudes inherent in the mass consciousness (including children and youth) is largely destructive, damaging in terms of the development of the individual, family, and state. These tendencies practically extend to all countries. The destruction and crisis of the family, the extremely low level of spiritual-moral culture of most modern parents, incompetence of the family in matters of spiritual development and upbringing of the child, the loss of the family function of transferring significant cultural and life values to children are critically being the core of the issues. Life shows that often the traditional foundations of upbringing and education are replaced by “more modern” – which replace the pedagogy of respect for elders and joint work – by the development of a creative egoistic personality; chastity, abstinence, self-restraint – permissiveness and satisfaction of one`s needs, etc.
Undoubtedly, at the new stage of reforms in Uzbekistan, the priority is not only the solution of political, economic, social problems, but, above all, problems related to the upbringing of a person, the formation of one`s spiritual and moral qualities, historically developed mentality are crucial. The ongoing constitutional reform shall make it possible to determine what political, legal, socio-economic, spiritual and moral principles, values and interests will be a priority for us? Strengthening the processes of global transformation and competition are forcing peoples and countries today, more than ever, to seriously think about their future. It is important that the constitutional reform ensure the well-being of the population, the development of society and the state. The issue of spiritual and moral education is not a simple issue, and it requires serious attention and uninterrupted ongoing affairs from every person, family, the whole society and the state. The words of the great educator Abdulla Avloni are extremely relevant today: “Education for us is a matter of life or death, salvation or demice, happiness or misfortune.” At the same time, raising only a physically strong person is not difficult task, however, raising him/her both physically and spiritually mature is a very complicated process.
Turning to history, we know that Central Asia, along with the most ancient world civilizations, made a significant contribution to the formation of the cultural image of modern humanity and enduring universal values. Moreover, Central Asia was the only region where all world religions had spread at one time: including Zoroastrianism, Buddhism, Christianity and Islam. There has been a global mutual enrichment of world cultures for centuries in Uzbekistan, nomadic peoples got along with settled peoples, Iranian peoples – with Turkic peoples, Muslims – with Christians and Jews. All this initially created a mosaic ethnic composition of the region, and, consequently, the ethnic, cultural and religious tolerance of our people.
Consequently, the cultural heritage of our people accumulates the age-old development of the people, its history, social and cultural ties, life experience, the millennial achievements that our people have achieved in science, art and production. Cultural heritage ensures the continuity of generations in social development, expands the existence of social consciousness in space and time. Morality, rights, customs and traditions, literature and art, history lessons are concentrated in the cultural heritage. By virtue of the reforms carried out in the country that powerful layers of spiritual culture that clearly changed the people`s psychology in the direction of patriotism, national pride, and openness to the whole world have been generated.
Since ancient times, such criteria as – respect for the country of the younger generation, love for the Motherland and loyalty to the Fatherland – have always been in the center of attention of scientists. It is crucial to note the huge role and importance in the upbringing of the young generation of historical roots, the restoration of the huge intellectual heritage that our great ancestors left us – Khoja Ahmad Yassawi, Bahouddin Naqshbandi, Abu Raykhan Beruni, Abu Nasr al-Farabi, Abu Ali Ibn Sino, Imam al -Bukhari, Imam at-Termizi, Amir Temur, Mirzo Ulugbek, Alisher Navoi, Zahiriddin Muhammad Bobur and others, who made an invaluable contribution to the development of all mankind. As noted by Ahmad Yassawi: “The existence of mankind is unthinkable without spiritual impulses, and a person who has no goals, does not know worries, is likened to animals.” One can endlessly enumerate the facts of the spiritual heritage in the history of the culture of Uzbekistan, but the main thing is that the spiritual heritage immensely expands the horizons of people, enriches their lives intellectually and emotionally, and serves as an inexhaustible source of knowledge. At the same time, it is dangerous to forget the experience and heritage of ancestors or abandon them. As the saying, “If you shoot the past with a pistol, the future will shoot you with a gun.” It is important to understand that it is spirituality that protects the nation, national culture, way of life, because it is the potential for self-preservation and self-development of the nation, the people.
At present, the construction of New Uzbekistan is a continuation of independent national development at a new stage, with an even deeper study of our ancient and modern history, a unique cultural heritage. Tremendous work is being done in the cultural and humanitarian sphere – on the development of culture, cinematography, literature, dance and other types of art (international festivals of the art of Maqom, bakhshi and folk crafts were held). There are the Center for Research on Cultural Values of Uzbekistan located abroad, the Center for Contemporary History of Uzbekistan under the Academy of Sciences, and TV channel “The History of Uzbekistan” for an objective and comprehensive study of national history. In order to increase the role and importance of creative unions in the life of the country, to strengthen their material and technical base, the Public Fund for Supporting Creative Workers of Uzbekistan “Ilkhom” was created, as well as the “Clubs of friends” together with cultural and art institutions, large companies and banks. In addition, on the territory of the National Park, an Alley of Writers, a new building of the Writers` Union have been created in Tashkent, creative schools bearing the names of our outstanding writers and poets have been established in Karakalpakstan and a number of regions.. The Kokand city, Khorezm and Jizzakh regional drama theaters are also reconstructed, the Ferghana regional branch of the Uzbek State Institute of Arts and Culture is organized.
The international research centers of Imam Bukhari in Samarkand and Imam Termezi in Surkhandarya, as well as the International Islamic Academy of Uzbekistan in Tashkent and the International Research Center of Imam Maturidi operated its activities in order to study and popularize the scientific and spiritual heritage of our great theologians and thinkers who have made an invaluable contribution to the development of Islamic civilization. Such centers help to develop ideas about what great deeds our glorious ancestors devoted themselves to, which allows us to form a sense of pride in our rich history and cultural heritage. The Center for Islamic Civilization, which is being built in the capital of the republic, is called upon to play an important role in the in-depth study and international promotion of the rich spiritual heritage of our people, as well as in educating the younger generation based on national and universal values, etc.
