Brave recovery of mutilated Bangladesh woman

By Anbarasan Ethirajan BBC News, Dhaka

Several months after the attack, Ms Akther can write legibly, appears confident and chats without any hesitation to a stream of visitors

When doctors in the Bangladeshi capital, Dhaka, told Hawa Akther Jui that she would be able to write again with her mutilated right hand, her joy knew no bounds.

Ms Akther, 21, had lost all hopes of writing again after her fingers were cut off, allegedly by her husband because she started attending a college without his permission.

Doctors at the Centre for the Rehabilitation of the Paralysed (CRP) in Dhaka carried out a series of surgical operations on Ms Akther's hand, which involved setting up a splint between her thumb and wrist so that she can hold a pencil or a pen.

"The fact that I can write again has given me lots of hope and confidence. I have slowly started practising. I will continue my studies and achieve my aim of becoming a lawyer," Ms Akther said while sitting in her parents' one-bedroom house in the town of Narsingdi.

Ms Akther has just finished sitting her exams. She is not yet able to write independently. She dictates answers and her sister writes them. The college has given her extra 20 minutes for this.

Brutality
She said that her husband, Rafiqul Islam, attacked her soon after paying a surprise visit from his job in the United Arab Emirates in December.

Activists say that women from all classes are at risk of domestic violence

When she met him at a relative's house, she said, he blindfolded her, taped her mouth and chopped off her fingers with a meat cleaver. They could not be attached again as they were recovered too late from a dustbin.

Ms Akther said that her husband, who is not well educated, did not approve of her enrolling in a local college for higher studies.

Mr Islam is in custody.

Although domestic violence in Bangladesh is rife, the brutality of this particular incident shocked the nation and there was an outpouring of sympathy for Ms Akther.

When I met her soon after the attack, she appeared shocked and traumatised and broke down repeatedly while explaining what happened. At that time, she said, she had begun to practise writing with her left hand.

Months later, she appears confident and chats without any hesitation to a stream of visitors to her house.

Her wounds on the right hand have healed but there are no fingers beyond her knuckles and only a half thumb is remaining.

'Example to everyone'
The mutilation has definitely not dented her resolve to continue with her studies. She proves that by writing a few sentences using a pencil.

Ms Akther was lovingly nursed by her family immediately after the attack

"All those horrible things happened to me because I wanted to study. So, I will pursue my education. Doctors say I cannot write [in] my exam for three hours at a stretch. So, I need a writer for the exam. But I will continue practising with my right hand," she said.

Her determination to fulfil this objective has even tempted her to break rules at home.

"I had to register and pay exam fees three days after my fingers were cut off. So, my parents told me not to sit for them this year," she said.

"But I didn't want to miss it. So I took money from my mother's handbag without her knowledge and paid my fee," she said with a giggle.

Ms Akther also said she did not want to go back to her husband's family again and will seek a divorce "once everything is settled".

Her family is gradually coming to grips with the situation. They said despite promises of help from various quarters, they did not receive much financial assistance for Ms Akther's medical expenses.

"We want her to get educated so that she can be self-reliant. We will do whatever we can do to fulfil her dreams. I think my daughter will be an example to everyone," said Musammat Parveen, Ms Akther's mother.

"We need to make sure that no girl goes through this kind of suffering."

Women's rights activists in Bangladesh point out that the brutal attack on Ms Akther is part of a growing trend of violence against educated women.

In June last year, a university lecturer lost her eyesight in an attack allegedly carried out by her husband. She said it happened because he was jealous of her academic achievements.

He denied the allegations, but was unable to face trial because he died in prison before the case went to court.

The 2011 Human Rights Report by the Odhikar organisation points out that violence against women is on the rise in the country.

It said that more than 300 women may have been killed in dowry-related violence last year. In addition to this, dozens of women were also killed in rape and acid attacks.

"Domestic violence happens in all sections of the society and it is increasing. But very few women come forward to report these abuses because of the social stigma," Odhikar spokeswoman Taskin Fahmina said.

"Ms Akther's attempts to talk about this openly are a positive sign. The awareness is increasing, but the law should be implemented properly to punish those found guilty. That will send out a clear message to others."

