A senior Russian MP who opposed a bill criminalizing domestic violence has been accused of sacrificing women's safety for marriage statistics. State Duma Committee on Family, Women and Children Chair Nina Ostanina argued that the law proposed by the New People Party would deter men from marriage and increase divorce rates.
Ostanina said, 'In Russia, 8 out of 10 marriages already end in divorce. If they all end in divorce, what is the point of adopting such a law? If this law passes, will young people still want to get married?' She also claimed that every physical contact at home could be considered an assault due to women's thoughtless complaints.
The bill's author Kseniya Goryaçeva hit back hard at Ostanina. Goryaçeva said, 'The most disturbing thing is to hear a woman ready to sacrifice women's safety for the sake of preserving marriage statistics. So are a thousand women killed by their husbands every year a smaller problem than a thousand hypothetical marriages that never took place?'
Ostanina's remarks resonated widely on social media. Blogger Farida Şirinova, who has 659,000 followers, declared, 'We women will not get married until a domestic violence law is passed.' Şirinova said such a law would only scare men who beat women, while a respectable man would not fear it.
Blogger Mariya Golovinskaya, who has 2.8 million followers, reacted similarly. Golovinskaya said, 'What do you mean, this law scares men? Which men? This is just a warning sign for men who beat women, because a normal, decent man is not afraid of court or the law.'
After the backlash, Ostanina filed a defamation lawsuit against Goryaçeva, arguing that her words were interpreted arbitrarily. Later this week, she proposed reinstating criminal liability for first-time assaults against family members.
In 2017, Russia decriminalized first-time domestic violence offenses causing 'minor harm.' Since then, attempts to pass laws protecting victims have failed.
According to a 2024 survey by independent pollster Russian Field, about 90% of respondents support criminalizing domestic violence. Experts warn that domestic violence cases may rise with the return of men from the front after the war in Ukraine. Meanwhile, Russian authorities have been emphasizing 'traditional values' since the war, encouraging early marriage and larger families.
