How Kyrgyzstan is building a system to support survivors of domestic violence

Bübyusara Ryskulova has been at the forefront for more than three decades. Honorary president of the crisis center Sezim (which means “feeling”), she has worked to help women and children who have survived violence.

Although Kyrgyzstan has made significant progress in strengthening protections against domestic and family violence, challenges remain, he said UN News during the recent Commission on the Status of Women (CSW70) session at UN Headquarters in New York, where representatives from more than 100 countries discussed access to justice and the protection of women’s rights.

“My work has been connected to the topics discussed at this session for more than 30 years,” said Ms. Ryskulova, who is the only civil society representative in a “very strong delegation” that includes the deputy prime minister, ombudsman, deputy attorney general, the Supreme Court and various ministries.

“For me, this is an opportunity to see how other countries work,” he said. “At home, you hear a lot of criticism, but still, comparison puts things in perspective.”

‘I know how deep our problems are’

Ms. Ryskulova said she “did this by accident,” explaining that her decision to dedicate herself to this work was inspired by a previous visit to the United States in 1998, when an exchange program took her to seven states to learn about ways to overcome domestic violence.

“I saw for the first time how the support system actually works,” Ryskulova said. “Back home, no one was talking about this issue out loud. When they started teaching us what is a public organization, what is an NGO, and what is an NGO?” [non-governmental organization] is, I study like a school child. Everything is new and very interesting. However, even so, I know how big our problem is.”

‘Restore’ women’s rights

One of the first crisis centers in the region, Sezim was founded in 1998, at a time when the idea of ​​helping survivors of violence was still new in the country.

Even today, talking openly about domestic violence is difficult, Ryskulova said.

“In the early 1990s, there was a real increase in religious issues, and sometimes people interpreted many problems through a religious lens,” he said. “For example, in the village where I come from, there is one school and two mosques. So, talking about violence is still difficult, and in some areas of women’s rights, there are certain setbacks.”

Difficult start

The early days were tough, especially when the hotline first launched, he said.

“When we opened the hotline, we just sat there waiting. Would anyone call? And for a long time, no one called,” he recalled.

“When the first call finally came, they said, ‘take it’. I had almost no experience. My hands were shaking, but that’s how we started.”

Progress is undeniable

Progress is undeniable. The professional landscape is slowly changing. Although the country had almost no practicing psychologists in the early 1990s, many universities now train them.

After a massive civil society campaign and petitions, in 2003, Kyrgyzstan became one of the first post-Soviet countries to adopt a law on family violence, and a legislative update was adopted in 2017.

“At the legislative level, we really can’t complain,” Ryskulova said.

“But, the law is one thing, and its implementation is another. That’s why now we work more in the field, protecting specific people. We have a shelter, and our specialists have been working for more than 30 years. I myself received a second degree, as a practical psychologist and nowadays I often represent the interests of survivors in court. Our law allows that, through a power of attorney, even if you are not a lawyer.”

Sometimes, he said, these cases are of great concern and help move the system forward.

“In recent years, our organization has handled about 40 court cases, and almost 90 percent of the decisions were in favor of the survivors. [including] murder, rape. We work on it, and then we raise public awareness. If a woman does not want publicity, we protect her anonymity completely.”

Addressing threats such as sexual slavery

International cooperation, including with UN agencies, played a major role in the development of the crisis center in Kyrgyzstan, with the International Organization for Migration (IOM) became one of their initial partners.

“That’s where I first heard the term ‘sexual slavery,’” she said.

“Then we opened a special hotline for that problem. I remember one of the first girls was underage and pregnant. I met her at the airport myself. She said she didn’t want to live, and that she would end her life if the baby was born. We had to take turns sitting by the hospital bed so she wouldn’t hurt herself.”

Helping survivors requires daily effort

Today, Sezim continue to work with UN agencies such as the UN refugee agency, UNHCRAnd UN Women.

“For us, this is very important [for] share expertise, train specialists [and] joint projects,” Ryskulova said. “Platforms like the Commission on the Status of Women provide an opportunity to see what is happening in the world and understand what we still need to learn.”

Despite decades of work and visible progress, he is sure of this: helping survivors still requires daily effort.

“Seminars and training are important and prevention is important,” he said, “but if even one person who suffers still doesn’t get protection, then we still haven’t done all we need to do.”