Indeed, today the greatest hopes are placed on the youth – a decisive and creative force to which the future of the country belongs. Moreover, this is no coincidence, because in Uzbekistan, more than 60 percent of the country’s population is young people. The country has created all the necessary conditions for the realization of the life goals of young people, and their problems are solved at the level of state policy.
If we talk about the legal conditions, then recently about 80 legislative and regulatory legal acts have been adopted on the effectiveness of youth policy, including the Law of the Republic of Uzbekistan “On State youth policy” dated on September 14, 2016. On June 30, 2017, the Youth Union of Uzbekistan was formed to support and implement all youth initiatives. At the suggestion of the President, June 30 was declared as the “Youth Day”. To address the issues and solve the problems of youth at the state level, Concepts and National Programs have been developed. In particular – the Concept for the Development of State Youth Policy in Uzbekistan until 2025, the Concept for the Development of Physical Culture and Mass Sports for 2019-2023, the National Program for the Development and Support of Reading for 2020-2025 years. Undoubtedly, institutional structures have been created to encourage and support young people to become comprehensively developed, highly educated citizens and patriots of their country. These are the Committee on Youth Affairs, Culture and Sports of the Senate of the Oliy Majlis, the Commission on Youth Affairs at the Legislative Chamber, Youth Parliaments at the lower and upper houses, Agency for Youth Affairs, Youth Union, Institute for the Study of Youth Problems and Training of Promising Personnel, Youth Academy under the Ministry of Innovative Development, etc.
At the initiative of the President, the “Youth Notebook” has been introduced – a completely new system of employment of unemployed youth in Uzbekistan. Since 2020, a new microcredit system for youth entrepreneurship has been introduced, as well as the practice of providing microcredit to young people without collateral to start their own business. Established in September 2018, the “El-Yurt Umidi” Foundation provides grants to talented young people who are eager to engage in science to study at leading foreign universities in the areas of bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral studies. The country pays special attention to systematic work with talented youth to develop and educate highly qualified personnel in the field of advanced and modern information technologies. Particularly, within the framework of the adopted strategy “Digital Uzbekistan – 2030”, 89 projects were implemented in the regions and more than 200 in industries, and in order to prepare advanced human resources for this area, the “Million Programmers” project and others are being implemented etc. At the same time, we should not forget that the foundation of our future is laid in the family, in kindergartens, in educational institutions, and tomorrow depends on what kind of education and upbringing our children will receive today. Today in the country there is a reform of all levels of education – from preschool to higher education. At the same time, the spiritual and moral principles laid down wisely, unobtrusively for preschool children will become the foundation of a creative, thinking, creative personality; will be a need and an integral part of a worthy person. At all educational stages, starting with preschool education, highly qualified personnel are needed who can contribute to the development of children’s abilities and their quality preparation in preschool institutions. After all, this will contribute to the successful mastering of complex school programs that will prepare competent applicants for the country’s universities. Then – the education and upbringing of highly qualified specialists in universities. At all these stages, the main thing is the identification and development of talents among our youth. Already today, a completely new network of specialized schools has been created in the country. Hundreds of specialized facilities and IT parks are being built to train young people in modern professions. Large-scale work is being carried out to modernize the system of higher education based on the real requirements of the economy and the social sphere. Every year, modern forms and technologies of education are introduced, new areas of training specialists are opened in universities.
All of the above does not mean that there are no problems. There are problems and they need to be solved. The difficult situation around us requires an even more responsible attitude towards the fate of the Motherland, the adoption of urgent strategic decisions. Given that the processes of globalization and technologization are increasingly deforming the consciousness of today’s man, completely depriving him of the perception of the world around him of a moral criterion or replacing the traditional moral psychology of thoughtful perception with the primitive psychology of the consumer. That is why today, in the context of the ongoing constitutional reform, we must be aware of the existing problems and consolidate the constitutionally extraordinary importance of the spiritual and moral education of the younger generation, which, without exaggeration, is one of the priority tasks in ensuring the national security of the country. In this regard, it is especially important to consolidate in the Basic Law of the country the norm that “the state and society take care of the formation in children and youth of a commitment to national and universal values, pride in the country and the rich cultural and spiritual heritage of the people, a sense of patriotism and love for the Motherland”.
The adoption of this constitutional norm will make it possible to cover the entire system of education and upbringing – from kindergarten to university, with large-scale work to educate harmoniously developed youth in the spirit of national and universal values. Only the joint and systematic work and care of the state and the whole society in educating the younger generation, capable of creating a new, creative, thinking, emotionally sensitive, ideologically and morally formed, will make it possible to substantiate that the spiritual development of the individual today is not a distant goal, but a real program of education. One of the most important stages of its implementation is the formation of love for one’s country, one’s land, the need to create and improve. At the same time, patriotic education consolidates society, and patriotism is not only respect for the history and culture of one’s country, the readiness to defend it. This is an honest, conscientious work of each of us. The presence of patriotism does not allow the worst qualities to manifest in people – indifference, selfishness, individualism, cynicism, unmotivated aggression, disrespect for the state and its social institutions. Therefore, today our youth needs heroic examples not only from our history, but also real people with real deeds, albeit small across the country, but visible to others. We also hope that the constitutional provisions and norms will also contribute to enhancing the role of schools and educational institutions in the ideological preparation of young people for life in a changed society. The implementation of the program for the spiritual development of the individual is the most important condition for the progressive and successful development of Uzbekistan in the future.

Djavakova Karine,
Head of the Department of the Academy of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Uzbekistan, Doctor

of Philosophy, Professor