A Thousand Girls Like Me review – a brave woman refuses to bow down. This story has been published in the guardian news agency. This case was successfully followed-up by JFAO defense lawyers and raised the voice of Khatera to the international media outlet in order to bring justice to her. Her story starts as in below; An extraordinary film follows Khatera, an Afghan woman trying to bring her rapist father to justice. Holding back tears, a woman relives the trauma of sexual assault, live on national television. A disbelieving man grills her about why she didn’t report the attack sooner. No, it’s not Washington. The extraordinary woman at the center of this harrowing documentary is 7,000 miles away in Kabul, Afghanistan. She is Khatera, a pregnant 23-year-old who has been repeatedly raped and beaten by her father; he is the father of her daughter and unborn baby. And actually, Khatera did report him, to 13 religious leaders. One said he’d have her father stoned to death if the Taliban returned to power. Eleven told her to pray. The 13th advised her to tell her story on television. The film follows Khatera’s fight against Afghanistan’s corrupt legal system to bring her father to justice. After receiving death threats from her uncles, she is forced into hiding with her mother and daughter. When their new landlord discovers her identity, he throws them out. The judge prosecuting her father accuses her of lying – the film’s most wrenching scene. Her own brothers blame her for bringing shame on the family. If her father is acquitted, Khatera herself may be arrested for having children illegitimately. Everything is against her; all the power is with the men. And yet she won’t give up. The details are excruciating. Looking at her daughter, she says flatly: “Sometimes I think about killing us both.” But there is tremendous delicacy and gentleness in director Sahra Mani’s filming, mostly inside the family’s home. Where did Khatera find her voice, her grit? Why does she refuse to stay silent like the thousands of girls also – as she puts it – in her situation? “Because my daughter will grow up and become a woman. I don’t want her to go through what I went through.” The film is upsetting, but strangely, not bleak. This article has been published in the guardian new agency. JFAO has received many international awards for bringing justice to Khatera who fight against her rapist father. https://www.theguardian.com/film/2018/oct/05/a-thousand-girls-like-me-review-a-brave-woman-refuses-to-bow-down
“I don’t want to be with him anymore; I’m tired of him.” Said Freshta an innocent and a young woman. It was the 8th of April in 2017 when she came to FGC Laghman to open her case and to get divorce. Freshta was 12 years old when her brother forced her to marry with a man who was older than her. 14 years ago they married with each other but by force. After they married, these couples moved to Iran for some years. During living there Freshta realized that her husband is not the man that she thought about. Day by day he was changing; even one day she realized that her husband was drug-addicted. He had illegal relationships with other women; he tortured his wife. Meanwhile, her husband tried to force her wife to prostitution. She was not allowed to have contacts with her family’s members. Coming back to Afghanistan, after a while Freshata decided to refer to FGC in Laghman province to open her case in order to divorce. Family Guidance Center of Laghman province immediately assigned a defense lawyer for her case on the 5th of June. The final judgment decision made for their separation. She said that day was a great day for her and she was free. Besides, it was a good achievement for FGC that she thanked so much this center and UN-Women. Freshta was happy and requested from us to extend the programs to remote areas for other Afghan women.
On February 13th- 2017 Pashmina, daughter of Mohammad Yosouf visited Laghman Family Guidance Center. Originally she is the resident of Nangarhar Province. Pashmina was a hardworking girl in her family. She sacrificed herself for her family to do all of house-works. When she grew up, her father decided to engage her with his nephew, named Rohullah. Pashmina said that Rohullah was so older than her; even he had the double of her age’s years. Pashmina didn’t agree to marry with him. The day was closing for their marriage, but Pashmina opposed and disagreed against his father’s decision. After she rejected to marry with Rohullah, her father started to beat and torture his daughter. Pashmina was in a very bad situation. She was beaten with stick, pipe and other objects. Her father never respected her; and treated her as a stranger. This situation continued for two years as stated by her. Gradually, the situation was getting worse but Pashmina already made her decision. She decided to escape and run away from her father’s house. Then, she run-away with her neighbor whose name is Faqirullah. They escaped to Laghman province. Pashmina and Faqirullah married in front of witnesses and a Mullah. The situation was changed; they lived with love and they were happy, but Pashmina’s father came to Laghman province; informed the police department and opened a case to arrest his daughter and her husband. Hence, after the investigation the police department arrested both of them. Then their case referred to Family Guidance Center in Laghman province. FGC presented legal documents to prosecution department of Laghman. So these documents were reliable and acceptable for them and finally they became free. This case closed on March 3rd -2017.
Shah Gul, daughter of Mr. Tordi Nazar, is a 22-years old woman who lives in Baharak district of Takhar province. She was forcibly engaged to a man when she was only 13 years old. Her engagement lasted 9 years, during which time she lived with her parents. When the man became engaged to Shah Gul, he already had two other wives and Shah Gul was his third one. During the engagement period, the man threatened Shah Gul in a number of ways, even kidnapping her several times. Although she was returned after each kidnapping incident, the situation became intolerable for Shah Gul, and she begged Baharak Primary court for a divorce from that infernal person. But that rebellious man was not ready to give her divorce, and he did not even attend the court to participate in the judiciary meeting and respond to the prosecutor’s questions. Then, the court decided to hire him a lawyer (subjected lawyer). After a judiciary meeting, the court decided that Shah Gul must be divorced, but the man’s lawyer protested and did not agree to the court’s decision so the case was referred to Takhar Appeals Court. Shah Gul had not known anyone in Takhar and there was no one there to help her, so the Appeals Court asked JFAO to hire a defense lawyer for Shah Gul and defend her case in the court. JFAO’s defense lawyer proceeded to defend her case in the Appeals Court and fortunately, the court granted the divorce after conducting an investigation and holding a judiciary meeting, in which JFAO participated. Ms. Shah Gul was therefore granted the divorce and she is no longer in the constraint of that accursed person.
Parwin, daughter of Sheer Mohammad, was 16 years old when her brothers forced her to marry. It was 15th of July, 2017 when she vie sited FGC in Laghman province but she was not in a good situation and was not normal. Parwin said that her brothers tortured her; threaten her, warned her, and even didn’t feed her at home in order to force her for marriage. Finally, as she was under pressure, she married with a drug addicted man at the age of 16 and her brothers got some money from her husband. It seemed that she had lots of things to say from her sorrowful past. After the marriage her husband was not able to feed her and she was in a very bad situation because her husband was a drug addicted as she said. Parwin said, “I couldn’t tolerate him anymore so I sent lots of messages to my brothers but they didn’t pay attention.” Once she left her house with her five children. She went to her brother’s house but he didn’t accept her. Parwin was accommodated by other relatives for a while. Thus, on July 2017 she visited Laghman FGC to end this situation. Family Guidance Center assigned a defense lawyer for her case. Her defense lawyer prepared an official letter and followed up her case through the judicial system. When her case was open, she requested her dowry from her father-in-law as it was issued in the letter on the day of her marriage. The court warned her father-in-law to prepare and pay her dowry. (a piece of agricultural land and hundred thousand Afghanis). Finally, the case closed successfully through mediation on 10th of October 2017; she got her dowry and she was happy. Parwin was grateful for the great work of JFAO and was hopeful for the future endeavors of JFAO.