ECHR OBLIGED RUSSIA TO PAY € 450 THOUSAND TO THE VICTIMS OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE

Last Tuesday, the website of the ECHR published the court's decision on the claims of four women who were subjected to domestic violence in Russia.  Each of them was awarded monetary compensation, the aggregate amount of which exceeded € 450 thousand.

The maximum payment was given to Margarita Gracheva, who lost her hands due to the jealousy of her husband.

Each of the victims was subjected to violence by their partners, but did not find support from the state authorities.

According to the judges of the ECHR, the authorities did not offer any protection to women, which only exacerbated their feelings of anxiety and powerlessness, which put them in a state of emotional and psychological distress.

Analyzing the above mentioned cases, the European Court of Human Rights came to the conclusion that in Russia there are practically no protective mechanisms in such situations, as well as legislation on domestic violence and the legal term ‘domestic violence’ itself.

The judges also drew attention to the absence of the concept of a ‘protection order’ in the Russian law, which is issued in order to protect the victim from attacks of a specific person.

As noted in the decision of the ECHR, Russia is one of the few member states where there is no such legal practice.  In addition, domestic law does not distinguish between domestic violence and violence perpetrated by strangers.

The result of the consideration of the case was the decision to recover over € 450 thousand from Russia in favor of the applicants, indicating the need to change the legislation in the field of domestic violence to prevent such incidents and protect victims of violence.