A Sister and Brother Battle to Escape Domestic Abuse: ‘Everyone was against us’
Afghan women covered in traditional Burqua’s make their way back to their
village during a rainy day in the outskirts of Charikar some 60km north of
Kabul November 1, 2001. Afghanistan is an extremely poor, landlocked
country, highly dependent on farming and livestock raising. Economic
considerations have played second fiddle to political and military upheavals
during two decades of war, including the nearly 10-year Soviet military
occupation. During that conflict one third of the population fled the
country, with Pakistan and Iran sheltering a combined peak of more than 6
million refugees. NO RIGHTS CLEARANCES OR PERMISSIONS ARE REQUIRED FOR THIS IMAGE REUTERS/Yannis Behrakis
YB/CLH/ – RTROW57
Violence and abuse within a household are not unusual in many countries, including Afghanistan and Iran.
Far less common is a brother willing to defy local authorities and relatives to speak out on behalf of his abused sister.
Anchor Marco Werman talks with 24-year-old Ali Shahidy in Kabul.
Shahidy describes how his decision to take a public stand against his sister’s abuser in Iran led him to reevaluate the position of women in society.