A group of young boys on their way to the double wedding of two girls kidnapped by two brothers in Issyk-Kul Oblast, Kyrgyzstan in October 2009. A car is almost always used by the kidnappers who are always accompanied by a group of boys. The practice of bride kidnapping, ala kachuu, was outlawed during the Soviet era and remains illegal under the Kyrgyz criminal code although kidnappers are rarely prosecuted.
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A gift of a sheep which forms part of bride price, or kalym, in Issyk-Kul Oblast, Kyrgyzstan, October 2009. Sheep, cattle or a horse, along with money, clothes, vodka and sweets are given to a bride’s family by the family of the groom in thanks for raising and educating her. After marriage a bride is considered to belong to her husband’s family. Similar gifts are given in cases of ala kachuu bride kidnapping, when the groom’s family visit the bride’s to ask forgiveness for their son’s act, a ceremony known as achu-basar.
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A visitor gives a headscarf to Aizat, a newly kidnapped bride in Issyk-Kul Oblast. Abducted just three days ago by a stranger, she must sit behind a curtain while guests travel to see her and celebrate with the groom's family who will have slaughtered an animal for a feast which can last up to a month. As a daughter-in-law she will be expected to wear a headscarf in the company of her new family.
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Guests give thanks for a wedding feast at a house where a girl was kidnapped three days previously in Issyk-Kul Oblast. After a wedding the family of the groom opens its doors to friends and neighbors to visit and see the new daughter-in-law. An animal is slaughtered and celebrating can last up to a month.
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Bekzat and Azat, two brothers marrying their kidnapped brides, Ainura and Aigul, in Issyk-Kul Oblast. Although Aigul had been dating Bekzat, Ainura barely knew Azat. Usually a kidnap is marked only by a Muslim ceremony in the home, however this family is also having a wedding party at a local restaurant where they have invited an official to register the marriage. Kidnapped marriages are rarely officially registered which leaves the bride without rights to property or children.
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Aizat and Murat three days after the kidnap and forced betrothal of Aizat in Issk-Kul Oblast. She resisted marriage to Murat, a stranger, for as long as possible but was persuaded to go through with it by Murat's grandmother who, at 82, commands much respect according to Kyrgyz lore. During a kidnap, elders are often summoned in order to influence the bride to stay.
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A portrait of Ainura wearing a marriage scarf behind the curtain, where she was held during her kidnap and is expected to stay for the first few weeks of marriage. Many women are kidnapped by men who may have seen them but have never spoken to them as modern-day Kyrgyzstan lacks the infrastructure to encourage social interaction between the sexes. To avoid the scandal of rejection for the brothers or the questioned purity of the girls, the families decided it was best for Ainura and Aigul to accept the proposals, negotiating a kalym, or bride price, to pacify the girls' parents.
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A portrait of Aigul and Bekzat three days after her kidnap.
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Sophia and Artyak who were married after he kidnapped her. She had already evaded kidnap a year ago and was engaged to be married to someone else when Artyk took her to be his wife. They were friends and he knew she was engaged but he decided to kidnap her anyway, knowing that once he had taken her home to his elderly grandmother, there would be little she could do.
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A portrait of a young woman from a relatively impoverished family who escaped kidnap and enforced marriage when her aunt rescued her. She refused to testify against her kidnapper because of the potential scandal it would create; having spent the night in a kidnapper’s house, her virginity would be questioned and her family’s reputation left in ruins. Kidnapped brides and their families rarely prosecute because corruption is rife in the justice system and the police are commonly paid off by the kidnapper and his family.
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Zoya, whose daughter Ainura was kidnapped the previous night from this room by four men. Although devastated at the loss of her daughter, Zoya, a widower, subsequently gave in to pressure from neighbors and relatives to accept the kidnap as a Kyrgyz tradition. Often the decision to leave a daughter with her kidnapper will be an economic one. After marriage a bride is considered to belong to her husband’s family, who will pay for her education and look after all her needs.
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Sophia in a kitchen with her new mother-in-law. Sophia was kidnapped once before but was forced to stay after the second attempt. As the newest daughter-in-law she takes on the lowest position in the family and must do all the domestic chores.
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Bermet who was kidnapped by a boy whose advances she had rejected. Although she attempted escape more than once, the women in her husband's family broke her resolve and she was forced to marry Ermet. He quickly became violent and after two months she escaped. Her chances of remarrying are strong as she was never pregnant by Ermet.
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Erlan and Zela who were married after he kidnapped her. They had been dating for a year previous to the kidnap and are now happily married. With the price of weddings remaining expensive, a kidnapped wedding is sometimes considered to be a cheaper option for the boy's family — who traditionally pay for the wedding.
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Bekbosun and Bubakan on their 60th wedding anniversary surrounded by their family. Bubakan was kidnapped by Bekbosun on horseback on his 20th birthday as part of the Kyrgyz tradition of bride stealing. Since the Kyrgyz declaration of independence in 1991 incidents of ala kachuu have surged. Ala Kachuu has its roots in nomadic Kyrgyz traditions and today is seen as part of a national identity that was denied by Soviet rule.
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