Violence against women

A leaflet by the non-governmental organization ANNA, which is dedicated to the elimination of domestic violence in Russia. © ANNA Center

In February 2002 the helpline of Syostri (Sisters), a crisis centre for women, received a frantic call from neighbours of a woman living in Moscow. The neighbours had called the police to try to stop a fight between the woman and her violent husband, but the police had reportedly refused to come. Syostri contacted the police, but they still refused to intervene, saying it was a family matter and that no law was being broken.

Men who beat or rape their wives or commit other acts of domestic violence are unlikely to face prosecution in the Russian Federation. One reason for this is that the law does not recognize domestic violence as a distinct crime, and does not even allow officials to give perpetrators a warning through an administrative sentence or a fine.

The failure of the state to take measures to protect women from sexual abuse and violence in the home and to prosecute the perpetrators is particularly serious given the widespread reports of increasing domestic violence in Russia in recent years.

The Russian authorities recognize the prevalence of domestic violence – in early 2002 they stated that 14,000 women die every year at the hands of their husbands or other relatives – yet they have done little to address the problem. Nearly 50 versions of a national law to address domestic violence have failed to make any progress in parliament.

Holding the authorities accountable for abuses by non-state actors is crucially important in the struggle to protect and defend the human rights of women, children, racial minorities and others facing discrimination, including lesbians, gay men and bisexual and transgender people. Every day, discrimination manifests itself through violence, whether in the form of sexual or other abuse in the home or state institutions, in the trafficking of women and children, or racist attacks. Institutionalized discrimination in agencies involved in the administration of justice often means that the victims are unlikely to receive protection and support from the authorities, let alone see justice done.

Women also suffer violence by state agents. There are regular reports of the torture and ill-treatment of women in Russian police stations and prisons, and in the armed conflict in Chechnya women continue to suffer a wide range of abuses. In the overwhelming majority of cases, the abusers get away with their crimes.

In April and May 2002 a group of parliamentary deputies introduced a proposal to amend the Russian Criminal Code to criminalize male homosexuality and lesbianism. As at mid-2002 the vote in parliament was still pending. Institutionalizing discrimination can act as an official incitement to violence against lesbians and gay men in the community as a whole, whether in custody, on the street or in the home.

Take action: Violence against women in the family – the state's failure to protect

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