Tajikistan 'failing its women'
24/11/2009
A new report compiled by Amnesty International has concluded that almost half of the women of Tajikistan are abused, raped and beaten regularly, often by their own family members.
The report stated that many are subjected to physical abuse and humiliation by their husbands and in-laws.
Additionally, the paper found that they are denied basic rights, job opportunities and marry at a young age after dropping out of school.
Andrea Strasser-Camagni, an expert on the country with Amnesty International, stated: "Women are being treated as servants or as the in-laws' family property. This experience of violence and humiliation in the family makes many women turn to suicide."
The paper also highlighted that a culture of patriarchy prevails in the country, with kidnappings of young women still taking place in rural areas by men wishing to take them as wives.
Tajikistan became independent from the Soviet Union in 1991 after coming under Russian rule in the 1860s.
Written by Clare Devlin
