The punishment for the rape and murder of children and women is once again proposed to be tightened.

Арестова Татьяна • 19.02.2026, 14:17 • Society

The President's Administration has developed new amendments to the Criminal Code of the Kyrgyz Republic. The draft law is already available for public discussion.

In the document, it is emphasized that according to the Constitution and international agreements, the right to life is an inalienable right of every person and must be protected by law. Arbitrary deprivation of life is unacceptable.

Currently, there is an increase in serious crimes against women and children in Kyrgyzstan, including rapes and murders, which raises serious concern among society and state structures.

The statistics presented to the President's Administration highlight that protecting children and women from violence is a pressing issue. At the same time, official data does not reflect the full picture of rape cases, and the number of such crimes continues to grow, remaining largely hidden.

Facts of violence published in the media have become commonplace, and society no longer reacts to them, which is alarming. It is time to establish clear boundaries beyond which criminals who commit violence against women and children should be excluded from society and face strict punishment, the authors of the initiative state.

In light of the increase in serious crimes that contribute to the destruction of the lives of children and their families, it is proposed to amend the Criminal Code to provide for punishment in the form of life imprisonment with confiscation of property for the following crimes:

murder related to rape or violent satisfaction of sexual desire (paragraph 8 of part 2 of article 122);
rape committed against a person under the age of fourteen or a person with a disability (part 4 of article 154).

Additionally, the draft law proposes to abolish the statute of limitations for the following types of murder:

of two or more persons;
of a pregnant woman;
of a child or a person in a helpless state;
of individuals engaged in professional activities or performing public duties;
murders committed out of hooligan motives;
committed with particular cruelty;
accompanied by kidnapping or hostage-taking;
associated with robbery, extortion, or terrorism;
committed on grounds of racial, ethnic, or religious hatred;
for mercenary motives or for hire;
with the aim of obtaining organs or tissues from the victim;
to conceal another crime;
committed by a group of persons;
committed by an organized group;
accompanied by rape or violent satisfaction of sexual desire.

It is worth noting that President Sadyr Japarov previously expressed his intention to restore the death penalty for serious crimes against women and children following the tragic murder of 17-year-old Aysulu Mukasheva, who was kidnapped and raped on September 27 in the Issyk-Kul region. This event caused a wide public outcry. However, in mid-October, a group of international human rights organizations condemned the President's proposal, stating that its implementation would violate the Constitution and international obligations of Kyrgyzstan and would not lead to a reduction in violence. Subsequently, the Constitutional Court deemed the return of the death penalty unacceptable.

The photo on the main page is for illustrative purposes.

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