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http://registan.net/2014/01/20/domestic-violence-in-uzbekistan-can-it-ever-be-stopped/
Domestic Violence
in Uzbekistan: Can It Ever Be Stopped?
By Dillorom
Abdulloeva*
November 24th is
World Day for Combating Violence against Women. On this day, Uzbek-language
online social media circulated a sensational article about a young Uzbek woman
[pictured above] who was a victim of domestic violence. She tells the
story of how she was forced to appeal to the court because her
ex-husband failed to pay alimony; when he learned of this, he burst into her
house and stabbed her 42 times with knife. All this happened in front of her
small children and disabled father. By some miracle, the woman survived,
although the doctors had to amputate her arm and leg.
This event took
place on the day when equality between men and women is trumpeted on every
corner. While reading the article, one unintentionally begins to wonder whether
it was possible to prevent this tragedy. The violence of some men toward their
families, people’s emotionless attitude towards it, the police and Mahalla’s
carelessness together with their occasional unwillingness to solve the problem
turned the life of a young woman into hell, and left the woman herself disabled
for life..
And unfortunately,
there is no guarantee that such stories will not be repeated in the future.
The concept of
domestic violence is new in the realm of Uzbek law. However, the problem itself
is as old as the hills. In patriarchal societies, violence is a phenomenon that
is deeply ingrained in people’s consciousness.
Unhealthy ideas of
men’s perfection compared to women and their supposedly higher status implies
that a woman should always be subordinate, should unquestioningly execute the
husband’s orders, and, ultimately, bow her head even to take beatings and
abuse. Some people even believe that such an approach is the only right one.
There even exists a famous saying that goes, “a man who does not beat his wife
is not a man!”
This article is
dedicated to the analysis of domestic violence in Uzbekistan from a legal
perspective.
Complaints of
domestic violence
When we analyzed
all the questions submitted to our site since 2010, we found that approximately
60 percent of them are about the relationships in the family. Most of them
relate to divorce, alimony and the legal relationship between spouses, as well
as domestic violence. Here are some examples:
“My father constantly
beats my mother. My parents always quarrel, and my father beats our mom right
before our eyes. Mom almost became crippled. Several times we reported the
abuse to the police, but they did not take any measure against our father.
Where else can we turn? How can I separate my mom from the abuses of my
father?”
“I want to divorce
with my wife. I love her, but my mother and sister will not allow us to live
normally. They constantly interfere with our life. Several times, my wife was
kicked out of the house. I cannot complain to the Mahalla Committee
because my mother is one of the activists of the committee, so no one dares to
contradict her. My mother threatens that if I do not divorce, she will not talk
to me any more. I do not want to offend my mother, but I do not want to
divorce. We live together, we have children. How can I handle this situation?”
“My husband is
very wealthy businessman. We quarrel a lot because of his betrayal, and now I
live with my father. We have two children. If I demand a divorce through the
court, my husband threatens to take away my children. He can achieve this by
his money. What should I do to keep the children with me?”
What is domestic
violence?
Domestic violence
means physical, psychological, sexual or financial violence between spouses or
other close family members. Usually, the basis of such violence is the desire
of one family member to control the lives of others. In most cases, a victim of
domestic violence is a woman or children, but sometimes men and the elderly can
also be subjected to domestic violence.
Below, we list the
common types of domestic violence:
Husband beating
his wife; imposing psychological pressure; abusing her by insulting her origin,
family conditions; resorting to sexual violence by satisfying sexual needs
through unnatural forms of sexual humiliation or rape; limiting financial means
(for example, the husband does not give his wife money or does not allow her to
study or work).
Is domestic
violence prohibited by law in Uzbekistan?
Neither the Administrative
Code nor the Criminal Code of the Republic of Uzbekistan mentions domestic
violence. This concept is not defined as a separate offense, which means there
is no punishment established for such crime.
Resolution of
family disputes, regardless of the degree of violence involved, are usually
assigned to Mahalla authorities. In practice, the cases of domestic
violence are rarely reported to police or court. Because there is a state
policy aimed at preserving families and reducing the number of divorces, women
complaining of domestic violence are usually sent back their homes. Courts also
tend to disregard women’s complaints when it comes to divorce cases. This
situation increases the likelihood that women and their children will be abused
again and again. In domestic violence related cases, a criminal case will be
initiated against the perpetrator only if the victim receives a serious injury,
or death occurs.
