Experts recommend that the authorities officially define the role of courts of elders in Kyrgyzstan. Otherwise, their decisions may discredit the work of law enforcement bodies.
Twenty-four hours to leave the home village and home – these were the demands made by the Sokuluk court of elders to the family of a man suspected of raping a 16-years-old girl. The elders made a disclaimer that they were ousting the family for a while, but didn’t specify the period.
On December 5, 2021, a 31-year-old resident of Ismail village of Sokuluk district, Chui region, allegedly beat and raped a girl who asked him to give her a ride to Bishkek. When driving through the neighbouring village, the man stopped the car and, according to eyewitnesses, started to beat the passenger. A local female resident reacted to the screams and took the girl home later.
Police officers detained the suspect. Now he is in the pre-trial detention centre No. 1. The case is under investigation.
The day after the detention, village residents protested in front of the police building. The villagers demanded fair investigation of the case. They explained their protest in front of the police building by the fact that the detained had already been involved in similar crimes before, but law enforcement had done nothing. On the same day, the court of elders was convened.
Courts of elders in Kyrgyzstan are governed by the law
In 2002, Kyrgyzstan adopted the law on courts of elders. According to the document, they are established on a voluntary basis by election and self-government at aiyl aimak and towns. They consist of men and women aged 50 and more, who have authority and are held in respect.
The law governs which cases the elders should consider. These are property and family disputes, including domestic violence cases, labour remuneration cases, land irrigation disputes, and minor offences. Cases should be considered within 15 days.
The situation with the expulsion of the suspect’s family from home can hardly fall under any of those categories.
According to the law on the court of elders, “the court may not make decisions on punishments that are degrading human dignity”. However, there is no information about who determines whether the punishment is degrading or not.
Moreover, section 7 describes regulation of relations between the court of elders and other authorities. For example, district and city courts must provide “procedural assistance regarding legislative execution.” There is no information on the authorities that must regulate the performance of courts of elders. In other words, if the court of elders decides to assume responsibility for legal investigation, which is not within their jurisdiction, no one can dispute it legally.
What does statistics say?
According to open data published on the website of the Supreme Court of Kyrgyzstan for 2020, 795 courts of elders were established across the republic, which include 4,385 citizens.
According to the same data, the number of cases considered by the elders continually increased until 2018. There is no information available for 2019, and no statistics have been maintained with the beginning of the pandemic, although the law requires that reporting must be annual.
Public reaction to the decision of the court of elderly
Among all law enforcement bodies, only the prosecutor’s office of Sokuluk district declared its official position about the expulsion of the family of the man suspected of raping. Prosecutor Orozbek Berdibaev said to journalists that the decision of the court of elderly was made amid public criticism.
“This decision is illegal. If measures taken are not set forth in the law “On courts of elderly”, such punishment is invalid and unenforceable,” Berdibaev said (cited from Azattyk).
The Ministry of Interior Affairs refused to comment on the situation with the decision made by the court of elderly. They referred to their colleagues from the Chui Region Chief Directorate of Internal Affairs. The latter, in turn, provide information about the course of the investigation and dealing with the suspect, and do not comment on the decision made by the court of elderly.
Meanwhile, Albert Kolopov, Deputy Ombudsman in Kyrgyzstan, said to CABAR.asia that residents of Ismail village were obviously dissatisfied with work of the law enforcement bodies. That’s why the court of elderly resolved to expel the family.
“On the other hand, every person must know that they live in a law-governed state, and only official bodies, namely law enforcement bodies, not the court of elderly, may make decisions. If a person is guilty, they should be punished under the Criminal Code,” Kolopov said.
Human rights defender Dinara Oshurakhunova called the situation a legal nihilism. She added that such case may be dangerous and can occur in any other village if no measures are taken.
“What happens if tomorrow, for example, any village decides to expel anyone based on their own assumptions? The state failed to react and others can take such things as normal. If we do not prevent this, such episodes will repeat and harsher punishments can follow. Such courts discredit the police, and no one would even listen to law enforcement,” Oshurakhunova said.
According to her, the authorities must declare their official position. It is also important to focus on maintenance of statistics by courts of elders. According to the human rights defender, courts of elders must report their activities to state bodies, which should be responsible for the supervision.
Cholpon Dzhakupova, director of Adilet Legal Clinic, said it was illegal and unacceptable for the law-governed state to expel the family of the suspect of raping.
“What can we do if the state has become non-legal? What can we do if laws don’t work, or if the laws are inhumane, corrupt and illegitimate?” Dzhakupova said.