Kazakhstan has taken a historic step to end one of its most disturbing practices, banning forced marriages and bride kidnappings under new legislation that carries prison terms of up to 10 years.
The law, which came into force this week, is being hailed as a turning point in the Central Asian nation where such customs, long defended as tradition, have devastated countless women's lives.
Closing Legal Loopholes and Raising Penalties
For decades, loopholes in Kazakh law allowed abductors to escape justice simply by releasing their victims. That door is now firmly shut.
Under the new criminal code, even kidnappers who let women go will face prosecution. The Ministry of Internal Affairs called the reform a crucial fix to an alarming gap that emboldened offenders and left survivors with little recourse.
Police confirmed that forcing someone into marriage will now bring a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison, while bride kidnapping has been formally recognised as a standalone crime.
Officials said the measures are 'aimed at preventing forced marriages and protecting vulnerable categories of citizens, especially women and adolescents'.
The legislation goes beyond bride kidnapping. It also introduces penalties for cybercrime and financial fraud, part of a wider effort to modernise Kazakhstan's criminal law and strengthen protections for its citizens.
Women's Rights Under the Spotlight
The crackdown on forced marriages follows years of rising public anger over violence against women. The issue exploded in 2023 after the murder of a woman by her husband, a former government minister, shocked the nation and forced President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev to take a stronger stance.
'Some people hide behind so-called traditions and try to impose the practice of wife stealing. This blatant obscurantism cannot be justified,' Tokayev said last year.
The practice is not unique to Kazakhstan. In neighbouring Kyrgyzstan, bride kidnappings remain widespread, often ignored by law enforcement and silenced by stigma.
But in Kazakhstan, activism and legal reform have begun to shift public opinion, giving survivors new hope.
One such survivor is Gulmira K., a nurse from Almaty who was kidnapped at 19 while walking home from university.
'They threw me into a car, covered me with a blanket, and within hours I was in a stranger's house, forced into marriage. That day changed my life forever,' she recalled. Testimonies like hers underline the urgency of the new law.
A Turning Point for Kazakhstan
Rights advocates are calling the legislation a milestone in Central Asia's fight for gender equality. In June 2024, Kazakhstan became the first CIS nation to adopt a comprehensive law on women's and children's safety, tightening protections against domestic violence.
The new reforms build on that progress, making it clear that harmful practices disguised as 'tradition' no longer belong in modern society.
Kazakhstan's reforms highlight a growing recognition that the cost of inaction is too high, both for victims and for the nation's social fabric.
Almost every young woman, activists say, lives with the fear of becoming a target. With this law, the government is signalling that it stands ready to protect them, not the so-called traditions that once excused their suffering.
