THE NEXUS BETWEEN ASSET RECOVERY AND CORRUPTION PERCEPTIONS INDEX: JAPAN’S EXPERIENCE AND IMPLICATIONS FOR UZBEKISTAN

Abstract

The relationship between criminal asset recovery and a ranking of a country in the Corruption Perceptions Index is studied in this paper. The legal framework and experience of Japan and Uzbekistan from 2022 to 2024 are compared. Therefore, the research focuses on anti-corruption policies, institutional capacities and the legal instruments available to trace, freeze, confiscate and recover illicit assets as required by the United Nations Convention Against Corruption. Methodologically, the study combines the benchmarking analyse, international legal documents and practice analyse, also, comparative legal research methods. Japan, with its higher CPI rating compared to Uzbekistan, is attributed to a stronger rule of law, a centralised Financial Intelligence Unit (JAFIC), and victim compensation schemes. Uzbekistan is exhibiting positive reform trends since 2016, which include working with UNODC and its restitution agreement with Switzerland. However, the challenges remain due to the lack of specialised asset recovery body (FIU), fragmented legal framework on illicit asset recovery and the urgent need to expand international cooperation in this field. Taking this into account, recommendations to improve Uzbekistan’s asset recovery system and make them transparent are offered in the study. This article can be useful for both the law-making process and teaching and studying asset recovery and the broad country analysis frameworks.