Child Motherhood: How Can I Be a Mother When I Am Still a Child?

Child Motherhood: How Can I Be a Mother When I Am Still a Child?

This question lies at the heart of the deeply troubling rise in the phenomena of child marriage and child motherhood in Afghanistan. It has become one of the gravest and most unanswered tragedies for millions of Afghanistan girls—girls whose only wish is not to become victims and to have their basic rights fulfilled.

Since the return of the Taliban to power nearly four years ago, the rate of forced and early marriages among underage girls has surged alarmingly. This growing crisis not only jeopardizes the futures of these girls but also poses a significant threat to the psychological, physical, and social well-being of future generations.

In Taliban-ruled Afghanistan, where a systematic gender apartheid regime governs, young girls, many not even past the threshold of adolescence, are coerced into unequal and forced marriages, often with men significantly older than themselves. Devoid of any physical or psychological preparedness, they are rapidly thrust into motherhood, becoming child mothers.

These child mothers are not only deprived of education, personal development, and even the simple joys of childhood play, but are also forced to endure devastating consequences, including early childbirth, extreme poverty, domestic violence, and social isolation. In a society where protective structures for women and children have effectively collapsed, this can only be described as a “black death”, a silent but systematic erasure of innocence and potential.

Despite the growing number of victims and the urgent need for action, the international community and global human rights institutions have yet to take a unified, decisive, and comprehensive stand to halt this fragile human crisis. Instead, fragmented and project-based approaches have inadvertently contributed to the continuation, and in many cases, the escalation—of this humanitarian catastrophe.

The women of Afghanistan, especially the millions of girls at risk of child motherhood—now more than ever need genuine, unconditional solidarity from the global community. Their message is loud and clear:

“Do not abandon us. Do not support the Taliban.”

#Right_Justice_Freedom
#JusticeFor AfghanistanGirls
#EndChildMarriage

Purple Saturdays Movement
28 May 2025