03 June 2021, 11:57
Stavropol Territory: bride abduction cases prove viability of this tradition
A court in Neftekumsk began hearing the case of two local residents accused of abducting a bride. This is at least the second such case in 10 months considered by Stavropol territorial courts. The custom of bride abduction is widespread in the Stavropol Territory, but most often occurs by the parties' mutual consent, the local Mufti and analysts believe.
The "Caucasian Knot" has reported referring to investigators that on February 4, 2021, a 33-year-old local resident, abducted, with the help of his friend, a 26-year-old Neftekumsk woman in order to marry her. Law enforcers found her on the same day and took her home. According to their data, the woman was not going to marry the abductor.
The custom of bride abduction is quite widespread in the Caucasus, especially in Chechnya, Dagestan and Ingushetia. The guy's and girl's families can agree on abduction in order to save money on wedding ceremonies, but many cases occur without girls' consent.
Vasily Dmukhovsky, an advocate, believes that bride abductors follow their national customs; however, "the legislation should be taken into account, as there may be serious consequences."
In the region, most cases of bride abduction take place on their own free will and with no negative consequences, Mukhammad Rakhimov, the head of the Spiritual Administration of Muslims (SAM) of the Stavropol Territory, said, in his turn. According to his version, most often in the Stavropol Territory, bride abduction is staged by mutual consent.
According to Yuri Efimov, a conflictologist, usually bride abduction causes no conflicts, since in fact it is a tradition staging.
This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on June 2, 2021 at 07:47 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.
Author: Rustam Djalilov Source: CK correspondent
