Happy family life? Eating ice cream together in Moscow © fotocookie.com (shutterstock)
Violence in partnerships is a major problem in Russia. Mostly women are the victims. But so far no law protects them. Human rights activists encounter deep-seated resistance – even in the ranks of the church.
"If you are killed, we will definitely come to log the body. Do not worry." That's all former senior district police officer Natalia Bashkatova had to offer when Jana Savchuk from the town of Oryol, some 350 kilometers from Moscow, in fear of her life, asked the law enforcement agency for help. Her partner Andrei Bochkov had threatened her. Half an hour later, he killed Jana. Bochkov was sentenced to 13 years in prison, Bashkatova – to two years. Since then, the quote has been emblematic in Russia of the authorities' indifferent treatment of victims of domestic violence.
No protection against domestic violence
To this day, Russia has no law protecting people from domestic violence. A group of experts drew up a comprehensive draft law on the subject just last year. This defines domestic violence, takes into account physical, economic, psychological and sexual violence, and prohibits the perpetrator from approaching the victim.
The Federation Council subsequently published its own draft law in December in a shortened catch. In this version, the goal is not primarily to protect the victim from the attacker, but to "support and preserve the family". The toothless bill satisfied neither its supporters nor its opponents. The bill is currently being discussed at the regional level. Several local social chambers reject it.
Draft law strongly weakened
"It's scary that people in several regions are against an effective law. Victims are not protected in any way in Russia," says the co-author of the original draft law and women's rights activist Alyona Popova. It calls the Federation Council's version a "stub" of the expert group's draft, but currently sees no chance of the text being submitted to the State Duma.
Every day of hesitation, however, means new victims, Popova said. At least one fifth of all Russian women have already experienced physical violence by their partner. Polls show. Four out of five women in Russia convicted of murder between 2016 and 2018 cited self-defense against domestic violence as a motive.
Religious and parents' organizations against petition
Meanwhile, more than 900.000 people have signed a petition to pass the law against domestic violence. Popova hopes to reach one million soon. But some 80 religious and parent organizations oppose the petition. They fear that the law will lead to excessive state intervention in family affairs. The Orthodox Church criticizes the scheme as "dangerous" and claims it is "incompatible with Russia's spiritual and moral values".
Of course, no normal person can support domestic violence, Patriarch Cyril I's spokesman recently stressed., Vladimir Legojda. But the situations in which, God forbid, something has already happened are already regulated in Russia by administrative and criminal law, Legojda said. While it is a "noble goal" to prevent violence in the family. "But the bill raises many questions about whether it is even possible to achieve this goal with the proposed means," church spokesman says.
Law urgently needed
After listening to the arguments of the authors of the draft law and those of the regional social chambers, Tatyana Merzlyakova, a member of President Vladimir Putin's Human Rights Council, remarked, "It looks like people live in two different states." Now a pause in the legislative process is necessary to listen to each other, Merzlyakova told the CBA. "You need the law and we will pass it," she stressed.
According to a December poll by the state polling institute WZIOM, 70 percent of Russians think a law against domestic violence is necessary. For women, the figure is as high as 80 percent, compared to 57 percent for men. Domestic violence is considered unacceptable by 94 percent of women and 85 percent of men. Still, more than 40 attempts to introduce such a bill in Parliament have failed in the past decade.