On 25 June, an international roundtable on the topic “Legal Mechanisms for Preventing Femicide: From International Standards to National Practice” was held at the National Human Rights Centre of the Republic of Uzbekistan. It was attended by representatives of state bodies, international organizations, the judicial system, law enforcement agencies, academic circles, and civil society institutions.

The event was organized by the National Human Rights Centre of the Republic of Uzbekistan in cooperation with the Office of the OSCE Project Coordinator in Uzbekistan, the UN Women structure, the Supreme Court of the Republic of Uzbekistan, and the Prosecutor General’s Office of the Republic of Uzbekistan.

Opening the event, Deputy Director of the National Human Rights Centre of the Republic of Uzbekistan Dilnoza Muratova emphasized that preventing violence against women is one of the most important tasks of state policy in the field of human rights protection. The mandatory reconciliation period established for divorce in cases of violence was abolished in 2025, and in March of that year the President signed a decree on systematically combating violence against women.

In accordance with paragraph 42 of the set of comprehensive measures for 2026 to implement the Strategy for Achieving Gender Equality in the Republic of Uzbekistan until 2030 — approved by the resolution of the Senate of the Oliy Majlis of 6 February 2026 — a comprehensive study of international practice in qualifying femicide as a distinct corpus delicti, as well as the development of proposals for improving national legislation, is envisaged.

At the roundtable, particular attention was paid to international approaches to preventing gender-based killings.

OSCE Senior Adviser on Gender Issues and Head of the Gender Issues Programme in the Office of the OSCE Secretary General Lara Scarpitta emphasized the importance of a comprehensive approach to preventing gender-based violence — one based on improving legislation, an effective prevention system, the collection of reliable data, and inter-agency cooperation.

“Femicide is not an inevitable phenomenon. In most cases, it is rooted in many years of domestic violence. Our task, therefore, is not only to investigate crimes but, above all, to prevent them by protecting women at risk in a timely manner,” Lara Scarpitta noted.

She also drew attention to the need to develop the statistical accounting system.

“We cannot fight what we do not see. Without reliable statistical data, it is impossible to assess the scale of the problem, identify effective measures, and shape evidence-based state policy,” the OSCE representative stressed.

Head of the UN Women Coordination Office for Central Asia and representative of the country office in Kazakhstan Jeren Güven Güreş gave a high assessment, in her video address, of the reforms being carried out in Uzbekistan in the field of protecting women.

“Uzbekistan has succeeded in creating a solid foundation for combating violence against women. Further improving legislation, developing the data accounting system, and strengthening femicide prevention mechanisms could be the next important step,” Jeren Güven Güreş noted.

She emphasized that the legislative changes of recent years attest to a consistent state policy aimed at protecting women’s rights and creating an effective system for preventing violence. According to Jeren Güven Güreş, the Republic of Uzbekistan has become one of the first five states among the countries of Eastern Europe and Central Asia to criminalize domestic violence as a separate offense.

During the roundtable, the OSCE study titled “Trends in Countering Femicide in the OSCE Region” was one of the main topics of discussion. The study analyzes contemporary legislative approaches, prevention mechanisms, and international practice on the relevant issue.

OSCE Secretariat Adviser on Gender Issues Elmaya Bavchich delivered an online presentation on this topic. She noted that the study includes a comprehensive analysis of the legislation, state policy, and law enforcement practice of OSCE participating States, as well as practical recommendations for improving mechanisms to prevent gender-based killings of women, developing data collection systems, and strengthening inter-agency cooperation.

UN Women Programme Analyst Malika Shotursunova presented the preliminary findings of the first regional study on femicide in the countries of Central Asia. The study is aimed at building an evidence base for improving legislation and state policy in the region.

The event also featured presentations on New Uzbekistan’s national experience in preventing violence against women, the practice of internal affairs bodies, prosecutorial agencies, and the judicial system, as well as the experience of civil society organizations in providing assistance to women who have suffered violence.

Representatives of civil society institutions — the Nemolchi.uz project and the “Oydin NUR” center — also took part in the roundtable with their presentations.

In the participants’ view, effective prevention of femicide requires a comprehensive approach that includes improving legislation, early identification of risk factors, developing inter-agency cooperation, perfecting the statistical accounting system, and strengthening cooperation between the state, international organizations, and civil society.

In concluding the roundtable, participants underscored the importance of continuing the Republic of Uzbekistan’s engagement with the OSCE, the UN Women structure, and other international partners, with a view to further improving legislation, strengthening the institutional mechanisms for protecting women’s rights, and developing an effective system for preventing femicide.

For reference: according to UN data, nearly 85,000 women each year fall victim to intentional killings, and almost 60 percent of them die at the hands of their current or former spouses or other family members. It is for this reason that the prevention of femicide is today regarded as one of the priority areas of international policy in the field of protecting women’s rights and ensuring the right to life.

Press Service of the

National Human Rights Centre

of the Republic of Uzbekistan