[KavkazUzel] Incidents of shooting at weddings occur according to tradition; this practice is not associated with a lack of preventive work by security forces, Caucasus expert Ruslan Kutaev commented on the apology of the Krasnodar man detained for the shooting. Security forces can reduce the number of such incidents by strengthening preventive work, retired Colonel of the Ministry of Internal Affairs Amir Kolov objected.As the "Caucasian Knot" wrote, on February 25, the police released a video with an apology from a 22-year-old resident of Krasnodar, who was detained for shooting at a wedding. The young man explained his actions as an attempt to follow Caucasian customs.
The ritual of shooting at a Caucasian wedding was considered a “talisman against the evil eye,” but the ancient tradition has long turned into an element of fun and courage, Caucasian experts interviewed by the Caucasian Knot stated in 2018. “Many Caucasians have already forgotten the true meaning of shooting and shoot because it’s fun,” said, in particular, Akhmet Yarlykapov.
The persistence of the opinion that Caucasian weddings involve shooting is associated with the perception of the traditional nature of this phenomenon, says President of the Assembly of Peoples of the Caucasus Ruslan Kutaev.
“Shooting at weddings is a long-standing tradition in the Caucasus. This is how people announce the wedding and share their joy. Despite possible troubles with the law of the Russian Federation, the tradition does not cease to exist. Because of this, violations of the law are sometimes recorded,” he told a Kavkazsky correspondent node".
Although shooting is regarded as an offense, the tradition of shooting at a wedding has been preserved in the North Caucasus. In January, a seven-year-old girl was wounded in a shooting at a wedding in Karachay-Cherkessia. A resident of Rostov-on-Don, detained in connection with the incident, admitted guilt, police reported.
According to Kutaev, this is not a shortcoming of the security forces and a lack of preventive work. “This does not depend on prevention or other work. By and large, this is a challenge to the law and a kind of protest,” he noted.
Retired Interior Ministry Colonel Amir Kolov expressed a different opinion. “Of course, this requires appropriate prevention from the Department of Internal Affairs and educational work in families is even more important. In everything we must look for the meaning, the expediency of the action. If there is none, then such shooting is an ostentatious demonstration of imaginary superiority over someone, which is prohibited by customs, and religion, which established such an act as “riya” - one of the types of the sin of hypocrisy,” he told the “Caucasian Knot” correspondent.
He also does not agree that shooting at a wedding is a Caucasian tradition. “Shooting at a wedding is not a Caucasian custom. According to the legends of our ancestors, Caucasians previously shot only when a son was born, in order to convey the good news to relatives and villagers, but not at a wedding, since shooting at a wedding does not carry any semantic meaning This is a bad example, adopted from representatives of criminal structures […] in the 90s,” he emphasized.
Kolov believes that the young man’s action will most likely be regarded as hooliganism. “It can be regarded as hooliganism, a lot depends on the complaints received against him at the police department. And on whether there was a permit for this weapon,” he said.
The young man may face administrative liability, says a lawyer at the Memorial Human Rights Protection Center, who asked that his name not be published. “This may result in administrative liability. For example, previously, citizens have already been repeatedly brought to administrative liability for shooting at weddings from empty weapons under Article 20.13 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation - shooting weapons in designated areas in violation of established rules or in undesignated areas. The Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation also provides for liability for petty hooliganism,” the lawyer told the “Caucasian Knot” correspondent.
According to him, after the detainee repents, his sentence may be reduced. “According to Article 4.2 of the Administrative Code, a circumstance mitigating administrative liability is the repentance of the person who committed the administrative offense,” the lawyer noted.
Let us remember that shooting at Caucasian weddings is not a historical custom, although it is quite common, Dagestani scientist Magomedkhan Magomedkhanov pointed out to the Caucasian Knot in 2013. In Dagestan, shooting at weddings has become less frequent, this practice may completely disappear from the cities of the republic, noted the editors-in-chief of local media interviewed by the Caucasian Knot in 2018.