The stoicism of women such as Ms Akther proves the old argument that education plays a vital role in creating more awareness of the scourge of domestic violence.

"I think women should get an education like men. Once they are educated, they don't have to rely on others," she asserts.

Child marriages blight Bangladesh

By Angus Crawford BBC News

Oli, bottom right, is trying to educate parents about the perils of child marriage

Bangladesh has one of the highest rates of child marriage in the world, with 20% of girls becoming wives before their 15th birthday, even though 18 is the minimum age allowed by law. Why?

"It is the new kind of slavery," says Mirna Ming Ming Evora, who's the country director for the NGO Plan International.

"Here girls are a burden, they don't earn income in this culture."

Which means they are totally dependent on their families to support and protect them and pay their dowries. That's the money a father must pay to a future husband to secure a marriage.

"Dowry for a very poor family is work of a lifetime, they'd rather start early because the dowry is not too high. The girl is more saleable."

She's met many of these child brides.

"They say to me I lost my childhood."

These are the stories of three children living with the consequences of child marriage.

'Please pray for me'

In a quiet voice Poppy says: "It's a very hateful illness, I can't stand the smell".

She sits on a bed in in a hospital in Dhaka. There are cockroaches on the walls and next door, women who have just had operations sleep two to a bed.

"I cry sometimes what else can I do" she says.

She's suffering from fistula, serious internal injuries which have left her incontinent. It's caused by giving birth too young and not getting proper medical attention.

Nurses don't know exactly how old Poppy is. They think she's 12 but she won't say.

She was forced to marry a man who was more than 10 years older than her. She got pregnant, but lost her child.

"It died in my tummy and they had to cut it out".

She walked into the clinic alone, her husband abandoned her because of the illness.

There are tens of thousands of girls and women like Poppy.

I ask her if she'll ever marry again, and she shakes her head.

"I say to other girls my age: 'You should not get married. if you do, this is the condition you will be in.'"

As we leave, Poppy says: "Please pray for me, pray that I get better."

'We're saving lives'

"I do this work because I wanted to put a smile back on the face of the parents," says Oli Ahmed. He grins as he says it.

Oli is a campaigner who goes around the slum where he lives in Dhaka standing up to his elders and telling them why they shouldn't marry off their daughters so young.

He's the same age as Poppy, just 12.

Oli (yellow shirt) is a young campaigner on the issue

"I used to know a girl who was like an older sister to me, but she was forced to get married and never came back."

It made him very angry and sad.

"Even though parents marry their children off early, they still feel a sense of guilt and they don't know what happens to their children."

Oli approached Plan International which was already working in his slum in Dhaka.

He told them he wanted to set up a group led by children to try and stop the practice. He goes door to door with a group of friends persuading, scolding and hectoring parents.

At one house, he demands to know why there's no birth certificate for a man's daughter.

There and then, they register her birth and warn the father that they'll be watching him.

"I think we do a better job than the adults… the adults think we're so young and yet we know so much… we're more enthusiastic than the older people."

One NGO worker says that since they started work, the number of child marriages in that area has dropped by as much as 50%.

"I feel very good that a girl's life has been saved because of the work that I've done," says Oli.

'I'm getting her married because I love her'

Jemi, 13, likes playing hopscotch or kut kut as it's known here.

When we meet her she's due to get married in six days. Her mother has chosen the day and picked the groom.

She lives in a village which is six hours drive from the capital Dhaka. We track her down with the help of an activist.

When we ask if she's looking forward to her wedding she looks down at the floor and says: "Not very much, no."

 

She's small and very shy. She has stickers of butterflies on the back of her hands.

Her mother tells us she has to get her married now because she won't have to pay a dowry. If she waits, it will cost her money they don't have.

"I have no fear, I am giving her away to my sister's son. Girls never say they want to get married."

She is reminded that it's against the law. When officials from the local government and an NGO arrive to stop the wedding she argues with them.

She tells them the family can't afford to send her to school any more. If she remains unmarried, people will say bad things about her.

"I'm getting her married because I love her."

But the officials threaten to prosecute her if she goes ahead, and she starts to cry. Then, in front of her neighbours, she announces that the wedding is cancelled, adding: "I didn't realise it was wrong."

As for Jemi, she smiles and confides "I think it is really good what has happened".