In 1999, the UN General Assembly declared November 25 the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women.

This date was chosen in memory of the three Mirabal sisters who lived in the Dominican Republic, who were brutally murdered by the Military Intelligence for their resistance to the dictatorial regime of Rafael Trujillo on November 25, 1960. Patria, Minerva and Maria Teresa Mirabal were members of “June 14 Movement” and actively fought against the dictatorial regime in the country. Death of three sisters triggered mass protests across the country and on May 30, 1961, Trujillo regime was overthrown and the dictator himself was killed.

In February 2008, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki -moon launched a campaign called “UNiTE to End Violence against Women”, which lasts until 2015 and is aimed at preventing and eliminating violence against women and girls across the world. The campaign calls upon governments, civil society, women’s organizations, youth, private sector, media and the entire UN system to jointly address the global pandemic of violence against women and girls.

According to independent international NGOs, about 70 percent of women in the world suffer from domestic violence, and every year from 0.5 million to 2 million women become the subject of the slave trade. They are forced into prostitution, mercilessly exploited, sold into slavery or servitude. Women and girls make up about 80 per cent of the identified victims. Statistics by independent experts tell that more than 130 million girls and women living in Africa and some Middle Eastern countries are exposed on female genital mutilation/circumcision (FGM/C).

In Uzbekistan, the problem of violence against women, and in particular the problem of domestic violence, is very vital. Due to the secrecy of such information, there is no access to real information on violence against women in Uzbekistan. Dominance of regulatory bodies and ubiquitous control do not allow women’s NGOs to monitor the true state of Uzbek women.

Still, we can make conclusions about the problems women face in Uzbekistan based on personal observations of our colleagues or data form previous monitoring of our organization.

The centuries-old patriarchal traditions of the region initially limit the rights of Uzbek women, making them easy victims of domestic violence. Most of the female population in the country lives in rural areas, implicitly performing heavy work at home and in agriculture. Every year in spring, great number of women in rural areas is involved in the breeding of silkworm cocoons and hoeing cotton in the fields, and in fall, they are forced to collect cotton. Women and girls living in rural areas are increasingly suffering discrimination, and early marriage, polygamy and legal incompetence only contribute to the progression of domestic violence against them.

With the independence of Uzbekistan, women in the country become more disenfranchised, becoming a subject of trade within the country as a forced labor resource in the agricultural and construction sectors, industrial and commercial sexual exploitation. Uzbekistan has become a source country for trafficking women and girls to Kazakhstan, Russia, the Middle East and other Asian countries, in particular in human trafficking for sexual exploitation.

At the 51st session of the UN Committee against Torture, held on October 29-31 in Geneva, the participants of the session asked the Uzbek delegation “to provide information on measures taken to prevent violence against women … to provide data on how many women victims of violence the state has assisted in particular through the provision of temporary housing … also report on the progress made by the State party on the introduction of the Law on the prevention of domestic violence.”

The Uzbek delegation talked about mythical measures taken to prevent physical and psychological violence against women, and presented unsubstantiated statistics of domestic conflicts, thereby denying the facts of domestic violence. The data presented are far from reality, as the Republican Center for social and legal assistance to women and their families and the regional Centers for social adaptation of women and their families operate only in the official reports of the organizations. In practice, victims of domestic violence, who have nowhere to go, who need temporary housing, do not receive such assistance form the authorities.

The cited numerous round tables, seminars, conferences on women’s problems are attended by the same people, whose real purpose is “to fill space.” Efficiency of such events is zero, since they do involve beneficiaries who are truly in need. The main aim of these activities is to withdraw the grant funds allocated by the state for pro-government NGOs.

Participants of the meeting in Geneva asked the Uzbek delegation to “indicate investigated whether the State party probed the reports that police investigators threatened detainees with sexual violence … including rape and committed against them such violence, and in particular, what kind of results have been achieved during the investigation of statements of Nargiza, Rayhon and Khosiyat Soatovas … that they had been raped by police during detention.”

Uzbek delegation, continuing to lie and evade, reported that over the past twelve years, there have been no cases of sexual violence in penal institutions for convicted, including women. Despite the fact that Rayhon Soatova became pregnant during the gang rape by police while she was under arrest and prematurely gave birth on the 29th week of pregnancy, the criminal investigation into this case was suspended in connection with the failure to identify the accused person.

This story was mentioned in January 2010 by UN special envoy on torture, Manfred Nowak, who has promised to prepare a report. “The claim of rape should be checked with the help of DNA analysis. It is important to bring to justice not only the police officers who have committed violence, but their leaders who condoned it. Only when the prosecution will reach the higher levels, measures to eliminate such actions will be effective,” said Novak, and then added: “I have repeatedly informed the Uzbek government that I am ready go there to investigate specific cases and to check other reports, because I receive very conflicting information.” The government has not given Novak a permission to enter Uzbekistan.

International human rights organization “Fiery Hearts Club” presents several relevant facts from its big archive, which reflects the real scale of domestic violence against Uzbek women, whose families had lower economic prosperity than their husbands’ families.

