RUSSIA: Getting Worse for Women

By Kester Kenn Klomegah Reprint | | Print |

Kester Kenn Klomegah

MOSCOW, Mar 20 2006 (IPS) - Poor enforcement of laws means that the position of women in Russia is worsening in spite of claims to the contrary, a new study by a group of legal experts indicates.

Russia has a high level of tolerance of gender inequalities, according to the study conducted the American Bar Association’s Central European and Eurasia Law Initiative, USAID and a group of Russian sociologists.

Little government attention is paid to such issues as unequal representation for women in politics and in government service, widespread violation of women’s employment rights, sexual harassment and domestic violence, the study says.

The study reports that 56 percent of women have either been victims of violence at least once by their husbands or threatened with it, that almost a quarter of the same women had experienced sexual violence, and approximately 80 percent psychological violence.

While the principle of gender equality is incorporated into Russian law, the study reveals that in the face of discrimination, women are unable to seek redress in judicial institutions.

It found that little has been done to give women the same rights and opportunities as men since Russia signed the United Nations Convection to Eliminate Discrimination Against Women 25 years ago.

“In Soviet times the question was hidden, women were given equal constitutional rights as men by the state, but this was only in theory while in practice the problem existed,” Leah Utyasheva, an expert with Central European and Eurasian Law Initiative and co-author of the report told IPS.

The new Russian constitution guarantees men and women equal rights and freedoms and equal opportunities to exercise them, but the ability of women to participate in any sphere of economic activity is tightly controlled, Utyasheva said.

Typical problems during this transition period are “the deterioration of women’s social and economic position, the decreasing possibility of women’s participation in the decision making process, and the feminisation of poverty,” Utyasheva said.

“One of the most interesting aspects of the project was to expose the concept of discrimination which is really misunderstood in Russia, and as the report vividly documents, many women who were interviewed felt that they have rights equal to men but also stated that there was discrimination against them,” Elisabeth Duban, director of Aba Ceeli, a group monitoring gender equality in the United States and also in some other countries told IPS.

Duban said many women have a clear understanding of the concept of equality but lack adequate knowledge about specific laws that protect them. She called for nationwide education for all citizens on rights, combined with professional training for the legal community for responding better to discrimination cases..

The study estimates that women account for two-thirds of the officially registered unemployed, while the average salary of women is two-thirds that of men – when about 64 percent of women have university education compared to 47 percent of men.

About 40 to 50 percent of women say they have subject to sexual harassment at work. Some experts say that if western definitions were to be applied, that figure would rise to 100 percent.

“Perhaps the most interesting psychology here is that men are presumed to be financially supporting families, that is why women are paid far less than men,” Prof Lily Golden from the Moscow-based non-governmental organisation, the Centre for Citizen Initiatives told IPS. “Right now in Russia there are many women raising children single-handedly without state support and without men’s financial support.”

Prof Golden said domestic violence and workplace sexual harassment are both increasing at an alarming rate without the state fully recognising them as a social problem. “There is one major hindrance, lack of unity and solidarity, which are helping to reduce the possibility of effectively defending the basic rights and legal interests of women.”

Russian women are grossly under-represented in politics. Women are 53 percent of the population of 143 million, but less than 10 percent of the State Duma deputies are women, compared with 30 to 40 percent in most European countries, the study said. There is no woman in cabinet.

In local elections women have achieved greater representation than at the federal level, but on average women still account for approximately 10 percent of local legislators. Valentina Matviyenko, governor of St. Petersburg is the only prominent regional leader.

A State-appointed committee on problems of women, family and children is working on new legislation based on women’s complaints and violation of rights.