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Chechen woman to remain in Georgia after foiled abduction attempt by relatives

Laura Avtotrkhanova. Photo: social media.
Laura Avtotrkhanova. Photo: social media.

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The family of a Chechen woman who was placed under Georgian state protection after fleeing domestic abuse at home in Chechnya has attempted and failed to abduct her.

Laura Avtotrkhanova’s family reportedly attempted to abduct her from Georgia on Sunday evening.

The North Caucasus SOS Crisis Group (NC SOS), a civil rights group representing Avtorkhanova, told OC Media that the woman was found by her relatives, and was taken to a police station where they attempted to pressure her into signing a statement saying she was leaving the country voluntarily. Media coverage and public attention, human rights defenders said, played a key role in preventing her forced return to Russia.

NC SOS spokesperson Alexandra Miroshnikova told OC Media that Avtorkhanova, 24, fled her family home in February. The escape was prompted by regular physical abuse and intense control by her relatives.

‘She sent us photos of bruises from beatings and told us that her mother followed her everywhere — even to lectures and exams. She only barely managed to finish university’, Miroshnikova said.

Despite being under strict surveillance at home, Avtorkhanova managed to find remote work and began earning her own income. However, according to Miroshnikova, she was unable to achieve full financial independence and her relatives demanded she hand over all her earnings.

After fleeing to Georgia, she was granted a protective order and placed in a state-run shelter for survivors of domestic violence.

Six months later, five of her relatives arrived in Georgia. According to a court decision, Georgian police were supposed to notify Avtorkhanova if any of her family members crossed the border — but no warning was issued. Soon after, the relatives confronted her at a café. She managed to send her location to a shelter worker. When the staff member arrived, he was physically assaulted.

‘While she was at the police station, they continued to pressure her. Her parents called, her mother was crying on the phone, her sister was sending messages saying their grandmother was dying and that the entire family was unwell and upset’, Miroshnikova said.

‘They were also furious about the media coverage — they demanded that everything be deleted immediately’.

According to NC SOS, the relatives initially planned to take Avtorkhanova back to Russia.

‘As far as we understand from their actions, the idea was simply to take her and leave the country’, Miroshnikova said.

‘But then there was media attention. Articles were being published, and people were calling the border post, asking, “How can you allow this to happen?” Apparently, this changed their plans. So they decided to bring her to the police station, hoping she would say she was leaving voluntarily and that everything was fine — and perhaps even lift the protective order’.

According to the Georgian Interior Ministry, the police did not hand her over to her relatives. After reviewing the situation, it was concluded that no criminal case would be opened, since Avtorkhanova had stated that she had not been kidnapped and that her relatives ‘just wanted to talk’.

Nonetheless, according to NC SOS, the police ‘acted responsibly’ — Avtorkhanova was returned to a state shelter, where she remains under protection.

She is currently in a safe location.

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