HRW report: Russia should end discrimination against women in custody News
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HRW report: Russia should end discrimination against women in custody

Human Rights Watch released a report on Thursday stating that Russia should end discrimination against women in custody.

This comes after the European Court on Human Rights ruled in the case of Tapayeva and Others v Russia, that Luisa Tapayeva, a Chechen woman, should be reunited with her four daughters who were taken from her after their father died. Under Chechen local customs, children are “owned” by the father and his family.

The Court found that Russia had infrimged on Tapayeva’s right to family life and the prohibition of discrimination and that sex-based discrimination was systematic in the region. The Court ordered the Russian government to pay Tapayeva compensation, ensure she is reunited with her children and to take steps to end discrimination against women in custody matters and beyond.

The Court noted that it had previously examined several similar cases from the Northern Caucasus. It further referenced conclusions adopted by the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, which has urged Russia to “put in place without delay a comprehensive strategy, including the review and formulation of legislation and the establishment of goals and timetables, to modify or eliminate traditional practises and stereotypes that discriminate against women.”

The Court held that there had been a violation of Article 8 of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, which concerns the right to respect for private and family life.

The Court refers to two previous reports by Human Rights Watch which report on gender discrimination in Chechnya; “You Dress According to Their Rules” and “In Chechnya, a Ruthless Strongman Orders Family Reunification”.