Russia’s Justice Ministry claims men suffer greater ‘discrimination’ in situations of domestic abuse

Russia’s Justice Ministry has said that reports of domestic violence in the country are overstated and men suffer greater “discrimination” in situations of domestic abuse.

Europe’s top human rights court found Russia’s failure to properly investigate domestic violence discriminates against women in a landmark ruling in early July that campaigners hope will lead to changes in how the issue is handled.

The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) alerted the Russian government to four complaints submitted by women who say the authorities did not adequately deal with domestic violence they were subjected to – as well as questioning the country’s officials over whether they recognise the gravity and magnitude of domestic abuse and discrimination against women there.

Mikhail Galpernin, the deputy justice minister, responding this week said: “Even if we assume that the majority of persons subjected to domestic violence in Russia are in fact women (though there is no evidence to support this statement), it is logical to assume that male victims suffer more from discrimination in such cases.

“They are in the minority and they are not expected to request protection from abuse at the hands of a family member, especially if inflicted by a member of the opposite sex.”

Mr Galpernin argued that reports about the extent of domestic abuse in Russia are “quite exaggerated”, reports Russian newspaper Kommersant.

He rebuffed the complaints submitted to the ECHR as an effort “to undermine the legal mechanisms already codified in Russia, as well as the government’s efforts to improve the situation”.

The Russian parliament implemented fiercely criticised legislative amendments in February 2017 that decriminalised first battery offences among family members – marking a setback which decreased punishments for abusers and made victims even more at risk.

“The Ministry of Justice’s response is plainly outrageous,” Denis Krivosheev, Amnesty International’s Europe and Central Asia deputy director, told The Independent. “It is stereotypically male chauvinist and, frankly, remarkably telling.”

He added: “The ministry and its spokesman, Mikhail Galpernin, have the nerve to ignore the widely acknowledged rise in abuse cases in Russia after domestic violence was partly decriminalised.

“There are regular blood-chilling stories of women abused, maimed and killed by their partners in Russia. Unsurprisingly, there are no official statistics on domestic violence in the country and there are a negligible number of shelters for women in Russia.

“The Ministry of Justice is trying to obscure the plain fact that the victims are overwhelmingly women, and does so by discarding women’s experiences and, quite unbelievably, prioritising the suffering of men.”

Russia is one of the only major countries in the world not to have dedicated laws for domestic violence, despite official studies suggesting at least one in five women have been forced to endure physical violence from a husband or partner.

The country’s interior ministry said domestic violence kills around 14,000 women per year – one every 40 minutes.

A report by Human Rights Watch alleged Russian police were refusing to register or investigate reports of domestic violence submitted by women and were instead recommending them to reunite with abusive partners.

The research found critical gaps in the nation’s laws, a dearth of protection orders, and insufficient police and judicial responses for women who had suffered severe physical violence.

The 84-page report – titled “I Could Kill You and No One Would Stop Me”: Weak State Response to Domestic Violence in Russia and published in October last year – said social stigma, ignorance and distrust of the police resulted in victims not coming forward to report instances of abuse.

Women described being punched, choked, hit with wooden sticks and metal rods, burnt, threatened with weapons, raped, having their teeth knocked out, terrorised with serious psychological abuse and shoved off balconies and windows.

Campaigners have long struggled to change attitudes in the socially conservative nation where a traditional saying goes: “If he beats you, it means he loves you.”

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