A member of the Mazhilis has submitted a parliamentary inquiry to the Ministry of Internal Affairs. According to her, the faction of the "Aul" party proposes to declare a women's amnesty for the sake of children.
“Currently, there are 2,336 women imprisoned in the country. Half of them are mothers, including 250 who are mothers of many children. More than 1,500 children are left without their mothers, and about a hundred infants have been placed in orphanages,” explained Karakat Abden.
The faction believes that it is necessary to reduce sentences or completely release from prison:
- women convicted of non-violent crimes;
- pregnant women and women with small children;
- mothers of many children;
- women who have been convicted for the first time;
- women over 60 years old.
This measure will strengthen family values and allow women facing life challenges to get back on the right path. Abden is confident that the amnesty will also benefit Kazakhstani society.
She mentioned that in Kyrgyzstan, women's amnesty has been declared three times since 1996, and in Uzbekistan, it was declared once in 2013. In 2023, Russian President Vladimir Putin supported the idea of amnesty for women, and similar measures have been applied several times in some states in America.
The amnesty will not apply to women convicted of serious and especially serious crimes, concluded the deputy.
The President of Kazakhstan, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, declared an amnesty in November 2022. It was applied to participants of the January events. According to Tokayev's decision, participants of the Kantar who committed serious crimes have their sentences reduced by three-quarters, and for especially serious crimes, by half.