This is another issue, in a long line of social issues, that make my stomach churn. Bride stealing, otherwise known as bride kidnapping, is an old tradition in Eastern Europe and Western-Central Asia, where people kidnap a woman in order to be married to a potential suitor.
I just recently read an article in the BBC that was talking about how this issue is becoming increasingly prevalent in Chechnya, a country known for its wars for independence from Russia. According to Russian law, a person caught in the act of kidnapping could face 8 to 10 years in a federal prison, yet it is estimated that one in five Chechen marriages begin with kidnapping. What is truly sickening is that many of these kidnappings are video taped and placed online for individuals to view.
To make matters worse, many of these women are taken to “holy men” who literally try to beat evil genies or spirits out of them. To these specialists, they are performing exorcisms in order to preserve marriages and make the wives faithful to their husbands. They incur physical, psychological, and emotional abuse during this process. What these women are subjected to is a violation of human rights.
If this makes you sick to your stomach, you’re not alone. If you feel as though you would like to support those who are fighting these indignities, then check out Women’s Dignity. This organization was created in 2002 in order to fight and defend the rights of women in some of the roughest areas of Europe.
