Note: After her marriage ended, Batul Muradi, a young woman who
is mother of two children, was publicly announced an adulteress by her husband,
Hazrat Wahriz. Mr. Wahriz claimed the children were not his and later in
writing put a case forward to the court that the second child is not his. This
allegation, in a country like Afghanistan, not only cost Ms. Muradi her social
standing, work opportunities and even family relations but also defamed her and
could have led to her stoning or imprisonment. Additionally, this allegation
had the potential to cause irreversible damage to the future of the two
children. Faced with this allegation many Afghan women, under family pressure
and in fear of defamation, stay silent and live in shame and fear their whole
lives. Additionally, without a national ID card (which is given under father’s
name), their children are deprived of basic rights – travel, passport,, vote,
etc. Batul, however, knew that Hazrat Wahriz’s allegation is considered a crime
in Islam and in the country’s laws, and fought toreclaim her dignity and prove
her child’s father’s identity for four years – despite the pressures, threats,
humiliation and the allegation of “violence against men” by Attorney General.
This is the story of that struggle, the first struggle by an Afghan woman to
reclaim her dignity through law.
When I first went to the Attorney’s office and opened my case for Qazaf –j to prove that my ex-husband’s claim about my engagement in adultery was false and that he should be punished for de-faming me – I never thought that I would be standing not only against one man, but the whole legal system of Afghanistan.
Now, after four years of my efforts to gain my individual and social rights, I have realized that not only does the law in Afghanistan not have implementing force but that law-makers and implementers themselves are among those who violate law.
Now that I see myself helpless in the face of this chain of corruption, I request the support and support of the public in my attempt to seek justice.
A summary of my case:
Mr. Wahriz and I divorced in 1387 (2008). After our divorce, to escape his parental responsibilities, Mr. Wahriz claimed that our two children were not his. When our elder son was seven, he came back to court and claimed that only the elder son was his and maintained his allegation of adultery.
In 1389 (2010) I submitted my complaint about the allegation of Qazaf by Ghulam Hazrat Wahriz to the special Court for the Elimination of Violence Against Women”.
I quickly realized that despite the widespread existence of this form of violence – baseless allegations of adultery – against women in Afghanistan, my case was the first complaint by a woman in Afghanistan. Despite the clarity of law articles about such allegations and the legal clarity of the law to prevent violence against women, the legal institutions and even women rights groups were indifferent to my case.
This case could be justly solved quickly if the existing legal procedures were respected. In terms of the allegation of adultery, according to Sharia, four witnesses should be called to prove the claim of the claimant (my ex-husband). However, despite the lack of DNA facilities in Afghanistan, the court announced that the only way to resolve the case would be DNA testing and the case was sent to the family court.
At the time, only Bagram hospital had DNA facilities but despite repeated requests this hospital did not permit the facility to be used for a legal case.
In the few years that I was looking for DNA facilities to reclaim my dignity and claim the rights of my children, I was regularly humiliated and disrespected particularly by legal officers.
Due to the existence of numerous cases of gruesome physical violence against women, the court section on violence against women did not think that my complaint qualified for follow up and considered this case a waste of time. They regularly asked me to close my case and be patient against the allegations by my ex-husband.
Additionally, I was repeatedly ridiculed for following up with a case that included an allegation to “shame” me, and court staff were surprised that I did not feel “ashamed” by the allegation and did not stop bringing the case up. My pursuit of the matter through the legal justice system in itself proved to them that I was a shameless woman.
In addition to being continuously harassed and humiliated, I realized that instruments of power are influencing my case and acting against me. Since my ex-husband is a government official, my case never went through normal legal procedures. Repeatedly, powerful officials (including Members of Parliament and President Karzai’s advisers), and even those who claim to support human rights and women’s rights supported my ex-husband, Hazrat Wahriz.
One of the examples is the Attorney General’s labeling of my case as a potential case of “violence against men”. With this reference, he allowed the police and court to arrest and harass me. When the Attorney General labels a woman’s struggle for her rights as “violence against men”, what is to be expected of the lower-ranking legal officials who are less aware of women’s rights?
I spent four years in the pursuit of my rights and despite the support of my family and friends, I was so exhausted by the manipulations of the legal system that I decided to close my case several times. Now the question is, with this legal system in the country, what will happen to women that have no awareness of their rights and are not even literate, who belong to those families that consider going to court a shame? Unfortunately, the majority of Afghan women are from this group, and these women, after standing up to oppressive social norms, face a legal system that has an inherent male bias.
Despite all these pressures, I did not withdraw my complaint and finally, two months ago, the first legal parental DNA test was conducted in Afghanistan.
As the test proved my ex-husband’s allegations wrong, I thought this would be the end of this exhausting journey. But it seems like I will continue to be punished. A case has been opened by the police against me for “attacking the police”. This is now being used as an instrument of pressure against me to withdraw my complaint and let my ex-husband go unpunished for the allegation. I have been told I can only stop the police case against me if I close the Qazaf case.
