Civil society representatives discussed issues of countering violence

Within the framework of the IX Civil Forum “Society and the State: 30 Years of Partnership and Development“ Birgemiz ”, on November 25, 2020, on the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, a meeting was held on the dialogue platform“ Civil Society against Violence ”. The event was attended by the Commissioner for Human Rights of the Republic of Kazakhstan E. Azimova, Deputy of the Mazhilis of the Parliament of the Republic of Kazakhstan I. Smirnova, Chairman of the National Commission on Women Affairs and Family and Demographic Policy under the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan L. Ramazanova, Vice Minister of Information and Social Development A. Oralov, human rights defenders, leaders of NGOs, representatives of government bodies, students from among school activists. The President of the Civil Alliance of Kazakhstan B.G. Nurgazieva made a welcoming speech. “The family is the foundation of society. And today's meeting is especially important for developing the right approaches to addressing the issues of violence against women and children, ”said the speaker. The moderator of the event, Ramazanova L., emphasized that, according to official statistics, for 9 months of this year the number of criminal offenses decreased and amounted to 34.4% compared to the same period in 2019, however, the number of domestic offenses increased 2.5 times ... As the head of the department of juvenile police and protection of women from violence of the Administrative Police Committee of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan Ospanov A. noted: “Most of the cases of violence are committed while intoxicated, 80% of people are unemployed. Of all the victims, 45% are women, 30% are minors. The increase in domestic offenses this year is largely due to the self-isolation of the population amid a pandemic. Since the beginning of the year, about 9 thousand female victims have turned to crisis centers for victims of domestic violence ”. Deputy of the Mazhilis of the Parliament of the Republic of Kazakhstan I. Smirnova said about the need to study the causes of violence. “The draft law on combating domestic violence considered in the Mazhilis is aimed at improving the situation in the family, reducing the level of offenses and the impact of the aggressor on family members. Strengthening and toughening of measures does not always bring benefits, ”the deputy stressed. Child blogger Valeriy Kudryavtsev expressed his opinion on the prevention of violence against minors: “School inspectors and psychologists are not working on the issue of building friendly relationships with children. According to a survey I conducted among my peers, most often the aggressors are the same children who are abused at home. We are the future of our country, and therefore, when discussing bills that concern our rights, I ask to include representatives from among teenagers. " Valery also stressed that most of his peers do not know about the work of school psychologists and do not turn to them for help. In turn, the chairman of the National Commission on Women Affairs and Family and Demographic Policy under the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan L. Ramazanova invited Valery Kudryavtsev to the expert council under the National Commission. A school activist from Aktobe region Sapina Aruzhan suggested holding joint quest games to strengthen relationships between parents and children, placing information billboards in crowded places. The Commissioner for Human Rights of the Republic of Kazakhstan E. Azimova in her speech focused on the need to revise the mechanisms of support for NGOs that professionally deal with issues of human rights protection, violence prevention, and legal assistance. “Kazakhstan is a multinational state, none of the nations has principles and traditions that support violence. It is necessary to correctly convey values ​​and use the potential of the civil sector in this direction. Active and professional representatives of civil society are capable of influencing the public and international worldview, ”the speaker noted. At the end of the meeting, the participants proposed measures to prevent and strengthen the prevention of domestic violence, and improve the mechanisms of interagency interaction.