Parents claim that their two daughters—aged 13 and 17--were forced to marry men from a strongman’s family in the northern province of Baghlan. The parents claim they have attempted to get justice many times but have not succeeded.
The parents, who are in Kabul seeking justice, said a member of the strongman’s family forcibly married their 17-year-old daughter this year. But after one week, the strongman’s family claimed that the girl was “not a virgin” and the girl’s family should give their younger daughter in exchange for her older sister. The parents said they were threatened by the strongman’s family to agree to give their 13-year-old to another man from the strongman’s family.
The elder daughter said she was forced to admit that she was not a virgin.
“I was threatened to accept the accusation (of not being a virgin) otherwise they would kill me,” said Soidad, the 17-year-old girl. “The boy was crazy and when I raised my voice, I was threatened to stay silent.”
The parents said they lodged many complaints to the court and security organizations in Baghlan, but their voice was not heard.
“The strongman’s family asked me: ‘Why you are staying silent? Give us your next daughter as an exchange and get your (17-year-old) daughter back. I told them that I cannot do that,” said Suraya, the mother of the two girls.
But then the strongman took her 13-year-old daughter at midnight and forced her to marry his son, according to the parents.
“They forcibly took my daughter. My daughter was crying. They took her at gunpoint and married her by force. The imam was not ready to do the nikah for my daughter, but they forced him to do so,” Suraya explained.
The parents also claimed that the strongman is supported by Azim Mohseni, an MP from Baghlan.
“These criminals said they have an elder and ‘if you raise your voice each one of you will be imprisoned for twenty to thirty years,’” said Ghulam Qadir, father of the girls.
Mohseni, meanwhile, rejected the allegations.
“I am not aware of the issue. Both sides are like family to me and I do not have armed men,” Mohseni said.