Why do we need a
new law?
Some argue that it
is not really necessary to include domestic violence as a separate article in
the Criminal Code because there are already penalties for causing injury or
sexual abuse. It is true that if the husband uses violence against his wife, it
can, depending on the consequences, be qualified as causing light (medium,
heavy) injury (Article 109), torture (Article 110), murder, or threatening with
the use of violence (Article 112). If violence leads to death, the action can
be classified as a premeditated murder (Article 97), or incitement to suicide
(Section 103); in the case of sexual violence – rape (Article 118), satisfying
sexual needs by unnatural ways (Article 119), forcing the woman to have a
sexual intercourse (Article 121); and in other cases libel (Article 139),
insult (Article 140), forcing a woman into marriage or hindering marriage
(Article 136).
However, domestic
violence has unique subjects and objects, as well as subjective and objective
sides. These four elements can be different from the elements of other
offenses. Also, in the articles mentioned above, there is no consideration of
the situations that involve the husband or other relatives of the victim such
as father and brother. As a result, many forms of domestic violence go
unpunished. Domestic violence has different motives, happens under different circumstances
and in different ways, and therefore must be included as a separate offense in
the Criminal Procedure Code and the Criminal Code.
In 1995,
Uzbekistan ratified the “Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of
Discrimination against Women”. Since then, the Uzbek government submitted three
reports to the UN Committee on Human Rights about how to implement the
provisions of this Convention in the country. In each of these three cases the
UN Committee has concluded that women do not have equal status with men in
Uzbek society due to prevalent patriarchal prejudices and stereotypes
concerning the role of women, and that women are often the victims of domestic
violence; in each case the committee recommended that Uzbekistan take action
against such practices.
According to
information provided to the UN authorities by Uzbek officials, a new draft law
that guarantees equal rights and opportunities for women and men has been
prepared in Uzbekistan. However, this law has yet to be adopted. As per the
request of the UN Committee on providing information about the scale of
domestic violence in Uzbekistan, the Uzbek government has given statistics only
about crimes committed against women, not about a domestic violence.
What is the
difference between the crimes committed against women and domestic violence?
It is necessary to
mention that there is a substantial difference between the crimes against women
and domestic violence. We explain this difference by analyzing the case of
moderate bodily injury. If a person who is not a family member or a relative
causes a woman a bodily injury, everyone understands that it is a crime, and
police intervene immediately. It is also typical that in such cases the injured
woman goes to police without any hesitation. The public also strongly condemns
the man who dared to raise a hand against a woman and demands a harsh
punishment.
Let us now imagine
that the same event occurred in a family – a husband beat his wife. In this
case, the public believes that it is an internal family matter. Since this
offense usually occurs inside home there are not enough witnesses.
Moreover, under
public pressure the wife does often not report the incident to police. In
extreme cases, she may complain to the Mahalla committee. Representatives of
Mahalla usually try to resolve the dispute within the family. The husband who
does not take the responsibility for the violence continues to bully his wife
again and again. In cases where the victim becomes disabled or commits suicide,
it becomes clear that the violence in the family was constant and that Mahalla
and law enforcement authorities did not take any timely action even though they
were aware of it. As such, an abused woman tries to handle the situation by her
own hands, resorting to suicide as the last option.
The state’s role
in protecting women from domestic violence
According to a
report on domestic violence in Uzbekistan prepared by Human Rights Watch (HRW)
in 2000, the Uzbek government does not pay sufficient attention to the
protection of victims of domestic violence and punish the perpetrators.
Involvement of the
Mahalla in the resolution of family strife is a good practice because disputes
be prevented from escalating further when neighbors and elders capable of
giving correct and useful advice are consulted. But in fact this practice does
not usually yield the expected results. Elders often approach the situation
superficially, and instead of solving the problem only place the responsibility
on the victim. According to the HRW report, some members of Mahalla committees
even wondered how a man who abused his wife could be held responsible “because
he is the woman’s husband”. In most cases, a Mahalla committee does not provide
affected parties with legal aid, instead they force the woman to forgive her
husband, to be patient and “correct her own mistakes.”
