Astakhov approved early marriages

The Commissioner for Children's Rights in Russia, Pavel Astakhov, approved early marriages. According to him, the regions themselves have the right to set the minimum age for marriage.

“There is an article in the Family Code that in exceptional cases the lower limit is set by the regional authorities. In Chechnya 17 years, in Bashkortostan 14 years, in the Moscow region 16 years. There is where there is no lower limit. In the Caucasus, emancipation and puberty take place earlier, let's not be hypocrites. There are places where women are already shriveled at the age of 27, and by our standards they are under 50. In general, the Constitution prohibits interfering in the personal affairs of citizens,” said Pavel Astakhov.

The Ombudsman is going to meet with the head of Chechnya, Ramzan Kadyrov. “We will calmly meet and discuss these issues. I know how Ramzan Akhmatovich relates to early marriages. He is not for them to be,” he said.

RSN

• The reason for the discussion of early marriages was the wedding of a 17-year-old Chechen woman, Louise (Kheda) Goylabieva, and the head of the Nozhai-Yurt District Department of Internal Affairs, Nazhid Guchigov (who, according to various sources, is 46 or 57 years old). Novaya Gazeta journalist Elena Milashina wrote that the girl's family was against marriage. Relatives of Goylabieva subsequently assured that the girl was marrying of her own free will. At the same time, the family did not comment on the fact that she was marrying an already married man.