A gruesome murder of Gulasal Muydinova, which occurred on October 15, 2002, in the family of Mamajanovs, who live in Pap district of Namangan region, is one of the examples of brutal domestic violence in Uzbekistan.

For a long time, Khodjiakbar Mamajonov, brother-in-law of Gulasal, molested her. On October 15, when Gulasal was alone at home, long time drug addict Khodjiakbar, attempted to rape her using brute force. Gulasal screamed loudly and called for help. To end her resistance, Khodjiakbar, who was under drug the influence of drugs, started brutally beating her on various parts of her body. He stopped beating Gulasal only when she stopped struggling and breathe.

At this point, Gulasal’s husband Ahmadzhon Mamajonov returned home and was horrified by the scene. Khodjiakbar told his brother about what happened, and they tried to return Gulasal back to consciousness. Realizing that she was dead, Khodjiakbar with his brother staged Gulasal’s suicide by hanging her body, thus trying to hide the crime. When their mother Asal Hamrokulova came home, brothers told her in details about what had happened. Mother, trying to protect their sons, did not report to law enforcement authorities about the incident, thereby becoming a part of the crime. Gulasal’s body stay hanged for the next three days.

Investigative operations have proved that Asal Hamrokulova and her sons committed murder of Gulasal Muydinova and attempted to conceal it. National TV channel “Yoshlar” made a 20-minute documentary film named “Mysterious death of Gulasal”, where each member of the crime gives a confession, and law enforcement officials confirm their words.

Asal Hamrokulova through her friends gave a huge bribe to corrupt senior officials who made a decision not to show the documentary on Gulasal’s murder, and only Khodjiakbar Mamajonov was taken to court. Asal Hamrokulova and her son Ahmadzhon Mamajonov, both partners in murder, and numerous corrupt officials, who rigged the criminal case, were not prosecuted and did not receive due punishment.

Relatives of Gulasal Muydinova, having irrefutable evidences and a videotape with confessions of criminals, could not get a fair trial for the perpetrators of domestic violence.

Tragic fate of Nodira Ashurova, mother of two children from Yazyavan district of Ferghana region, is another outrageous example of domestic violence in Uzbekistan.

On June 18, 2004, dead body of a young woman was found on one of the abandoned places in Yazyavan district. Investigative operations identified the dead – it was Nodira Ashurova, and she died after she was buried alive in the ground.

Investigative officers of Yazyavan District Prosecutor’s Office interrogated Ashurova’s husband, Iskandar Ganiev, who has numerous visible scratches on his skin, presumably from nails. Iskandar Ganiev was sent for inspection to Margilan interdistrict bureau of forensic examination.

After examination of Iskandar Ganiev, experts at Margilan interdistrict bureau of forensic examination stated that he had no signs of struggle on his body. Given the fact that all the actions took place in the same day, the expert opinion confused the prosecutors.

After Iskandar Ganiev was sent to a mental examination. Two examinations – held on June 22 at the First Fergana psychiatric hospital and on August 17 at the Republican Clinical Psychiatric Hospital – gave identical forensic conclusions about the presence “mystical dwarves” in Ganiev’s head. In their conclusions, doctors indicated that it was not Ganiev, but those “mystic dwarves”, who came to him in his dreams and ordered to “kill his wife”, were guilty in Nodira Ashurova’s murder. Doctors also stated that in connection with mental illness Iskandar Ganieva could not participate in the investigation and trial, and must be released from criminal liability in connection as he committed socially dangerous acts because of his mental sickness.

On September 10, 2004, Criminal Court upheld the decision of the Yazyavan district prosecutor to free Ganiev from criminal liability. The Appeal criminal court of Fergana region, held on October 11, 2004, upheld the decision of the court of the first instance, which is a clear evidence of the existence of corruption component in this criminal case.

Nodira Ashurova’s family became yet another victim of domestic violence, and her relatives who do not have sufficient financial resources and influential patrons, could not attract the killers to legitimate criminal liability. Ashurova’s two small children are not under the care of her father Ismail Ashurov, who suffers from poor financial condition.

Another example of domestic violence in Uzbekistan is death of Nargiza Kuchkarova from Uchkuprik district of Fergana region. On May 3, 2002, her husband Bakhtior Rakhmonov beat her to death. Murderer of his wife, trying to hide the traces of his crime, staged as if Nargiza committed a suicide. In total, twenty times the prosecutors opened criminal cases upon the death Nargiza Kuchkarova. All the cases were closed for different reasons.

Nargiza Kuchkarova’s father Valijon Kuchkarov, who is now raising two orphaned grandchildren, is still struggling with authorities who defend the criminal using all their command and administrative resources. Our organization will publish individual appeal on this case of domestic violence in the coming days.

International human rights organization “Fiery Hearts Club” will make every effort to ensure that official authorities of Uzbekistan do not minimalize the problems of domestic violence victims. We will continue to adhere to our firm principles on defending women’s rights and promoting gender equality.

MutabarTadjibayeva,

Head of the International human rights organization

“Fiery Hearts Club”

November 25, 2013

Paris, France