Every year in Bishkek, in honor of International Women's Day, a march dedicated to women's rights in Kyrgyzstan takes place. This year, the authorities granted permission for the event to be held in the Maxim Gorky Park.
The event gathered over a hundred participants, including activists and concerned citizens. Police representatives monitored the order.
Aigul Storozhuk, a member of the organizing committee, shared that this year the process of obtaining permission was particularly difficult.
She noted that initially the organizers faced a complete ban on the march and were only able to secure permission for a rally. Attempts to obtain permission for a traditional procession met with strong resistance, and they were hinted that even the rally could be canceled.
“We turned to the deputies of the Jogorku Kenesh, and a wave of criticism fell on Elvira Surabaldiyeva in support of us. As a result, we had to defend her,” Storozhuk said.
She added that activists also wrote an appeal to the president of the country, which ultimately contributed to the holding of the rally.
According to Aigul Storozhuk, such events are extremely important, as cases of femicide and violence against women continue in the country.
“Reading comments online, one can notice that in 80% of cases, women themselves are blamed for what happened,” the activist emphasizes.
She highlighted that victims are often reproached for being “in the wrong place,” “dressed inappropriately,” or “under the influence of alcohol.”
“Our task is to convey the simple truth: violence is always the fault of the perpetrator,” she added.
Participants of the event, Daria and Alisa, are confident that women are not weak. According to them, such actions demonstrate that they can unite with supportive men in the fight against violence.
Every year, the former ombudsman of Kyrgyzstan, Atyr Abdrakhmatova, also attends these events, noting that the level of violence in the country remains high.
“In Kyrgyzstan, every woman experiences imposed shame. It is shameful to be a woman, shameful to express one’s opinion, and to respect oneself. We need to get rid of this shame and start speaking openly,” she believes.
According to Atyr Abdrakhmatova, such actions are gradually achieving their goals. If previously provocations and detentions of activists occurred during marches, now such cases are almost not observed.
The human rights activist noted that participants are often attributed “Western values,” but in her opinion, in Kyrgyz traditions, women have always held an equal position with men.
“Even a yurt is divided into two equal parts — male and female,” she emphasized.
The human rights activist added that an important step has been the participation of families of victims of violence in the rallies, who are increasingly sharing their stories openly and speaking about issues with justice.
Some participants approached the rally creatively. Activist Nazik has been bringing a board resembling a drum from the TV show “Field of Miracles” to the event for several years. Anyone can spin the arrow, which invariably stops on the sector labeled “the woman chooses herself.”
Another activist, Alena, prepares a special announcement each year with tear-off sheets, each of which lists a step that contributes to women's freedom. Participants of the rally can tear off the one they consider most important.
