22nd February 2024

Kyrgyzstan -submission to the Supreme Court of Kyrgyz Republic, February 2024

Equality Now and its partner, Human Rights Movement Bir Duino-Kyrgyzstan, submitted the information to the Supreme Court of the Kyrgyz Republic, asking the Supreme Court to ensure that until amendments are introduced to bring the definitions of sexual violence crimes in Kyrgyzstan in line with these standards, provide recommendations for ways in which the current provisions can be interpreted to bring criminal justice practice as close to international standards as possible.

In this publication

  • Draft Resolution of the Plenum of the Supreme Court of the Kyrgyz Republic  ‘On Judicial Practice in Cases of Crimes against Sexual Inviolability and Sexual Freedom’ was published on the official website of the Supreme Court of the Kyrgyz Republic in January 2024.
  • We welcome the Supreme Court of the KR’s initiative to clarify issues that have caused difficulties for lower courts while considering cases of this category. This may improve access to justice for victims and survivors of sexual violence.
  • Therefore, we provide recommendations to this Draft on how the current provisions can be interpreted to bring criminal justice practice as close as possible to international standards.

This publication is for

  • The Supreme Court of the Kyrgyz Republic
  • Law and policymakers
  • Legal professionals
  • Government institutions

Key takeaways and recommendations

Until amendments are introduced to bring the Criminal Code of Kyrgyzstan in line with international standards, Equality Now provided recommendations for interpreting the current provisions to bring criminal justice practice as close as possible to international standards.

Explore more resources

1

2

3

The United Nations Working Group on Discrimination against Women and Girls (WGDAWG) 

The United Nations Working Group on Discrimination Against Women and Girls will visit Zimbabwe to understand issues related to discrimination against women and girls.

Kazakhstan – Information for Consideration by Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) at its Pre-Sessional Working Group in July 2025

In our submission, we detail concerns regarding laws related to sexual violence and child and forced marriage, as well as procedures and practices that effectively deny access to justice for women and girls who are survivors of sexual violence and child and forced marriage.

Intervention on the Activity Report of the Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Women in Africa

Equality Now calls for stronger implementation of the Maputo Protocol, including lifting reservations, reforming discriminatory laws, ending FGM, and ensuring State accountability.

Newsletter Sign-up

Make a donation

I want to donate