NGO Joint Parallel Report on the Government of Turkmenistan’s Fifth Report on the Implementation of the International Convention Against Torture, and other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or Punishment
Date: 10 March 2025
Issues: Gender-based violence, access to abortion care
Mechanism: UN Committee Against Torture
Report Type: Joint Parallel Report by the Advocates for Human Rights and Progres Foundation
View and Download Report: Turkmenistan – CAT – GBV – March 2025, PDF
This report addresses Turkmenistan’s compliance with its obligations under theConvention against Torture and Other Cruel Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CAT) with respect to the absence of adequate legislation to prevent and protect women from gender-based violence, especially domestic violence. This report also highlights Turkmenistan’s failing on its obligation to facilitate women’s exercise to their sexual and reproductive rights. This report recommends that Turkmenistan adopts a number of key recommendations to better align its practices with its obligations under the Convention. These steps, among other things, include: (1) adopting comprehensive legislation to address gender-based violence (GBV) against women, and especially domestic violence (DV); (2) developing and implementing programs to prevent gender-based violence, domestic violence and discrimination against women; (3) guaranteeing avenues of protection for victims, (4) ensuring accurate data is collected and divulgated; and (5) improving women’s access to sexual and reproductive health care, particularly abortion services.
Suggested recommendations for the Government of Turkmenistan
We respectfully suggest the CAT Committee provide the following recommendations to the Government of Turkmenistan:
- Draft a law addressing gender-based violence and domestic violence in line with CAT and other international human rights standards, and with the meaningful participation of civil society on the conception and drafting of the law, in particular those working on women’s rights, as a matter of priority. Such a law should include protection measures for victims and their dependents with effective remedies and appropriate enforcement.
- Develop comprehensive tools to estimate the risk of serious harm, escalation of violence and homicide in domestic violence cases, and put in place procedures to minimize this risk.
- Address the stigmatization of women who are victims of gender-based violence, including domestic and sexual violence, which deters them from reporting cases by implementing public-awareness campaigns, with substantive guidance from civil society organizations.
- Allocate and provide human and financial resources to the Ministry of Labor and Social Protection and the Ministry of Health to prioritize the work on deepening gender inequality in Turkmenistan.
- Conduct awareness-raising campaigns to remove stigma and barriers around seeking protection and to prevent discrimination and violence against women, and about the nature of domestic violence and the power dynamics associated with gender. These campaigns must include:
- Task the Ministry of Labour and Social Protection of Population, and the Ministry of Health with educating the public on existing support and complaint mechanisms for gender-based violence (GBV) against women and domestic violence.
- Develop national hotline services by setting up one phone number that is available 24/7 and is free, and publicize its work so the public learns about the available services.
- Raise awareness of national hotline services by placing posters in highly frequented areas and publishing social media posts from official government platforms, ensuring that the content shares extensive information on all the services provided for women and girls and ways to access these hotlines.
- Establish mandatory training for judges, prosecutors, police, social workers, psychologists, and health-care workers on the dynamics of violence against women and on conducting victim-centered investigation procedures in cases of GBV against women.
- Ensure that assistance and services are specialized and meet the specific needs of women victims of violence, including:
- Support for victims both to prevent and address violence. This includes mental health services, access to long-term counseling, affordable housing, childcare support, more accessible and quality legal assistance, and employment opportunities.
- Fund stakeholders that provide services and immediate protection to victims.
- Collect and publish comprehensive statistical data on gender-based violence disaggregated by age, gender, sex, and relationship between the victim and the perpetrator regularly, at least annually, including the work of Keyik Okara in Ashgabat and Beyik Eyyam in Lebap.
- Publish national protocols for health care professionals and law enforcement officers that have been developed in collaboration with UNFPA and civil society organizations.
- Collect data on all the steps taken to ensure the free choice of women to seek abortion in safe conditions in accordance with domestic legislation. Including any steps taken to decriminalize abortion and/or repeal the 5-week gestational age limit and other restrictions on abortions based on specific grounds or gestational age limits.
- Make abortion available on the request of the woman without restrictions and without the authorization, ensuring that national regulations regarding abortion are in accordance with international guidelines and the Covenant.
- The State must increase access to basic services in sexual and reproductive health by guaranteeing affordable and easy access to contraception and other reproductive health services for low-income or vulnerable populations.
- Ensure government’s efforts to improve family planning for victims’ gender-based violence against women, including domestic violence and sexual violence.
- Collect data on deaths and health complications for pregnant women who have been denied abortion, and based on this information having the state take measures to combat the stigmatization of women having abortions.
- Address the data gaps on abortions and publish objective data on abortion that is available to the general public.
- Take measures to ensure doctors and other medical professionals provide access to safe abortion for women whose lives or health are in danger as a result of pregnancy.
- Ensure that health professionals do not lose their licenses for performing legally sanctioned abortions, and clarify regulations and establish protection measures for these professionals to avoid punitive measures
- Establish a statewide campaign to address all stigmas associated with abortion and abortion practices.
- Provide information about the available procedures to ensure provider-patient confidentiality, and the holistic care for women accessing abortion care.