In the past few years, I always tried to only go through legal channels. I realized with bitterness that this is the longest way to reclaim rights in Afghanistan. Despite that, I will continue to use legal mechanisms for my struggle and announce that in no way am I ready to take my complaint back. If this case is closed, it will be proved once again that the law and legal system in Afghanistan gives in to bullying and illegal external pressures, and that even the highest legal authorities in the country, who swear to protect justice, are willing to sacrifice justice out of fear and for their interests.
I request immediate attention to the Qazaf case, request open/public court sessions to protect myself from bullying and humiliation during the sessions and I request withdrawal of all false allegations towards me.I want an independent advocacy group to monitor my cases.
When I first went to the Attorney’s office and opened my case for Qazaf –j to prove that my ex-husband’s claim about my engagement in adultery was false and that he should be punished for de-faming me – I never thought that I would be standing not only against one man, but the whole legal system of Afghanistan.
Now, after four years of my efforts to gain my individual and social rights, I have realized that not only does the law in Afghanistan not have implementing force but that law-makers and implementers themselves are among those who violate law.
Now that I see myself helpless in the face of this chain of corruption, I request the support and support of the public in my attempt to seek justice.
A summary of my case:
Mr. Wahriz and I divorced in 1387 (2008). After our divorce, to escape his parental responsibilities, Mr. Wahriz claimed that our two children were not his. When our elder son was seven, he came back to court and claimed that only the elder son was his and maintained his allegation of adultery.
In 1389 (2010) I submitted my complaint about the allegation of Qazaf by Ghulam Hazrat Wahriz to the special Court for the Elimination of Violence Against Women”.
I quickly realized that despite the widespread existence of this form of violence – baseless allegations of adultery – against women in Afghanistan, my case was the first complaint by a woman in Afghanistan. Despite the clarity of law articles about such allegations and the legal clarity of the law to prevent violence against women, the legal institutions and even women rights groups were indifferent to my case.
This case could be justly solved quickly if the existing legal procedures were respected. In terms of the allegation of adultery, according to Sharia, four witnesses should be called to prove the claim of the claimant (my ex-husband). However, despite the lack of DNA facilities in Afghanistan, the court announced that the only way to resolve the case would be DNA testing and the case was sent to the family court.
At the time, only Bagram hospital had DNA facilities but despite repeated requests this hospital did not permit the facility to be used for a legal case.
In the few years that I was looking for DNA facilities to reclaim my dignity and claim the rights of my children, I was regularly humiliated and disrespected particularly by legal officers.
Due to the existence of numerous cases of gruesome physical violence against women, the court section on violence against women did not think that my complaint qualified for follow up and considered this case a waste of time. They regularly asked me to close my case and be patient against the allegations by my ex-husband.
Additionally, I was repeatedly ridiculed for following up with a case that included an allegation to “shame” me, and court staff were surprised that I did not feel “ashamed” by the allegation and did not stop bringing the case up. My pursuit of the matter through the legal justice system in itself proved to them that I was a shameless woman.
In addition to being continuously harassed and humiliated, I realized that instruments of power are influencing my case and acting against me. Since my ex-husband is a government official, my case never went through normal legal procedures. Repeatedly, powerful officials (including Members of Parliament and President Karzai’s advisers), and even those who claim to support human rights and women’s rights supported my ex-husband, Hazrat Wahriz.
One of the examples is the Attorney General’s labeling of my case as a potential case of “violence against men”. With this reference, he allowed the police and court to arrest and harass me. When the Attorney General labels a woman’s struggle for her rights as “violence against men”, what is to be expected of the lower-ranking legal officials who are less aware of women’s rights?
I spent four years in the pursuit of my rights and despite the support of my family and friends, I was so exhausted by the manipulations of the legal system that I decided to close my case several times. Now the question is, with this legal system in the country, what will happen to women that have no awareness of their rights and are not even literate, who belong to those families that consider going to court a shame? Unfortunately, the majority of Afghan women are from this group, and these women, after standing up to oppressive social norms, face a legal system that has an inherent male bias.
Despite all these pressures, I did not withdraw my complaint and finally, two months ago, the first legal parental DNA test was conducted in Afghanistan.
As the test proved my ex-husband’s allegations wrong, I thought this would be the end of this exhausting journey. But it seems like I will continue to be punished. A case has been opened by the police against me for “attacking the police”. This is now being used as an instrument of pressure against me to withdraw my complaint and let my ex-husband go unpunished for the allegation. I have been told I can only stop the police case against me if I close the Qazaf case.
In the past few years, I always tried to only go through legal channels. I realized with bitterness that this is the longest way to reclaim rights in Afghanistan. Despite that, I will continue to use legal mechanisms for my struggle and announce that in no way am I ready to take my complaint back. If this case is closed, it will be proved once again that the law and legal system in Afghanistan gives in to bullying and illegal external pressures, and that even the highest legal authorities in the country, who swear to protect justice, are willing to sacrifice justice out of fear and for their interests.
I request immediate attention to the Qazaf case, request open/public court sessions to protect myself from bullying and humiliation during the sessions and I request withdrawal of all false allegations towards me.I want an independent advocacy group to monitor my cases.
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