Ruling party head pledges further legal moves to address early marriage problem

Kobakhidze said the issue “needed to be resolved”. Photo: Georgian Dream press office 

Agenda.ge, 19 Oct 2023 - 14:11, Tbilisi,Georgia

Irakli Kobakhidze, the head of the ruling Georgian Dream party, on Thursday pledged further legal amendments to respond to the early marriage problem across the country following the murder of a 14-year-old kidnapped and forced into a marriage earlier this month in eastern Georgia. 

In his press comments, Kobakhidze said the issue “needed to be resolved”, and pointed to its “complex nature” considering the “sensitivity” of the topic. 

The Telavi District Court in eastern Georgia on Monday sentenced the uncle and cousin of the man accused of the murder of Aitaj Shakhmarova to pretrial detention for failure to report the crime.

The ruling comes after the 27-year-old Asim Aslanov, who in the summer kidnapped and later killed the minor during her attempt to escape, was arrested and charged with murder and illegal possession of firearms. 

The mother and uncle of Shakhmarova have also been arrested for forcing the minor into marriage and failing to report the crime.