Taliban's grim ultimatum to man, 45, who married six-year-old girl

Daily Mirror

15 hours ago

A 45-year-old man who married a six-year-old girl shocked the Taliban with his abhorrent wedding ceremony, with the militant extremists handing down a grim order
The world has been left sickened by reports that a 45-year-old man has married a six-year-old girl, in an act so abhorrent, even the Taliban have condemned it.
It's understood that the wedding took place in the Marjah district of Afghanistan, at a time of great concern over the rise of child marriages in the country.
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Shockingly, there is no longer a codified minimum marriage age in Afghanistan, with Taliban forces rolling back the age limit of 16 previously established after the 2001 Western invasion. However, this recent child marriage has proven abhorrent even to those who have played an active role in stripping away the rights of Afghan women and girls.
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As reported by US-based Afghan outlet Amu.tv, the Taliban has taken some action against this man, who reportedly already has two wives. They've issued a grim order - the man has to wait until the child turns nine before he can take her home.
Under Taliban rule, a girl's 'marriageable age' is decided by Islamic law interpretation, with the Hanafi jurisprudence determining puberty to be the "threshold for readiness". The girl's own choice does not come into it.
Devastatingly, this is an issue which is all too prevalent in a country where women have virtually been removed from public life, while struggling families are often forced to sell their own daughters to keep food on the table.
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In a recent interview with The Afghan Times, an activist who lives in a rural village shared: "There are many families in our village who have given away their daughters for money. No one helps them. People are desperate."
As detailed in the publication's report, this practice, which has surged since the Taliban retook power in 2021, is known as 'walwar' and involves girls being exchanged for cash based on factors such as looks, health and education level.
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In this particular instance, the groom paid the child's family money in exchange for her. He and the girl's father were later arrested, but not charged.
According to statistics given by the organisation Girls Not Brides, 28.7 per cent of Afghan girls marry before the age of 18, while 9.6 per cent marry before they turn 15. As per a United Nations (UN) report published last year, systematic oppression has sparked an alarming 25 per cent rise in child and forced marriages.
This comes at a time when women in Afghanistan are forbidden from speaking in public or even showing their faces outside of the family home. Forced to wear full-body coverings, these women are banned from places where they may once have met with friends and opened up about any difficulties, including gyms, female-only public baths, and even beauty salons.
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As for the women of the future, girls have been forbidden from pursuing secondary education, cutting off their chances of economic independence, destroying their potential, and putting them at risk of early forced marriages.
In a statement released in March this year, as a new school year began in Afghanistan, UNICEF said: "As a new school year begins in Afghanistan, it marks three years since the start of the ban on girls' secondary education. This decision continues to harm the future of millions of Afghan girls. If this ban persists until 2030, over four million girls will have been deprived of their right to education beyond primary school.
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'The consequences for these girls - and for Afghanistan - are catastrophic. The ban negatively impacts the health system, the economy, and the future of the nation. With fewer girls receiving an education, girls face a higher risk of child marriage, with negative repercussions on their well-being and health. In addition, the country will experience a shortage of qualified female health workers. This will endanger lives.
"With fewer female doctors and midwives, girls and women will not receive the medical treatment and support they need. We are estimating an additional 1,600 maternal deaths and over 3,500 infant deaths. These are not just numbers; they represent lives lost and families shattered.
'For over three years, the rights of girls in Afghanistan have been violated. All girls must be allowed to return to school now. If these capable, bright young girls continue to be denied an education, then the repercussions will last for generations. Afghanistan cannot leave half of its population behind."