How the trial of former Kazakh minister, who beat his wife to death, has rocked the country

Kazakhstan is witnessing its ‘trial of the century’. Its Supreme Court is hearing a case wherein a former government minister has been accused of beating his wife to death.

The trial has created a massive uproar in Kazakhstan, where about 400 women die from domestic abuse every year, according to the United Nations. This figure is believed to be higher as many cases go unreported.

Let’s take a closer look.

The horrific murder of Saltanat Nukenova

On 9 November last year, 31-year-old Saltanat Nukenova was killed by her husband, Kuandyk Bishimbayev, a former economy minister.

A CCTV footage showed him dragging his wife by her hair, and then punching and kicking her in a restaurant owned by one of his relatives in the Kazakh capital Astana, as per a Daily Mail report.

As Nukenova fell to the ground, the 44-year-old Bishimbayev dragged her by her hair again and took her to a room, where there were no cameras.

“Bishimbayev broke down the door, pulled her out, and carried on beating her,” the prosecutor said during the trial last month, as per Daily Mail.

“After dragging her out of the toilet, Bishimbayev grabbed Nukenova by the throat and strangled her, causing her to lose consciousness,” he reportedly alleged.

While Nukenova was lying in the suite, covered in her blood, Bishimbayev dialled a fortune-teller, who told him his wife would be okay, reported Al Jazeera.

An ambulance arrived 12 hours later and Nukenova was declared dead at the scene.

She died from brain trauma, a coroner’s report revealed. One of her nasal bones was broken and she had several bruises on her face, head, arms and hands, reported Reuters.

The shocking CCTV footage was shown at the ongoing domestic abuse trial, which is being streamed online in a country of over 19 million population.

The murder trial

In a hearing on 3 April, Bishimbayev pleaded not guilty to a charge of murder with exceptional cruelty, Daily Mirror reported. Instead, he claimed that Nukenova died from “self-sustained” injuries.

His lawyers claim Bishimbayev’s wife suffered a brain injury after falling and hitting her head on a lavatory bowl.
Initially, they also dismissed medical proof that Nukenova died from repeated blows to the head, as per an Associated Press (AP) report.

Bishimbayev’s legal team portrayed his wife as prone to jealousy and violence. However, no footage shown from the restaurant’s security cameras in the court showed her striking her husband, the report added.

They presented her as a woman who drank heavily and provoked her husband, as per Al Jazeera.

However, Nukenova’s friends and family tell a different tale.

They said Bishimbayev abused her physically and mentally, adding that she tried leaving him several times. They say they often saw her with bruises and rope marks and the former minister had banned her from talking to them, Al Jazeera reported. “He was jealous and monitored the contents of her phone,” Nukenova’s loved ones said.

According to Daily Mail, the attack came after she told Bishimbayev that she wanted to leave him.

Kazakhstan’s previous domestic abuse law

In 2017, Kazakhstan decriminalised beatings and other acts that cause “minor” physical damage. These offences were made less severe to attract punishments of only fines or short jail terms.

Critics say the law discouraged women from lower-income families from reporting domestic violence.

A similar law was introduced in Russia , causing uproar among women’s rights advocates.

Why the trial has grabbed eyeballs

Even before Nukenova’s brutal murder, domestic abuse, especially violence against women, was a key issue in the patriarchal country.

As per government data, one in six Kazakh women has faced violence by a male partner.

Bishimbayev’s trial is being considered a litmus test of Kazakhstan president Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, who vowed to create a “fairer, more equitable society”, including bettering women’s rights, noted Reuters.

After Nukenova’s death, her relatives started an online petition calling for reforms, including strengthening protection for those vulnerable to domestic violence. It received more than 150,000 signatures.

AP reported citing Kazakh media that as Bishimbayev’s trial started, over 5,000 people wrote to senators, demanding stricter laws on abuse.

Amid the public outrage, Tokayev on 15 April signed a new law, making striking women and children a criminal offence, which could result in imprisonment. Now, police are also required to probe all domestic abuse cases, even if the victim did not report, Al Jazeera reported.

However, Aitbek Amangeldy, Nukenova’s elder brother, has pointed out that the new law falls short as “we still have no legal norms around stalking and harassment" of adults, according to AP report.

Not just Kazakhstan, the trial has also garnered interest in Russia and some other countries.

“In Kazakhstan, there has been a storm, and now the whole country and even the whole world is involved,” Dinara Smailova, founder of the women’s rights NGO NeMolchi, which means Don’t Be Silent, told Al Jazeera.
“We’ve been working with high-profile cases for many years, and we see how people are afraid and ashamed to talk about domestic violence. [But] from the very beginning, the relatives of the victim told what happened with an open face.”

Speaking to AP, Amangeldy said his sister’s death has changed the attitudes about domestic violence in the socially conservative country. “It changes people’s minds when they see directly what it looks like when a person is tortured,” he said.

According to women’s rights advocate Aigerim Kussainkyzy, Bishimbayev’s trial has led to “a collective awakening” among politicians and citizens alike. “Some may even label it the trial of the century. … Male politicians, in particular, have started to consider the implications of domestic violence for their own daughters,” Kussainkyzy was quoted as saying by AP.

Despite the public outrage, there are concerns that Bishimbayev, even if convicted, could escape proper punishment. He faces up to 20 years in prison for the torture and murder of his wife with extreme violence, reported Reuters.

The fear is not unfounded though as Bishimbayev, who was the economy minister in 2016, was sentenced to 10 years in prison on bribery charges in 2018. However, he walked out of jail in less than three years after being pardoned by then-President Nursultan Nazarbayev.

As the trial proceeds, all eyes will be on Kazakhstan’s judiciary.

With inputs from agencies