Shakhnoza Mirziyoyeva is to shatter the silence surrounding child abuse

In Samarkand, a woman in Russia was angry with her husband and beat her daughters. In the Tashkent region, a man brutally beat young children to take revenge on his wife. A woman living in the Karaozak district of Karakalpakstan was angry with her husband, who works in Kazakhstan, and regularly beat her children. In the Shavat district of the Khorezm region, a mother beat her two children, took a video, and sent it to her husband in Kazakhstan. Additionally, in another region, a kindergarten teacher beat children, and in Fergana, a 13-year-old boy was beaten by his neighbor. That's not all. There are many such cruel incidents related to children, and there seems to be no end to the crying of children.
Now, Uzbekistan wants to start protecting its children from violence. So, from whom? From parents, neighbors, educators, in short, from everyone who has done wrong - from society! This was discussed on October 10 at a national roundtable held by UNICEF, the National Agency for Social Protection, and the Ministry of Justice.

Shakhnoza Mirziyoyeva, the first deputy director of the Social Protection Agency, who spoke at the national roundtable where the draft law "On the protection of children from all forms of violence" was discussed, said that during the nine months of 2023, in Uzbekistan, 1,240 cases of violence against minors were registered, with 417 of them being victims of sexual violence. She called on the authorities to take swift and decisive measures at the national level to pass the law.

"Imagine that in nine months of this year, 166 cases of violence against children by relatives, including close relatives, were recorded. Unfortunately, even official statistics do not allow an objective assessment of the measure. The truth is even worse. Child victims of abuse usually do not report being abused. Often, they remain silent about the situation due to fear, shame, or loyalty to the family, especially if the abuser is someone close to the child," she said at the beginning of her speech.

She also said that she wants to focus the attention of law enforcement agencies on the need to strengthen prevention of violence, improve response measures, and work with the abuser.

"We need to stop turning a blind eye to this problem. Violence not only violates human rights but also affects the rest of a child's life. We want to end the silence on this pressing issue and change the attitudes in society that perpetuate the problem. If this law is adopted, it can change the lives of Uzbekistan's children, protect them, educate them, and create an opportunity for them to realize their potential," said Mirziyoyeva.

Furthermore, she suggested:

•    Radical strengthening of measures against individuals who commit violence against children.
•    Strengthening the responsibility of officials in cases of concealing facts regarding cases of violence or failing to respond to appeals.
•    Expanding the list of children at risk of violence, including children whose parents have been absent for a long time and children of labor migrants.
•    Defining the tasks of the new social service and interaction with law enforcement and other bodies to ensure children's rights.
•     Reducing the time for issuing a protection order.
•     Ensuring the confidentiality of information about victims of violence at all stages.

The Law "On the Protection of Children from All Forms of Violence" consists of 43 articles, according to which the perpetrators of violence against children will not receive a reduced sentence, and no amnesty will be granted.

"In this law, strengthening families of children, improving the skills of family members to prevent committed crimes, providing free legal, socio-economic, psychological, and medical assistance, and forcing a person to participate in a program to correct behavior, including sexual behavior, are intended to restrict the rights of persons who have committed violent crimes," said Baburbek Saidbekov, head of the department of the Ministry of Justice.

According to the law, children are taken away from parents who oppress their children. In addition, they will be issued protection orders.

"If a parent is harming the health of their child, the neighborhood authorities can draw up a document, contact the guardianship authorities, and take the child away from them within 7 days. It only needs to inform the prosecutor about it. After 7 days, they can go to court with a lawsuit and demand to be deprived of parental rights," she added.

When children are taken away from their parents, where do they go?

In addition to Shakhnoza Mirziyoyeva, many other leaders participated in the national roundtable on combating violence against children - Mansurbek Olloyorov, Director of the National Social Protection Agency; Tanzila Norboyeva, Chairman of the Senate of the Oliy Majlis; Sadiq Safoyev, her first deputy; Deputy Prime Minister Zulaykho Mahkamova; Chairman of the National Center for Human Rights Akmal Saidov; Minister of Health Amrullo Inoyatov; Minister of Preschool and School Education Khilola Umarova; Chairman of the Youth Affairs Agency Alisher Sadullayev; UNICEF Europe and Central Director of the regional office for Asian countries and other foreign guests participated. Even Prosecutor
General Nigmatulla Yoldashev, Chairman of the Supreme Court Bakhtiyor Islamov, and Minister of Internal Affairs Polat Bobojonov, who rarely appear at such events, made an appearance.

Senate Chairman Tanzila Norboyeva, who was ultimately responsible for the event, said that all the problems are related to the preparation of young people for families. She asked the Minister of Preschool and School Education Hilola Umarova for help to start spiritual education from childhood.

"It is necessary to continue preparing young people for families, starting from kindergarten, until graduation, and then in higher education. That's the only way we will be able to form young men who don't hurt anyone, who do not use harsh words, who do not have children every year, who take care of themselves, who do not have disabled children, who do not engage in relationships with close relatives, and who do not marry close relatives," said Norboyeva.

Globally, current data shows that more than 1 billion children worldwide experience physical, emotional, or sexual abuse each year. The recent Multiindicator Cluster Observation (MIKS) showed that 2 out of 3 children (62%) in Uzbekistan between the ages of 1 and 14 years experienced violent parenting methods (physical punishment and/or psychological aggression), and 33 percent of 15-19-year-old girls believe that a husband has the right to beat his wife.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, Norboyeva said that the money spent on strengthening families and preparing young people for families is ineffective.

"We have family preparation courses. I am dissatisfied with those who introduce such one-week courses and waste billions of moneys. First of all, the coverage of such courses is not 100%. Secondly, how can you prepare an adult, formed person for a family within a week, or educate them on reproductive issues? Here, for example, I am analyzing and studying - there are many cases of inefficient use of our state funds in this matter. Such courses do not yield results and benefits at all. I went to Ferghana. There, 700 million soums were allocated from the state budget to psychologists for one-hour training courses for neighborhood activists. What did they do? What kind of psychologists are they? It is totally ineffective," said the Chairman of the Senate.

At the beginning of the video, we mentioned that cases of violence against children are increasing in Uzbekistan. The numbers of broken families, orphans, children who are still being abused by their parents and strangers, and children who are being sexually assaulted are now being disclosed. Is it not too late for Uzbekistan to address this sensitive issue and protect children?

In response to this question, UNICEF Regional Director for Europe and Central Asia, Regina De Dominicis, said that it is never too late. She added that if this law is adopted, it will empower the children of Uzbekistan to shape their lives, protect them, educate them, and enable them to realize their potential. It is crucial that the language and intent of the bill reflect the highest standards of child protection, not just words on paper, but a life-changing force for all children in Uzbekistan.