Incident in Makhachkala shows violence victims' vulnerability in shelters

The forced abduction of a girl from the crisis apartment in Makhachkala can undermine confidence of domestic violence victims in safety of shelters, Nailya Birarova, a social psychologist, is afraid.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on June 10, policemen from Dagestan and Chechnya came to the Makhachkala shelter – an apartment for victims of domestic violence, detained employees of the "Marem" project and Khalimat Taramova, who was hiding there from domestic violence. Then, law enforcers took Khalimat to Chechnya against her will.

Taramova is the daughter of one of Ramzan Kadyrov's close associates; she was forced to flee Chechnya because of domestic violence that was caused by her sexual orientation. Now, in Chechnya, the girl faces murder for "taking dirty linen in public," an activist of the Russian LGBT Network has suggested.

This raid may lead to the fact that victims of violence in Northern Caucasus will be afraid to seek help at shelters, Nailya Birarova has noted.

"Of course, [victims] will fear to apply there, because it's shame for their families, nation, kin; and it's shame for the society. If a person turns to law enforcement bodies for help; and if authorities exert some sort of pressure on him/her, of course, such person feels a sort of psychological stop [...] He/she will try resolving problems her/himself, and avoid contacting policemen. Such cases confirm that a person can't feel protected, especially in the Caucasus," Ms Birarova told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on June 12, 2021 at 02:12 am MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.