This submission details concerns with regard to laws related to rape and other forms of sexual violence and procedures and practices which effectively deny access to justice for survivors of sexual violence. Specifically, Kyrgyzstan’s legal system provides a number of opportunities for perpetrators to escape criminal liability or punishment, namely through the way sexual violence crimes are defined; allowing for the direct release of a perpetrator from liability or punishment in certain circumstances; and through the way sexual violence crimes are investigated and prosecuted, including with respect to adolescent girls.
Submitted by: Equality Now, Associate Professor Dr Nadejda Prigoda, Human Rights Movement, Bir Duino-Kyrgyzstan (BDK), Public Association “Ensan Diamond” and PA “Alga” (Chui oblast).