Aiman Umarova

Ms. Aiman Umarova was born in a small town of the Zhambyl province in south Kazakhstan.  Currently, Umarova specializes in particularly serious and grave crimes, related to the sexual abuse of women and children, as well as working with convicted individuals imprisoned for various political and human rights motives.  Umarova has two children.  One of her hobbies is journalism and she writes a “Zona.kz” column in a public-political newspaper “DAT,” covering the themes of imprisoned individuals, torture and violence in prisons, and human rights.  She is also in the process of writing a book about sexual harassment tentatively called “The Bottle of Harassment.”  Umarova is a member and defense attorney of the Almaty Regional Bar Association, an expert on the Council on Human Rights under the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan, and the co-founder of the “Human Rights Lawyers” Public Foundation.  Initially, Umarova’s desire to protect people and to stand up against societal inequalities led her to a professional career in the law enforcement services, where she continued her career as an investigator.  At the same time she was working, she was also continuing her studies to obtain an additional Bachelor in Law degree at the International Academy of Law and Market.  Umarova started her full legal career after her work with the law enforcement services, where she worked as a case investigator.  One of her main specializations at that time was in the sphere of serious crimes and particularly grave criminal cases, where the main priority was focused on the protection of the rights of women and children.  She constantly stands up against injustice in society and notes that her favorite quote is from the African-American abolitionist and women’s rights activist Sojourner Truth “Ain’t I a Woman?” Umarova’s slogan is: “Don’t do it like everyone else and it will not turn out like everyone else’s.”