At least two young mothers in rural Tajikistan have ended their lives by drowning since the start of the year.
In a separate incident, 27-year-old Madina Halimova from the southern part of the country is accused of drowning her four children in the Vakhsh River at the end of June, and then trying to take her own life. Her husband claims she left the house while he was asleep. Officials rescued Halimova from the river, saving her life. However, she is now being charged with murder for the deaths of her children.
The husband and family of Halimova have claimed she had unaddressed mental health problems, while her attorney has mentioned she believed her husband was being unfaithful, according to a Tajik media source.Asia Plus reported.
The case of Halimova has drawn significant attention in Tajikistan, the poorest country in Central Asia, which has a predominantly Muslim population of approximately 11 million, once more bringing focus to issues surrounding women’s rights and their role in society.
These cases have created significant impact,” said Marhabo Olimi, a Tajik specialist in gender matters, to the Muara Digital Team. “The limited understanding of their rights by women and their financial reliance often result in women feeling they have no escape, or not seeing one, and they ultimately take their own lives.
Women also end their children’s lives because they are afraid their children will endure the same suffering they have, Olimi added.
Tajikistan experiences a relatively low suicide rate when compared to other nations, yet approximately once a year over the last ten years, there has been a striking, and frequently comparable, account of a young mother ending her life along with her children that makes the news, according toRadio Ozodi, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty’s Tajik service.
The tragic deaths highlight that, although there have been several improvements in recent times, women across Central Asia still encounter significant levels of domestic abuse, unfair treatment, and sexist attitudes.
The 2024 trial and sentencing of former Kazakh Minister of Economy Kuandyk Bishimbayev for hisbrutal treatmentthe killing of his wife Saltanat Nukenova drew global attention to the matter, leading regional authorities to demand changes.
Still, the extent of the changes that have taken place is uncertain.
The issue of suicide is not unique to Tajikistan. In December 2023,Radio Azattyk, RFE/RL’s Kyrgyz station, covered a surge of suicides involving 10 women in a single village located in Kyrgyzstan’s remote Batken region.
In other parts of the region, reports of domestic violence in Uzbekistan have more than doubled to 48,303 during the first half of this year, according to data from the country’s Committee for Family and Women, as reported by Current Time TV on August 14.RFE/RL affiliate.
Activists argue that the sole alteration in current trends is the favored suicide method, shifting from self-immolation to leaping from bridges.
The issue of suicides among young women in Tajikistan has existed for many years. In 1985, officials in the former Soviet republic of Tajikistanset up a committeeto examine the matter following a sequence of self-inflicted burnings.
In the first half of this year, 102 women and girls in Tajikistan ended their lives, according to Bunafsha Fayziddinzoda, head of the nation’s Committee on Women and Family Affairs,told reportersEarlier this month. This is slightly lower than the figure for the same period last year, but cases of suicide among young people have risen, according to Fayziddinzoda.
Approximately 90 percent of suicides in Tajikistan are committed by women, as reported by the Republican Center for Clinical Psychology cited by theCabar news agencyIn 2021, Nargis Saidova, the director of the Tajik NGO Gender and Development, told the Muara Digital Team in an interview that untreated mental health problems, poverty, domestic abuse, and child marriage are frequently underlying causes.
Women do not have access to trained psychologists in rural regions, Saidova stated. The issue is particularly severe for young mothers since postpartum depression is not well recognized and seldom dealt with, she mentioned.
Approximately 50 percent of women in Tajikistan are said to experience domestic violence, a issue that remains unaddressed and not legally prohibited in the country.Muara Digital Teamhas been reported. Approximately 14 percent of girls under 18 are married, either through informal religious ceremonies or legally through exceptions to the nation’s prohibition on child marriage, which judges are said to approve frequently, as per a 2024 report.reportunder the United Nations Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women.
Disputes between women and their mothers-in-law are often highlighted in Tajik media when talking about suicide cases. Because many Tajik men migrate for work, their wives frequently reside with their husband’s family for extended periods. While relationships with family members can sometimes contribute to suicides, the core problem lies in long-standing gender stereotypes about women’s roles in society, according to Saidova.
The government has carried out a number of successful mental health initiatives, but Saidova emphasized that what is more crucial is the stronger implementation of laws targeting child marriage and domestic abuse. She also highlighted the importance of establishing mental health centers and women’s shelters.
It has become harder to bridge the gaps in recent months following the Trump administration’s closure of the US Agency for International Development and the State Department’s reduction of international aid, Saidova noted. Her organization lost a grant, and another NGO had to shut down due to the funding cuts. However, she remains determined.
“We aren’t able to give up,” she stated.
