March 04, 2025

Women's Rights in Wartime


Women's Rights in Wartime
A feminist activists rally in Yekaterinburg in 2019. IvanA, Wikimedia Commons.

After the start of the Russia's war on Ukraine, many journalists, lawyers, and feminists left the country over concerns about criminal prosecution for their anti-war stance. Meanwhile, the Russian government has poured significant resources into discrediting feminist ideas, international standards for combating gender-based violence, and the individuals who support them, according to independent publication Glasnaya.

Because of the exodus of human rights workers and feminists, there are now fewer independent nonprofits in Russia that offer help to survivors of domestic violence. Despite ongoing scrutiny, one of the few remaining organizations still providing legal and advocacy support is the Consortium of Women’s NGOs.

In June 2022, Russian State Duma member Andrei Lugovoi called for an investigation into whether the Consortium was a foreign agent serving the interests of Great Britain and promoting what he described as "LGBT values."

Consortium employee Sofia Rusova said activists and informers have repeatedly filed complaints about the organization with the Ministry of Justice and Roskomnadzor over the past three years, even attempting to block the group’s website. She noted that, although she has experienced more frequent online harassment, it has not stopped her from continuing her work. Rusova added that activists must now be especially cautious when discussing certain topics, explaining that conversations about sex education could be misperceived as LGBT propaganda.

Glasnaya noted that President Vladimir Putin has pardoned thousands of convicts who participated in the war, including those who committed serious offenses against women and girls. One Wagner Group fighter was previously sentenced to 17 years in prison for the murder of 23-year-old student and his former girlfriend Vera Pekhteleva. Lawyer Daria Gryaznova has argued that releasing such offenders reinforces the notion that violence is acceptable, which can lead to further tragedies and deny survivors access to justice. Legislative changes also allow individuals to sign a contract for military service with the Ministry of Defense before any investigation or trial concludes, effectively halting criminal prosecution.

The invasion of Ukraine ended Russians’ ability to seek international recourse as well. On March 16, 2022, Russia was expelled from the Council of Europe and ceased to be a party to the European Convention on Human Rights, meaning its citizens no longer fall under European Court of Human Rights jurisdiction. Rusova pointed out that the ECHR had often provided crucial moral and material compensation for survivors when domestic legal avenues were exhausted. Shortly before Russia’s removal from the Council, Senator Andrei Klishas advised citizens to defend their rights in Russian courts, but human rights activist Mari Davtyan said these courts frequently require mediation even in cases of violence, although mediation is legally reserved only for civil proceedings.

Because Russian officials emphasize “traditional values,” domestic violence is widely regarded as a non-existent problem, Davtyan added. Regional crisis centers that receive large state grants reportedly focus on preserving marriages at any cost, leaving women responsible for issues such as low birth rates. Rusova said these programs rarely address the role men play, framing the problem as a relationship solely between a woman and the state.

Rusova expressed concern that the period of progress in human rights, which began after World War II, appears to have ended in Russia and, perhaps, in the wider world. However, she maintains that abandoning core values is not an option and hopes the movement’s efforts will endure the current pressures and ultimately flourish again.

You Might Also Like

Three Years, 95,000 Dead
  • February 23, 2025

Three Years, 95,000 Dead

Three years after the start of Russia's War on Ukraine, more than 95,000 Russian troops have died.
Hell Behind Bars for a Teenager
  • February 16, 2025

Hell Behind Bars for a Teenager

A 14-year-old Russian girl accused of terrorism spent almost a year in a pretrial detention center, where she was beaten and subjected to sexual violence.
Making a List
  • January 27, 2025

Making a List

The Ministry of Internal Affairs may be creating a database of LGBT persons to make future prosecutions easier.
The Patriarch's Abortion Prevention
  • October 22, 2024

The Patriarch's Abortion Prevention

Russian Orthodox Patriarch Kirill will send letters to pregnant women in 16 regions to dissuade them from receiving abortion care.
Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals

Some of Our Books

Life Stories: Original Fiction By Russian Authors

Life Stories: Original Fiction By Russian Authors

The Life Stories collection is a nice introduction to contemporary Russian fiction: many of the 19 authors featured here have won major Russian literary prizes and/or become bestsellers. These are life-affirming stories of love, family, hope, rebirth, mystery and imagination, masterfully translated by some of the best Russian-English translators working today. The selections reassert the power of Russian literature to affect readers of all cultures in profound and lasting ways. Best of all, 100% of the profits from the sale of this book are going to benefit Russian hospice—not-for-profit care for fellow human beings who are nearing the end of their own life stories.
The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas

The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas

This exciting new trilogy by a Russian author – who has been compared to Orhan Pamuk and Umberto Eco – vividly recreates a lost world, yet its passions and characters are entirely relevant to the present day. Full of mystery, memorable characters, and non-stop adventure, The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas is a must read for lovers of historical fiction and international thrillers.  
Fish: A History of One Migration

Fish: A History of One Migration

This mesmerizing novel from one of Russia’s most important modern authors traces the life journey of a selfless Russian everywoman. In the wake of the Soviet breakup, inexorable forces drag Vera across the breadth of the Russian empire. Facing a relentless onslaught of human and social trials, she swims against the current of life, countering adversity and pain with compassion and hope, in many ways personifying Mother Russia’s torment and resilience amid the Soviet disintegration.
Murder at the Dacha

Murder at the Dacha

Senior Lieutenant Pavel Matyushkin has a problem. Several, actually. Not the least of them is the fact that a powerful Soviet boss has been murdered, and Matyushkin's surly commander has given him an unreasonably short time frame to close the case.
White Magic

White Magic

The thirteen tales in this volume – all written by Russian émigrés, writers who fled their native country in the early twentieth century – contain a fair dose of magic and mysticism, of terror and the supernatural. There are Petersburg revenants, grief-stricken avengers, Lithuanian vampires, flying skeletons, murders and duels, and even a ghostly Edgar Allen Poe.
Davai! The Russians and Their Vodka

Davai! The Russians and Their Vodka

In this comprehensive, quixotic and addictive book, Edwin Trommelen explores all facets of the Russian obsession with vodka. Peering chiefly through the lenses of history and literature, Trommelen offers up an appropriately complex, rich and bittersweet portrait, based on great respect for Russian culture.
Fearful Majesty

Fearful Majesty

This acclaimed biography of one of Russia’s most important and tyrannical rulers is not only a rich, readable biography, it is also surprisingly timely, revealing how many of the issues Russia faces today have their roots in Ivan’s reign.
Jews in Service to the Tsar

Jews in Service to the Tsar

Benjamin Disraeli advised, “Read no history: nothing but biography, for that is life without theory.” With Jews in Service to the Tsar, Lev Berdnikov offers us 28 biographies spanning five centuries of Russian Jewish history, and each portrait opens a new window onto the history of Eastern Europe’s Jews, illuminating dark corners and challenging widely-held conceptions about the role of Jews in Russian history.
Faith & Humor: Notes from Muscovy

Faith & Humor: Notes from Muscovy

A book that dares to explore the humanity of priests and pilgrims, saints and sinners, Faith & Humor has been both a runaway bestseller in Russia and the focus of heated controversy – as often happens when a thoughtful writer takes on sacred cows. The stories, aphorisms, anecdotes, dialogues and adventures in this volume comprise an encyclopedia of modern Russian Orthodoxy, and thereby of Russian life.
Steppe / Степь (bilingual)

Steppe / Степь (bilingual)

This is the work that made Chekhov, launching his career as a writer and playwright of national and international renown. Retranslated and updated, this new bilingual edition is a super way to improve your Russian.
Stargorod: A Novel in Many Voices

Stargorod: A Novel in Many Voices

Stargorod is a mid-sized provincial city that exists only in Russian metaphorical space. It has its roots in Gogol, and Ilf and Petrov, and is a place far from Moscow, but close to Russian hearts. It is a place of mystery and normality, of provincial innocence and Black Earth wisdom. Strange, inexplicable things happen in Stargorod. So do good things. And bad things. A lot like life everywhere, one might say. Only with a heavy dose of vodka, longing and mystery.

About Us

Russian Life is a publication of a 30-year-young, award-winning publishing house that creates a bimonthly magazine, books, maps, and other products for Russophiles the world over.

Latest Posts

Our Contacts

Russian Life
73 Main Street, Suite 402
Montpelier VT 05602

802-223-4955