Article 14 of the 1995 Constitution of Kazakhstan upholds the principle of legal equality for all citizens, but Kazakh legislation does not yet refer specifically to gender-based discrimination; the government plans to propose a bill addressing this issue. Article 4 of the Constitution gives force of law to all international treaties ratified by Kazakhstan. As a result, there are grounds to apply in every day law the definition of discrimination given in Article 1 of the United Nation’s Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women. Kazakh women are not sufficiently aware of the Convention’s provisions and a similar lack of awareness exists among the civil servants responsible for applying these provisions. To date, no judicial rulings have been made referring to the Convention. Acts of violence against women remain a fact of life in Kazakhstan.
The Kazakh Family Code does not appear to discriminate against women. The 1998 Law on Marriage and the Family sets the minimum legal age for marriage at 18 years for both men and women. If there are “legitimate grounds”, a registry office can authorise marriages at 16 years. Early marriage does occur in Kazakhstan: a 2004 United Nations report estimated that 7 per cent of girls between 15 and 19 years of age were married, divorced or widowed. Religious and traditional marriages are not registered by the administration, a practice that can undermine women’s rights.
Article 11 of Kazakhstan’s Law on Marriage and the Family prohibits polygamy.
The same law also stipulates that men and women have equal roles within the family. Article 60 of the Family Code states that mothers and fathers should share parental authority and make joint decisions regarding their children’s education, taking into account the best interests of the children. No information is available about child custody rights in the event of divorce.
Under the Kazakh Civil Code, men and women have equal inheritance rights. According to the Kazakh Family Code, property acquired during marriage is considered joint property and is distributed accordingly upon the death of a spouse.
The physical integrity of Kazakh women is not adequately protected and violence against women remains a significant problem, particularly domestic violence. The Penal Code does not specifically cover domestic violence, although the issue is addressed in a bill that was submitted to parliament in 2007. There is still some uncertainty about when this legislation will be adopted, and whether the bill will also criminalise rape and prohibit sexual harassment. Applying the laws in daily life remains difficult for various reasons. Police tend to consider such violence as a family matter and intervene only if the victim’s life is in danger; thus, one-third of domestic violence complaints are never investigated. In addition, economic uncertainty often prompts victims to drop their charges.
Female genital mutilation does not appear to be practised in Kazakhstan, nor is there any evidence to suggest it is a country of concern in relation to missing women.
The Kazakh Civil Code guarantees equal ownership rights for women and men, making provisions for them to possess, use and inherit property. The country’s land reform was based on the principle of gender equality and more than half of the country’s farmers are women. Yet, overall, women continue to experience discrimination in regard to access to land (especially in rural areas) and access to property other than land.
Kazakh women do not seem to encounter discrimination in regard to access to bank loans. The relevant authorities have not reported any complaints in this area.
The civil liberties of Kazakh women are well respected; there are no reported restrictions on their freedom of movement or freedom of dress.
CEDAW (Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women) (2005), Examen des rapports présentés par les États parties conformément à l’article 18 de la Convention sur l’élimination de toutes les formes de discrimination à l’égard des femmes: Kazakhstan, Deuxième rapport périodique des États parties, CEDAW/C/KAZ/2, CEDAW, New York, NY.
CEDAW (2006), Réponses à la liste des questions soulevées dans le cadre de l’examen du deuxième rapport périodique, Kazakhstan, CEDAW/C/KAZ/Q/2/Add.1, CEDAW, New York, NY.
CEDAW (2007a), Compte rendu analytique de la 758(A) ème séance, 37ème session, CEDAW/C/SR.758 (A)
CEDAW (2007b), Observations finales du Comité pour l’élimination de la discrimination à l’égard des femmes: Kazakhstan, 37ème session, CEDAW/C/KAZ/CO/2, CEDAW, New York, NY.
FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization), IFAD (International Fund for Agricultural Development), ILC (International Land Coalition) (2004), Rural Women’s Access to Land and Property in Selected Countries: Progress Towards Achieving the Aims of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, FAO Gender and Population Division, IFAD Technical Advisory Division, and ILC, Rome.
UN (United Nations) (2004), World Fertility Report 2003, UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division, New York, NY,
US Department of State (2007), Country Reports on Human Rights Practices: Kazakhstan, US Department of State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, Washington, DC.
