Gender Inequality Disrupting Peace in Kyrgyzstan
She turns 18 this month. She has a dream to become a specialized neurosurgeon, but because of the poor and corrupt education system in Kyrgyzstan she needs to get quality education abroad. As she sits to talk about her dream with her parents, they forestall her. They say she is already mature and a son of their family-friends has come asking to marry their daughter. Her parents say he is nice; a decent match for her. Her heart starts throbbing as she realizes that the moment she was most afraid of has come. She doesn’t even think of debating, because according to the Kyrgyz social norms children, especially girls, are not allowed to speak against their parents’ opinion.
This is how most girls live their lives in remote suburban and bucolic regions of Kyrgyzstan. Just a few words from their parents, and almost every girl’s life is ruined in the blink of an eye. Father’s words are especially influential because he is considered the head of the family. Most consider it extremely outrageous to just take and change someone’s life, especially one’s own daughter. Sadly, this way of thinking has been part of the culture for centuries. The concept of forcing women into marriage with men they do not even know is in total opposition to the United Nations Declaration on a Culture of Peace and Nonviolence, which states that women have “a right to equality and liberty” [1]. Young women in the capital city of Kyrgyzstan are much more mobilized and ready to raise their voices than those who live in remote regions.
One example of a young woman raising her voice is Zere Asylbek, a 19-year-old girl who released a video and song featuring a feminist manifesto. In her video, she donned a light purple bra, a short skirt, and red lipstick to challenge conventional ways of thinking in her society [2]. After the video’s release, she started getting threatening messages on her social media accounts. One of the private messages from an unknown man read, “If you don’t remove the video and don’t apologize to the Kyrgyz people, we will kill you soon. This will be the first and the last time.” [3] This instance shows the extent of tensions in Kyrgyz society regarding national standards for women. Asylbek’s defiance proves incredibly important to make people revise their understanding of women’s role. This rebellious video divided people into two camps: those who agree with accepted standards for women and those who think that women should be liberated from these standards. Her action proves conflicting situations are sometimes needed in order to draw attention to injustice and achieve peace within a society. According to the UN Declaration on a Culture of Peace and Nonviolence, one of the essential factors of peace is equality of women and men [4]. One might say that this situation divided Kyrgyz society and disrupted peace, but in fact peace never existed in the country because women have always been silenced through cultural and social pressures.
Zere’s story is only one out of countless instances of gender-based violence and oppression. Another example occurred when a 20 year old girl was stabbed to death by a man because of forced marriage, showing that the act of violence is not an unusual phenomenon in Kyrgyzstan [5]. Peace will be achieved only when the voices of women are fully heard. Until then, we can only expect social unrest and clashing of ideas. As a woman born and raised in Kyrgyzstan, I can verify that women are not treated well in most of the places within the country and in fact social pressure does not allow women to live peacefully. They always need to think if what they are doing is acceptable in their society and young women are always watched by elders so they never cross the boundaries of “morally good girls.” These norms do not allow peace to exist. Peace does not exist when a woman isn’t allowed to act how she chooses or constantly worries about public opinion. Peace occurs when women are given all rights to live the life they want and be able to fulfill their potential.
Gender issues are pervasive in many countries of the world and consequentially, many NGOs around the globe strive to help women in their worst times. For example, Human Rights Watch was the most active NGO that publicly denounced utterly negative consequences of Kyrgyz traditions after the case of a girl being stabbed by her abductor [6]. If you feel that women suffer from such abusive traditions in your country too, please do not keep quiet, raise your voice! For more articles about gender inequality issues follow this link and keep up with Nonviolence International-NY’s campaign on Intimate Partner Violence on our Facebook and Instagram.
References
[1] Bermet Talant, “Feminist song draws supporters and death threats in Kyrgyzstan”, Eurasianet, September 18, 2018, http://bit.ly/2ypHyIl
[2] Ibid.
[3] United Nations General Assembly. “A/RES/53/243 — Declaration and Programme of Action on a Culture of Peace.” UN Documents, United Nations, http://bit.ly/2pLOdJ3
[4] Ibid.
[5] Toktonazarova. N. “Kyrgyz Bride Kidnapping Ends In Brutal Stabbing, Prompting Outrage”. RadioFreeEurope RadioLiberty. http://bit.ly/2RzNZBz
[6] Margolis, H. Human Rights Watch. Young Woman’s Murder in Kyrgyzstan Shows Cost of ‘Tradition’.http://bit.ly/2OMcehb
