“Omir – Aina”, #19 (103), 16/05/2008
Operator of “hotline” at NGO “Sana Sezim”
Z. Usmanova

   Violence against women is a global problem, affecting the spiritual and physical health of women. If women can not be confident of their safety in their homes, at work, or on the street, they can not fully realize their potential. Violence against women has been and remains one of the most hidden and concealed forms of crime. Most women suffer from a lack of security of their health, and their dignity. Some of them have constant feelings of anxiety and uncertainty that change their behavior and goals in life. No one has calculated how many women have been killed or maimed, have suffered from nervous diseases or discomfort, as a result of violence or threat thereof.
   Violence erodes the self-esteem of women, their respect for work, and desire to escape from poverty. Fear of violence stops a woman’s growth and inhibits her abilities. What a loss of human resources and energy! And how many women are in need of psychological, medical, or legal assistance? In the traditional family, the role of the mother-in-law is usually very high, and sometimes hypertrophied. In a society which has consecrated the role of the mother she condemns the open and emotional expressions of love for his wife. You can hear many stories of discrimination against daughters from the mother-in-law. That is, they are often the initiator of the persistence of patriarchal order in the family and the doctrine of obedience to his wife. And, indeed, an infinite number of tragedies are associated with the power of mother and daughter discrimination in the history of rural women. Mother-in-laws in some families use sophisticated non-violence towards all. There are cases where the mother-in-law determines the number of children a wife must have.
   In the month of February, the Center “San Sezim” asked for help from a woman named Elmira. She lives in a registered marriage and has two young children. Elmira receives violence from the mother-in-law. She had a divorce from her husband one divorce from her husband. Then she came back because the mother-in-law and the husband took her eldest child. They are now threatening to take away the second son, if she divorces from her husband. She wants to go to live separately with her husband and children. The mother-in-law will not let them go while she is alive. The Center “Sana Sezim” has provided Elmira with psychological and legal assistance.
   In order not to oversimplify the topic, it is necessary to note that there are a great variety of these types of relationships. There are, of course, many examples of how there is a very strong alliance between the mother and sister.
   Victims of violence should not deal with their suffering alone. Women need practical and emotional support from governmental and non-governmental structures together. The cooperation of these two kinds of organizations will provide an opportunity to address the problem.
   Contact the Legal Center for Women's Initiatives “Sana Sezim” by phone (56-27-32), or at 22 Prospect Respublika, Apt. 4. Here you will always receive help!