The Russian parliament has passed a controversial law that decriminalizes some forms of domestic violence. First-time offenders need no longer fear criminal prosecution.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/M. Gambarini
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A man who beats his wife, but manages to leave only bruises or abrasions, will no longer be guilty of a crime in Russia, rather simply an administrative offense. On Friday, Russia's lower house of parliament, the Duma, passed a controversial bill known as the "slapping law." If the upper house and President Vladimir Putin agree, then mild cases of domestic violence will be met with mild consequences.
Russian tattoo artist transforms abuse scars into butterflies
Domestic violence is a widespread problem in Russia and some forms of abuse have now been decriminalized. Tatoo artist, Yevgeniya Zakhar, is helping victims hide their scars.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/V. Braydov
Tattoos to cover scars
Russia's lower house of parliament, the Duma, passed a controversial bill known as the "slapping law." It says that a man who beats his wife, but manages to leave only bruises or abrasions, will no longer be guilty of a crime. The violence is classed as an administrative offense. Tattoo artist, Yevgeniya Zakhar, gives free tattoos to victims of domestic abuse, to cover their scars.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/V. Braydov
Listening to her clients' stories
Yevgeniya posted an ad on her social media page last year, offering to ink abused women for free, after hearing about a Brazilian tattoo artist who came up with the idea. Soon, she was flooded with requests - and became so stressed hearing her clients' stories of beatings and burnings, that she had to limit the number of women she sees to one day a week.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/V. Braydov
Enduring pain again
Guldar, who is getting a tattoo on her belly, cringes with pain. Yevgenia explains, "I didn't expect to be inundated with clients. I had to work on two to four women per day. It's really scary to see the extent of this problem and hear what people are saying." Yevgeniya works in Ufa, a city about 1,200 kilometers (745 miles) east of Moscow.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/V. Braydov
Thousands of women are killed every year
Domestic violence is a long-standing problem in Russia. Police estimate that about 40 percent of all violent crimes take place within families. In 2013 alone, around 9,100 Russian women died as a consequence of domestic violence. Another 11,300 suffered severe injuries, says human rights advocate Anna Rivina, head of the project "Nasiliju.Net" (No to Violence).
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/V. Braydov
Signs of violence
Yevgeniya shows the scars left on her client Lilya. Women usually pick butterflies or floral designs to cover the visible signs of abuse. They confide in the artist, sharing the horrors of relationships that turned viciously violent. Transforming the scars into something of their own choosing boosts the womens' self-esteem and helps them gain new perspectives on the trauma.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/V. Braydov
No help from police
Yevgeniya hugs a client. She has tattooed more than 1,000 women at no cost since she started reaching out to abuse victims last year. She says not one reported receiving help from police. "Girls are willing to talk, often because it will be the last time they speak about the scars," she said. "They don't talk about it later because they will be talking about their beautiful tattoo, not a scar."
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/V. Braydov
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Among those who crafted the bill is Yelena Mizulina, a member of parliament for the Just Russia party who is known for her strong conservative views. Mizulina sees slapping as an "educational measure" and wants to do away with inequality. "If someone slaps an unruly child, they could face one or two years in prison," Mizulina said in parliament at the start of January. "But if a neighbor were to do that, all they face is an administrative offense."
Thousands of victims of domestic violence
Mizulina considers slaps an 'educational measure'Image: picture-alliance/dpa
Human rights advocate Anna Rivina, head of the project "Nasiliju.Net" (No to Violence) says there is a good reason for such inequality. "In a relationship between family members, the situation for the victim is much more difficult than when there is an altercation on the street," she said. "When the violence comes from a family member, you can't just go home and hide."
The term "domestic violence" that is so widely used in the West does not exist in Russian law, even though the phenomenon itself is very widespread in the country. Around 40 percent of all serious crimes occur within the confines of the family, said Rivina, citing police statistics. In 2013 alone, around 9,100 Russian women died as a consequence of domestic violence. Another 11,300 suffered severe injuries. And that's just the tip of the iceberg, Rivina says.
