Kazakh Ombudsman stands for criminalization of domestic violence

ASTANA. KAZINFORM Human Rights Commissioner Artur Lastayev stands for the criminalization of domestic violence in Kazakhstan, Kazinform correspondent reports.

«It is clear that we need to thoroughly review the issue of the criminalization of this act. Of course, we will stand for making it a criminal offense and not repeating past mistakes. Law-enforcement agencies must gather evidence of an aggressor’s guilt, but not against a victim or a contemplated victim,» Artur Lastayev said answering mass media’s questions after the meeting with the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk.

He explained that the domestic violence clause was decriminalized in 2017, since this clause in the Criminal Code referred to private charge cases, while a contemplated victim had to gather evidence of an aggressor’s guilt herself or himself. «At that moment it was decided to decriminalize this clause and include it into the list of administrative offences,» Lastayev said.