Shock as young Afghan girl sold to 55-year-old man in exchange for goat
Confronting video shows a six-year-old Afghan girl in tears, after her father allegedly sold her to a 55-year-old man for marriage, in exchange for a goat and food.
The footage shows two women trying to comfort little Gharibgol after she was sold to the man.
Other women can be seen chasing her father and attacking him, as police arrived to arrest him.
It is believed girls as young as 16 are commonly sold to men for marriage in line with Afghan law, but underage pairings are not uncommon. However such a large age gap like this one is rare, according to The Observers.
According to the website, the girl's father sold Gharibgol for a goat, a bag of rice, tea, sugar, and a few litres of cooking oil.
The man, reportedly Seyed Abdolkarim, took his bride to Firozkoh, in Ghor province, to stay at a relative’s house.
Alarm bells were raised when the host alleged he was undressing the girl at night.
Abdolkarim was asked if the young girl was his daughter and he replied: "No, she’s my wife. Her father gave her to me".
The host told a friend, who then alerted a local women's rights bureau, which lead to Abdolkarim's arrest.
Tests later carried out reportedly revealed there was no sexual intercourse.
Herat journalist Fawad Ahmady recorded the clip on July 31 and posted it on Facebook where it has been widely shared across Afghanistan social media.
Many users expressed shock at this union and price she was sold for.
"Gharibgol is now living with her mother in a safe house in Firozkoh," Mr Ahmady told The Observers.
"Negineh Khalili, the head of the women’s rights bureau for Ghor province, told me she will do her best to make sure that her father loses his parental rights and that Gharibgol is granted a divorce.
"She and the mullah were only married religiously, which makes things more difficult – a judge cannot divorce them; another imam must do that. And divorce remains very taboo in Afghanistan."
It is believed imams like Abdolkarim are well respected in the community and therefore don’t always face consequences.
The girls' father reportedly admitted he was having trouble making ends meet and selling his daughter would provide a goat and two months’ worth of food, as well as one less mouth to feed.
