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Ala kachuu
Ala kachuu (Kyrgyz: ала качуу) is a form of bride kidnapping practiced in Kyrgyzstan. The term can apply to a variety of actions, ranging from a consensual elopement to a non-consensual kidnapping, and to what extent it actually happens is controversial. Some sources suggest that as of 2005 at least a third of Kyrgyzstan's brides had been taken against their will.
Kyz ala kachuu (Kyrgyz: кыз ала качуу) means "to take a young woman and run away". The typical non-consensual variety involves the young man abducting a woman either by force or by guile, often accompanied by friends or male relatives. They often take her to his family home, where she is kept in a room until the man's female relatives convince her to put on the scarf of a married woman as a sign of acceptance. Sometimes, if the woman resists the persuasion and maintains her wish to return home, her relatives try to convince her to agree to the marriage.
The practice was suppressed during the Soviet period, but, after the collapse of the Soviet Union, ala kachuu began to resurface. There are conflicting reports on whether it continues in the original way or not. Some sources state that the practice was originally a form of elopement, not a bride theft. Sometimes the kidnapping may be just a wedding formality, where the woman comes along willingly. Some people even consider it an honour to be kidnapped because it demonstrates that the woman is worthy of being a wife.
Although bride-kidnapping is illegal in Kyrgyzstan, the government has been accused of not taking proper steps to protect women from this practice.
The history of bride kidnapping in Kyrgyzstan is under dispute. The Russian Empire and later USSR made the ancient practice of the nomads illegal, and so with the fall of the Soviet Union and the subsequent independence of the Central Asian nations, many have revived old customs as a way of asserting cultural identity. Rejecting a kidnapping is often culturally unacceptable for women, and perceived as a rejection of the Kyrgyz cultural identity. The practice is also associated with asserting masculinity. Recent studies challenge the claims that bride kidnapping used to be prevalent. According to Kyrgyz historians, and Fulbright scholar Russell Kleinbach, whereas kidnappings were rare until Soviet times, the bride kidnapping tradition has dramatically increased in the 20th century. The rise in bride kidnappings may be connected with difficulty in paying the required bride price (kalym).
In 2018, 19-year-old Burulai Turdalieva was abducted by a 30-year-old man. Eventually Burulai was found along with her kidnapper and the two were taken to a police station. While at the station, the man stabbed Turdalieva to death. The kidnapper also stabbed himself, but survived. Later, he was found guilty of murder and kidnapping and sentenced to 20 years in prison.
A major issue is the question how often this happens. Mongolia has a victimization survey in Kyrgyzstan (2015) included the crime of kidnapping of young women for marriage. 14% of married women answered that they were kidnapped at the time and that two thirds of these cases were consensual, the woman knew the man and had agreed with it up front. This means that about 5% of current marriages in Kyrgyzstan are cases of 'Ala Kachuu'. Using the same methodology, a 2018 study in Kazakhstan resulted in an estimated 1-1.5% of current marriages in Kazakhstan are the result of 'Ala Kachuu'.
Studies by researcher Russell Kleinbach have found much larger numbers, namely that approximately half of all Kyrgyz marriages include bride kidnapping; of those kidnappings, two thirds are non-consensual.
Ala kachuu
Ala kachuu (Kyrgyz: ала качуу) is a form of bride kidnapping practiced in Kyrgyzstan. The term can apply to a variety of actions, ranging from a consensual elopement to a non-consensual kidnapping, and to what extent it actually happens is controversial. Some sources suggest that as of 2005 at least a third of Kyrgyzstan's brides had been taken against their will.
Kyz ala kachuu (Kyrgyz: кыз ала качуу) means "to take a young woman and run away". The typical non-consensual variety involves the young man abducting a woman either by force or by guile, often accompanied by friends or male relatives. They often take her to his family home, where she is kept in a room until the man's female relatives convince her to put on the scarf of a married woman as a sign of acceptance. Sometimes, if the woman resists the persuasion and maintains her wish to return home, her relatives try to convince her to agree to the marriage.
The practice was suppressed during the Soviet period, but, after the collapse of the Soviet Union, ala kachuu began to resurface. There are conflicting reports on whether it continues in the original way or not. Some sources state that the practice was originally a form of elopement, not a bride theft. Sometimes the kidnapping may be just a wedding formality, where the woman comes along willingly. Some people even consider it an honour to be kidnapped because it demonstrates that the woman is worthy of being a wife.
Although bride-kidnapping is illegal in Kyrgyzstan, the government has been accused of not taking proper steps to protect women from this practice.
The history of bride kidnapping in Kyrgyzstan is under dispute. The Russian Empire and later USSR made the ancient practice of the nomads illegal, and so with the fall of the Soviet Union and the subsequent independence of the Central Asian nations, many have revived old customs as a way of asserting cultural identity. Rejecting a kidnapping is often culturally unacceptable for women, and perceived as a rejection of the Kyrgyz cultural identity. The practice is also associated with asserting masculinity. Recent studies challenge the claims that bride kidnapping used to be prevalent. According to Kyrgyz historians, and Fulbright scholar Russell Kleinbach, whereas kidnappings were rare until Soviet times, the bride kidnapping tradition has dramatically increased in the 20th century. The rise in bride kidnappings may be connected with difficulty in paying the required bride price (kalym).
In 2018, 19-year-old Burulai Turdalieva was abducted by a 30-year-old man. Eventually Burulai was found along with her kidnapper and the two were taken to a police station. While at the station, the man stabbed Turdalieva to death. The kidnapper also stabbed himself, but survived. Later, he was found guilty of murder and kidnapping and sentenced to 20 years in prison.
A major issue is the question how often this happens. Mongolia has a victimization survey in Kyrgyzstan (2015) included the crime of kidnapping of young women for marriage. 14% of married women answered that they were kidnapped at the time and that two thirds of these cases were consensual, the woman knew the man and had agreed with it up front. This means that about 5% of current marriages in Kyrgyzstan are cases of 'Ala Kachuu'. Using the same methodology, a 2018 study in Kazakhstan resulted in an estimated 1-1.5% of current marriages in Kazakhstan are the result of 'Ala Kachuu'.
Studies by researcher Russell Kleinbach have found much larger numbers, namely that approximately half of all Kyrgyz marriages include bride kidnapping; of those kidnappings, two thirds are non-consensual.
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