In the dim illumination of a tiny room tucked away in the suburbs of Karachi, Pakistan, a dreadful picture of despair unfolds. A 15-year-old Afghan girl called Arzo fights a grim battle for survival, having drunk battery acid, a disturbing trend among Afghan girls driven to extremes by the Taliban's repressive regime.
Arzo's story begins as a carefree, ambitious teen with dreams of becoming a doctor. But her dreams were shattered in August 2021 when the Taliban retook control of Afghanistan, resulting in a ban on female secondary education. Upset at losing her chance at education, Arzo's previously bright disposition quickly turned somber.
The horrific act that brought her to the brink of death was incomprehensible to her family. Her sister recalls, 'She came into the room and I saw her eyes were abnormal...she said she'd drunk acid. I put my fingers in her mouth and she vomited up blood.' This is a shocking reality for many teenage girls in Afghanistan, according to health professionals and human rights groups.
A health professional witnessing this surge in mental health crises among girls stated anonymously that he had seen a 50% increase in cases of girls considering suicide over the past two years. Of these cases, about 10% have tragically ended their lives. He attributes this alarming trend predominantly to the education ban and other harsh restrictions imposed on girls.
Arzo's family's desperate measures to save her led them to sneak her into Pakistan. After undergoing three unsuccessful surgeries in Karachi to repair her ravaged esophagus and stomach, the emaciated girl relies on a feeding tube for nourishment.
However, even as she fights for life, her family is beset with fear due to Pakistan's recent decision to expel illegal Afghan immigrants. They fear being forced to return to Afghanistan might signify a death sentence for Arzo. In the words of her brother, 'I'm so worried for her future, her treatment, and if she will be able to survive.'
This narrative provides a gut-wrenching glimpse into the lives displaced and prospects destroyed due to the Taliban's archaic regime. It is a daily torment for families like Arzo's, who live in uncertainty, nurturing the fear of a future as dark as the present.
