The Constitution of Ukraine upholds the principle of equality between men and women and the country’s Penal Code specifically mentions the need to eradicate all forms of discrimination. A law providing for equal opportunities for men and women was passed in 2006, but very few judges are aware of its existence. In general terms, Ukraine’s legislation upholds the rights of women and guarantees their protection. Negative stereotypes persist, however, and continue to limit women’s participation in society. The effect is exacerbated by the low level of female representation in decision-making bodies. Poverty and cultural attitudes also contribute to discrimination against women in Ukraine.
Ukrainian law protects women relatively well within the family context, but gender stereotyping is still pervasive. The legal minimum age for marriage is 17 years for women and 18 years for men. The courts can authorise marriage from the age of 14 years if it is clear “that the marriage is in the person’s interests”. The incidence of early marriage is quite high for a European country. A 2004 United Nations report estimated that 10 per cent of girls between 15 and 19 years of age were married, divorced or widowed.
Polygamy is not a common practice in Ukraine.
In Ukraine, parental authority is shared by the mother and father, and parents have equal rights and responsibilities regarding their children’s development and education. Social stereotypes within the family remain strong. It is not uncommon for men to divorce and then refuse to fulfil their parental obligations, which leaves mothers (and their children) with limited resources. Such women have very few legal options to pursue action against their ex-husbands.
There is no legal discrimination against women in regard to inheritance.
The physical integrity of women in Ukraine is not sufficiently protected. In 2001, the government passed a law to prevent violence against women, but public awareness of this law is low even among women. Paradoxically, this law authorises the police to arrest a woman if it can be demonstrated that she “provoked the violence by behaving as a victim”. Another problem is that the existing law does not specifically recognise domestic violence, the most common form of violence against women in the country; it is believed that half of Ukrainian women have experienced violence in their homes. Authorities are now considering an amendment to the Criminal Code that would specifically prohibit domestic violence.
Ukrainian legislation prohibits rape, but contains no specific reference to spousal rape. Perpetrators of spousal rape are punished under a law prohibiting “forced sexual relations with a materially dependent person”.
Female genital mutilation is not a common practice in Ukraine, nor is it a country of concern in relation to missing women.
Legally, women in Ukraine have relatively strong ownership rights, but they still face discriminatory practices in certain areas. According to the government, many women gained access to land through the 2001 agrarian reforms, which transformed the country’s collective farms into agricultural businesses. It appears that households headed by women tended to be given lower access to land than those headed by men, although these differences are minor.
The Constitution guarantees women’s legal rights to access to property other than land. By law, joint property acquired during marriage belongs equally to both spouses, but this is rarely the case in practice. If a man leaves his wife and forces her to leave the marital home, she has few legal avenues through which to pursue an equitable distribution of property.
Legally, Ukrainian women have equal access to bank loans, but access to loans is equally difficult for men and women. Men have the advantage that they can sometimes use their relationships within the administration to acquire loans. Because women are poorly represented in administrative bodies, they typically don’t have this option. Following the 2001 agrarian reform, many women in rural areas established credit unions.
Women’s civil liberties are well respected in Ukraine. There are no reported restrictions to their freedom of movement or freedom of dress.
CEDAW (Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women) (1999), Consideration of Reports Submitted by States Parties Under Article 18 of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women: Ukraine, Fourth Periodic Report of States Parties, CEDAW/C/UKR/4-5, CEDAW, New York, NY.
CEDAW (2002), Women’s Anti-Discrimination Committee Takes Up Periodic Reports of Ukraine, Press Release WOM/1341, CEDAW, New York, NY.
European Union Gender Watch (2007), A Gender Analysis of EU Development Instrument and Policies in Ukraine, Network of East-West Women, Gdańsk, www.neww.org.pl/download/EU_Gender_Watch_Ukraine.pdf.
ILO (International Labour Organization), Facts and Figures on Gender Equality: Ukraine, ILO, Geneva, www.ilo.org/public/english/region/eurpro/budapest/download/gender/ukraine.pdf.
UN (United Nations) (2004), World Fertility Report 2003, UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division, New York, NY.
UNIFEM (United Nations Development Fund for Women) (2003), Not a Minute More: Ending Violence Against Women, UNIFEM, New York, NY.
US Department of State (2007), Country Reports on Human Rights Practices: Ukraine, US Department of State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, Washington, DC.
World Bank (2002), Ukraine Gender Review, World Bank, Washington, DC, Bankhttp://siteresources.worldbank.org/INTECAREGTOPGENDER/Resources/UkraineCGA.pdf.
