9-årig barnbrud ansöker om skillsmässa

May 19, 2006
Pakistan: Muslim Child Bride, Aged 9, Seeks Divorce

Yesterday, a nine year old girl who had been forced into a marriage appeared in a family court in Dera Ghazi Khan, in Punjab Province, Pakistan. She filed a petition demanding that her husband and his father be tried under Islamic Law.

The girl, Nusrat, had ben married off as part of a compensation package, known as vani. The family of domestic patriarch Allah Diwaya had been angered by the behaviour of Nusrat's brother, Abdul Shafoor. Her brother's crime was to have had an affair with a female member of Allah Diwaya's family.

Allah Diwaya called a panchayat or "Muslim village council", to settle the issue of the "crime" of Nusrat's brother. The panchayat commanded Nusrut's father to give her away to a son of Allah Diwaya, called Shaukat Hussain, in vani marriage.

Shaukat Hussain then proceeded to sexually abuse her for a month, Nusrat's petition statement claimed. She states that she was forced to undergo a marriage ceremony with Shaukat Hussain, and claims that he later produced marriage documents. These claimed she had been 18 at the time of the wedding. Her "husband" had obtained these documents as the result of a bribe. The imam who conducted their matrimonial rites was named as Maulvi Manzoor Hussain.

In Nusrat's petition, she said that she would rather die than return to the family of Allah Diwaya and her husband. She claimed that her husband's relatives did not treat her well, but her father managed to negotiate with the family, and brought his daughter back home.

The child is asking for her husband, Shaukat Hussain, and Allah Diwaya to be tried under Islamic Law.

Vani was made illegal in late 2004, becoming law in early 2005. In North-West Frontier Province, vani is called swara. The marriage is illegal under Pakistan law on account of vani and also because the child is underage legally for marriage.

Nusrat's brother is also suing Shaukat Hussain, Allah Diwaya, and the imam, Maulvi Manzoor Hussain, for fraud. The parties concerned have been given a summons to return to the court on May 29.

Källa: www.westernresistance.com