Encouraging violence in the home?
One woman who wishes to remain anonymous told DW about her own experience with domestic violence. "I called the police many times when my drunken husband would beat me or our children," she said. "Each time, I ended up writing a declaration against the introduction of criminal penalties." She says that it was her choice and that she only involved the police so that her husband would calm down faster. It worked, she says, adding that the new law won't change anything for her.
But it will change things for Natalia Nusinova from Moscow. In 2014, the man she was living with hit her. He threatened to throw her out of their high-rise apartment. When she defended herself with a knife, she hurt her attacker. Now, she faces up to 10 years in prison for grievous bodily harm. She wants to see a law that is tougher on the perpetrators and that better protects the victims.
Foreign criticism unwanted
The new law hasn't just elicited criticism from human rights activists in Russia, but also abroad. After the first reading of the bill in parliament, the Secretary General of the European Council, Thorbjorn Jagland, sent a letter to the leaders of the Duma. He expressed his concern and called on them to protect women and children from domestic violence. Duma Chairman Vyacheslav Volodin rejected the letter as foreign interference in a domestic issue. He referred to a survey by the state opinion research institute WZIOM, which concluded that 60 percent of Russians supported more mild punishment for domestic violence. Most of those surveyed (79 percent) said they were against any form of violence within families. But every fifth respondent said it was acceptable under certain circumstances.
The different faces of Vladimir Putin
Forbes magazine ranked Russian President Vladimir Putin as the most powerful person of 2016 - followed by US President-elect Donald Trump. This picture gallery shows different aspects of Putin's personality.
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From KGB to Kremlin
Putin joined the KGB, the former Soviet Union's security agency, in 1975. In the 1980s he undertook his first foreign posting as a KGB agent to Dresden, Germany. After the fall of the Berlin Wall, Putin returned to Russia and entered Boris Yeltsin's Kremlin. When Yeltsin announced that he wanted Putin as his successor, the way was paved for him to become prime minister.
Image: picture alliance/dpa/M.Klimentyev
First presidency
On his appointment, Putin was virtually unknown to the general public. This changed when in August 1999 armed men from Chechnya invaded the neighboring Russian territory of Dagestan. President Yeltsin appointed ex-KGB officer Putin to bring Chechnya back under the central government's control. On New Year's Eve, Yeltsin unexpectedly resigned and named Putin as acting president.
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Tough guy in the media
During an exhibition hockey game in Sochi, Putin’s team won 18-6, with the president scoring eight goals.
Image: picture-alliance/AP/A. Nikolsky
Limited freedom of speech
A protester wears a tape over his mouth reading "Putin" during an opposition rally. In 2013 the Kremlin announced that the state-owned news agency, RIA Novosti, was to be restructured and placed under the control of a pro-Kremlin figure known for his extreme anti-Western views. Reporters without Borders ranked Russia as 148 in its list of 178 countries in terms of press freedom.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/V.Maximov
Putin's Image: A man of action
Putin's image as a man of action, boosted by his having been a KGB spy, has long been part of his appeal in Russia. It is carefully maintained by means of photos where he is seen bare-chested on horseback, or tossing opponents onto a judo mat. In Russia, Putin has earned praise for restoring stability but has also been accused of authoritarianism.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/A. Nikoskyi
Stifling democracy
When President Putin's United Russia party won a landslide victory in parliamentary elections in 2007, critics described the vote as neither free nor democratic. Dozens were detained as riot police broke up protests by demonstrators accusing President Putin of stifling democracy. In this rally the poster reads: "Thank you, no!"
Image: Getty Images/AFP/Y.Kadobnov
Orchestrated events
In Sevastopol, Crimea, Putin looks through the window of a research bathyscaphe in the waters of the Black Sea. This dive in a mini-submarine was only one of his adventurous stunts; he has also been seen tranquilizing wild tigers and flying with endangered cranes. It was also aimed at cementing his image as an adventurer, and demonstrating his control of the annexed territory of Crimea.