Sometimes, the
solution is not in preserving the family at all costs, but in divorce.
Therefore, responsible representatives of the Mahalla should make a correct
assessment of the situation and take necessary measures accordingly. If they
are unwilling or unable to do so, the woman or her representatives should
contact the police with a complaint.
Uzbekistan has
ratified the International Convention on Prevention of Violence against Women.
During the years after the independence, the state-level protection and
opportunities were created for women in many spheres. However, there is much
more to do with regard to eradicating domestic violence in families, providing
legal protection for victims and punishing perpetrators.
Recommendations
for the prevention of domestic violence
To prevent
domestic violence, public authorities and civil society representatives must
work together. The most necessary measures in this regard include the
following:
In the first
place, the government should strengthen the legal framework. For this, we
consider it necessary to adopt a new law on fighting against domestic violence.
The law should define what domestic violence is and provide legal protection
for victims of such crimes. Local organizations, government bodies and
Mahallas, lawyers, sociologists, psychologists, religious leaders and ordinary
citizens must contact legislative deputies or senators to develop a draft law.
Administrative and Criminal Codes should also reflect the changes on the basis
of newly adopted law.
Second, the
Criminal Procedure Code should include measures to protect the procedural system,
i.e. preventing the abuser from contacting the victim, providing her with
protective order, etc. For example, authorities dealing with complaints of
domestic violence should be given power to prohibit the accused to meet or
approach the plaintiff before the court delivers its decision.
Third, it is
necessary to arrange temporary shelter for victims of domestic violence and
their children where they should live until court reaches its decision. In
2008, according to the Decree of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan, a
“Republican Rehabilitation Center” was established for victims of trafficking.
Such rehabilitation centers should be organized for victims of domestic
violence too. These facilities should provide medical, psychological, social and
legal assistance. They must exist not only in cities but also in rural areas,
and, where possible, should be run by non-governmental organizations.
Fourth, it is
necessary to create emergency contact services such as hotlines for victims of
domestic violence. Information about those who contact such services should be
kept secret. Staff at these centers must undergo special training on how to
work with victims of domestic violence. Such training should also be organized
for law enforcement officials, local authorities and neighborhood committees as
well as family doctors.
Finally,
educational programs should be carried out in the community. Special seminars
should be organized in Mahallas, where misconceptions about domestic violence
and consequences of such acts should be explained to people by qualified
specialists. The involvement of the media and NGOs are important in changing
the misconceptions in the society. It should be explained that the victims of
domestic violence in most cases are women, and the solution depends on men. It
is also essential to provide women with information about self-defense measures
on how to know when and whom to contact in case of violence and where to get
help.
It should be a
precondition for candidates to the chairmanship of the Mahalla Committees and
other local self-government bodies to take a special training on domestic
violence before being elected or appointed to such posts.
It should also be
noted that currently the number of non-profit organizations working in the field
of women’s rights in Uzbekistan is extremely low. We need to expand social
programs to address this crucial matter. We should learn from the experiences
of foreign countries on how to prevent domestic violence while preserving the
values of the Uzbek culture (but abandoning superstitious traditions that
violate basic human rights). Based on this approach, we need to develop a
national legal program to combat domestic violence. In this regard, we call
upon all members of the society and ordinary citizens to work together.
*Dillorom
ABDULLOEVA - Dillorom
obtained her B.A. in Jurisprudence from Tashkent State Institute of Law (TSIL)
in Uzbekistan, where she volunteered for three years at the TSIL Human Rights
Clinic. She also studied at Nagoya University School of Law, Japan, through a
one-year exchange program in 2009. She is a founder and president of Tashabbus
(formerly Adolat.net), which promotes the rule of law in Uzbekistan by raising
the legal literacy of its citizens. As an expert on Uzbek legislation, she
regularly appears on Uzbek media outlets. She recently attended the Law and
Leadership Program at Karamah Muslim Women Lawyers for Human Rights and is
currently an LL.M student in the International Humans Rights Law program at the
University of Notre Dame.