Office of the Human Rights Commissioner in the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic

Boris Zumakulov was born on February 15, 1940, in Tyrnyauz, Kabardino-Balkarian ASSR, USSR (modern Russia). He graduated from Kabardino-Balkarian State University, the Academy of Social Sciences under the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (now the Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration), and Pyatigorsk State Technological University. Boris Zumakulov worked for many years in Komsomol and party organizations. He was secretary, first secretary of the Kabardino-Balkarian Regional Committee of the All-Union Leninist Young Communist League (Komsomol), first deputy chairman of the Central Council of the All-Union Pioneer Organization (Central Committee of the Komsomol), head of department, secretary, second secretary, first secretary of the Kabardino-Balkarian Regional Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, Minister of Labor and Social Development of the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic, Chairman of the Election Commission of the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic, and from July 2007 to the present, he has been the Human Rights Commissioner in the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic. In 1985-1986, he was an advisor in the Republic of Afghanistan. He is a veteran of combat operations.
Boris Zumakulov was elected deputy of the Supreme Soviet of the Kabardino-Balkarian Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic for six terms, delegate to three congresses of the All-Union Leninist Young Communist League (VLKSM) and two congresses of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU), and was a member of the Central Committee of the VLKSM and the Control and Audit Commission of the CPSU.
In the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic, Boris Zumakulov is known as a statesman and public figure, an experienced human rights activist.
Boris Zumakulov's activities as Human Rights Commissioner in the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic are multifaceted. The social projects he developed to protect the rights and interests of orphans, disabled children, the elderly, military personnel, and people in places of deprivation of liberty have gained wide recognition among the public of the republic. His high professional qualities and principled approach to human rights work have earned him the trust and respect of the republic's residents.
He was a member of the Russian Federation State Council Commission on Science and is a member of the European Ombudsman Institute.
He takes an active part in legal education of citizens and fostering respect for the law.
Boris Zumakulov is a Doctor of Historical Sciences, professor, and author of 12 monographs and 14 books in the series "The Formation of Civil Society and Human Rights in the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic." He is an Honored Scientist of the Kabardino-Balkarian and Karachay-Cherkessian Republics.
Boris Zumakulov has been awarded six orders of the USSR and the Russian Federation, as well as other awards, including those of the Republic of Afghanistan.
For his outstanding contribution to the preservation of peace, national harmony, unity, and integrity of the republic,
B. Zumakulov was awarded the Order "For Merit to the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic."
B. Zumakulov was awarded the Honorary Badge of the Central Election Commission, the Honorary Badge of the Human Rights Commissioner in the Russian Federation, and in 2025, he was awarded the All-Russian public prize of the Assembly of Peoples of Russia, "Pride of the Nation." He is also an Honorary Citizen of the urban district of Nalchik.