7th December 2020
The law in Georgia states that marriage is not allowed under the age of 18 under any circumstance. Families circumvent this by not officially registering a marriage involving a minor. Engagement parties and wedding celebrations are sometimes held, and once a couple lives together, they are viewed by their community as culturally married and are referred to as husband and wife.
Bride kidnapping as a form of forced marriage still remains a problem in Georgia. In the first 9 months of 2020 for example, the Ministry of Interior of Georgia registered 34 cases of bride kidnappings.
The names mentioned in the book have been changed, except for Tamam (Tami) Abulova and Chinara Kojaeva, who decided to openly share their stories.