Kazakhstan’s Interior Ministry will assign female investigators to handle sexual violence cases, Deputy Minister Sanzhar Adilov said, according to Kazinform.
Adilov said the move was intended to limit additional psychological trauma for victims and build greater trust in investigative bodies.
Speaking at a parliamentary roundtable, Adilov said the Interior Ministry had also proposed toughening penalties for stalking by adding a repeat-offense element. Some convicted offenders, he explained, had continued to pursue their victims even after sentencing and serving their punishment. The stalking article was added to the criminal code in July 2025. In less than a year, Adilov said, 83 cases had been referred to court under that provision.
The murder of Saltanat Nukenova sparked widespread public outcry in Kazakhstan. She died after being beaten during an argument in November 2023 by her husband, former Economy Minister Kuandyk Bishimbayev. In April 2024, Kazakhstan’s president, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, signed a law criminalizing domestic violence. The following month, Bishimbayev was sentenced to 24 years in prison.
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