Parents selling children in Afghanistan to feed families

In a sprawling settlement of mud brick huts in western Afghanistan housing people displaced by drought and war a woman is fighting to save her daughterAziz Guls husband sold their 10yearold into marriage without telling his wife taking a downpayment so he could feed his family of five children Otherwise he told her they would all starve He had to sacrifice one to save the restMany of Afghanistans growing number of destitute people are making such desperate decisions as their nation spirals into a vortex of povertyAfghanistans aiddependent economy was already teetering when the Taliban seized power in midAugust amid a chaotic withdrawal of US and NATO troops The international community froze Afghanistans assets abroad and halted funding unwilling to work with a Taliban government given its reputation for brutality during its previous rule 20 years agoThe consequences have been devastating for a country battered by war drought and the coronavirus pandemic State employees havent been paid in months Malnutrition stalks the most vulnerable and aid groups say more than half the population faces acute food shortagesldquoDay by day the situation is deteriorating in this country and especially children are sufferingrdquo said Asuntha Charles national director of the World Vision aid organization in Afghanistan which runs a health clinic for displaced people near the western city of Herat ldquoToday I have been heartbroken to see that the families are willing to sell their children to feed other family membersrdquoArranging marriages for very young girls is common in the region The grooms family pays money to seal the deal and the child usually stays with her parents until she is at least around 15 Yet with many unable to afford even basic food some say theyd allow prospective grooms to take very young girls or are even trying to sell their sonsGul unusually in this deeply patriarchal maledominated society is resisting Married off herself at 15 she says she would kill herself if her daughter Qandi Gul is taken awayWhen her husband told her he had sold Qandi ldquomy heart stopped beating I wished I could have died at that time but maybe God didnt want me to dierdquo Gul said with Qandi by her side peering shyly from beneath her skyblue headscarf ldquoEach time I remember that nightI die and come back to liferdquoHer husband told her he sold one to save the others saying they all would have died otherwiseDying was much better than what you have donerdquo she said she told himGul rallied her brother and village elders and with their help secured a ldquodivorcerdquo for Qandi on condition she repays the 100000 afghanis about 1000 her husband received Its money she doesnt haveHer husband fled possibly fearing Gul might denounce him to authorities The Taliban government recently banned forced marriagesGul says she isnt sure how long she can fend off the family of the prospective groom a man of around 21ldquoI am just so desperate If I cant provide money to pay these people and cant keep my daughter by my side I have said that I will kill myselfrdquo she said ldquoBut then I think about the other children What will happen to them Who will feed themrdquo Her eldest is 12 her youngest her sixth just two monthsIn another part of the camp fatheroffour Hamid Abdullah was also selling his young daughters into arranged marriages desperate for money to treat his chronically ill wife pregnant with their fifth childHe cant repay money he borrowed to fund his wifes treatments he said So three years ago he received a downpayment for his eldest daughter Hoshran now 7 in an arranged marriage to a now 18yearoldThe family who bought Hoshran are waiting until she is older before settling the full amount and taking her But Abdullah needs money now so he is trying to arrange a marriage for his second daughter 6yearold Nazia for about 2000030000 afghanis 200300ldquoWe dont have food to eatrdquo and he cant pay his wifes doctor he saidHis wife Bibi Jan said they had no other option but it was a difficult decision ldquoWhen we made the decision it was like someone had taken a body part from merdquo In neighboring Badghis province another displaced family is considering selling their son 8yearold SalahuddinHis mother Guldasta said that after days with nothing to eat she told her husband to take Salahuddin to the bazaar and sell him to bring food for the othersldquoI dont want to sell my son but I have tordquo the 35yearold said ldquoNo mother can do this to her child but when you have no other choice you have to make a decision against your willrdquo Salahuddin blinked and looked on silently his lip quivering slightlyHis father Shakir blind in one eye and with kidney problems said the children had been crying for days from hunger Twice he decided to take Salahuddin to the bazaar and twice he faltered ldquoBut now I think I have no other choicerdquoBuying boys is believed to be less common than girls and when it does take place it appears to be cases families without sons buying infants In her despair Guldasta thought perhaps such a family might want an 8yearoldThe desperation of millions is clear as more and more people face hunger with some 32 million children under 5 years old facing acute malnutrition according to the UNCharles World Visions national director for Afghanistan said humanitarian aid funds are desperately neededldquoIm happy to see the pledges are maderdquo she said But the pledges ldquoshouldnt stay as promises they have to be seen as reality on the groundrdquoThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever