Ingush native detained in Armenia after fleeing domestic violence

In Armenia, the police detained Fatima Zurabova, a native of Ingushetia, who fled from domestic violence. A relative who came to pick up the girl threatened her with prison for escaping.

The “Caucasian Knot” has reported that it is mostly girls under 30 who try to escape from domestic violence in Dagestan, Ingushetia, and Chechnya. At the same time, the problem of “honour killings” remains relevant, point out human rights defenders from the “Ad Rem” team.

According to Svetlana Anokhina, the head of the “Marem” movement in support of women in danger, Fatima Zurabova was taken to a police station in Yerevan, explaining that as a criminal case instituted against her.

The police seized a mobile phone of Fatima Zurabova and locked her up with her uncle and his friend who came to pick her up and who threatened the girl to return home. The detainee explained to the police that she came to Armenia as a victim of domestic violence and asked for help, but they answered that they could not help her, the “Kavkaz.Realii”* reports.

“The girl’s rights were grossly violated: the police locked her up together with her uncle, although she asked not to do that, took away her mobile phone, did not let her talk to an advocate, who was not allowed to visit her. According to the girl’s uncle, he has very influential friends in the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) of Armenia. We are afraid that the girl’s uncle will take advantage of his connections. The uncle also threatens to ‘remember that his ring has disappeared,’ that is, to come up with a fictitious charge of theft so that Fatima will be detained,” explained Svetlana Anokhina.

In September, Fatima Zurabova addressed human rights defenders, describing beatings in her family for “lack of religiosity,” “inappropriate” behaviour and disagreement with the opinions of other family members, or disobedience. On November 8, the girl managed to leave home and, with the support of the “Marem” group, flew to Armenia.

“Three years ago, after her brother severely beat her with a belt, the girl was deprived of her mobile phone for a year. Then they took the mobile phone away from Fatima after each beating so that she could not make photos of the bruises she got. Recently, the mother told Fatima that she should be married off. The girl’s attempts to argue brough no results,” the human rights defender from the “Marem” group is quoted as saying.

According to Fatima, her uncle and his friend who came to Armenia threatened her with prison for escaping and said “that they would deal with the people who helped her.” The girl is also sure that she will be killed if she returns home.

*Included by the Russian Ministry of Justice (MoJ) into the register of foreign agents.