Azerbaijan

Located in the Caucasus region of Eurasia, Azerbaijan is bordered by the Caspian Sea, Russia, Georgia, and Armenia. It is one of the oldest oil-producing countries in the world. The majority of its 8.2 million residents are Turkic and Shi'ite Muslim. Azerbaijan was the first secular republic in the Muslim world, and the first Muslim nation to grant women suffrage. Separating from the Soviet Union in 1991, after 80 years of Russian and Soviet rule, Azerbaijan established a constitution with separation of powers and a presidential system.

As have many former Soviet republics, the newly independent country has suffered from economic and political crisis. From 1988 to 1994, Azerbaijan and Armenia were at war over territory. As a result, 300,000 women and 185,000 men were displaced from Armenia and became refugees in Azerbaijan. War and political instability created poverty rates as high as 80 percent. Even though the government has established an election process, human rights organizations do not consider the country free and democratic because of the authoritarian rule and human rights abuses of its president. About 95 percent of its residents are Muslim, and many cultural and family traditions are influenced by Islam. While there are no legal restrictions on women's rights, and they have equal access to education, patriarchal culture has limited women's public roles and economic opportunities.

[Page 117]Traditional culture has discriminated against women. In rural areas, women can face public ridicule if they appear in public unaccompanied, or even drive. The tradition of “family voting” allows men to cast votes on behalf of their wives or other female members of their households. Chauvinistic stereotypes still dominate the culture. The shame of divorce could lead a woman to commit suicide or even excuse a man from murdering his wife rather than permitting a divorce. Sexism also prevents women from holding high-level positions in government and corporations, and there are no laws against sexual harassment. Women earn an average of 70 percent of what men make for similar jobs. While there was a woman appointed Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, women comprise less than 10 percent of parliament. Most women work outside the home, but have no protection for equal wages and little advancement.

Refugee women experience an especially harsh existence. Those who live in camps face hunger, disease, and lack of maternal and child healthcare. Twenty percent of refugee children cannot attend school because of lack of funds.

The United Nations targeted Azerbaijan's domestic violence as the number one problem for Azeri women, reporting that abuse was a common experience for women. Because it is culturally taboo to talk about, few women are even aware of their rights not to be physically abused. The Women's Rights Monitoring Group estimated that 35 percent of Azeri women have been beaten by a male relative. Women would face public ridicule if they reported such abuse, and often the police frowned upon it as well. Spousal rape is considered a private family matter. Women in rural communities often do not even have police to turn to, and have no recourse when they are sexually violated. Bridal kidnappings still occur in rural areas, often in conjunction with rape.

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