Selling children to survive: Afghan fathers forced to make impossible choices
Selling children to survive: Afghan fathers forced to make impossible choicesJust now Share Save Add as preferred on GoogleYogita LimayeSouth Asia and Afghanistan correspondentImogen Anderson/BBCAbdul Rashid Azimi says...
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Key developments are emerging from the global stage. Selling children to survive: Afghan fathers forced to make impossible choicesJust now Share Save Add as preferred on GoogleYogita LimayeSouth Asia and Afghanistan correspondentImogen Anderson/BBCAbdul Rashid Azimi says he is prepared to sell one of his daughters to feed the othersAs dawn breaks, hundreds of men gather at a dusty square in Chaghcharan, the capital of Ghor province in Afghanistan. They line the roadside hoping someone will come along offering any work. It will determine whether their families eat that day.
The likelihood of success, however, is low. Juma Khan, 45, has found just three days of work in the past six weeks that paid between 150 to 200 Afghani ($2. "My children went to bed hungry three nights in a row.
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My wife was crying, so were my children. So I begged a neighbour for some money to buy flour," he says. "I live in fear that my children will die of hunger.
"His story is in no way unique. Warning: This article contains distressing detailsIn Afghanistan today, a staggering three in four people cannot meet their basic needs, according to the UN. Unemployment is rife, healthcare struggling and the aid that once provided the basics for millions has dwindled to a fraction of what it once was.
The country is now facing record levels of hunger, with 4. 7 million - more than a tenth of Afghanistan's population - estimated to be one step away from famine. Ghor is one of the worst-affected provinces.
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The men here are desperate. "I got a call saying my children hadn't eaten for two days," says Rabani, his voice choking up. "I felt like I should kill myself.
But then I thought how will that help my family? So here I am looking for work. "Imogen Anderson/BBCJuma Khan (centre), 45, has found just three days of work in the past six weeksKhwaja Ahmad barely gets out a few words before he starts sobbing.
My older children died, so I need to work to feed my family. But I'm old, so no one wants to give me work," he says. When a local bakery near the square opens up, the owner distributes stale bread among the crowd.
The development has drawn wide international attention, with diplomatic circles watching closely.
