Nazia, 9
Details
Nazia was sold one year ago instead of her 12-year-old sister Pashtana, who insisted on staying in school. Their mother, Nazgul, and her husband have struggled to feed their six children and decided they had no other choice but to sell one of their daughters to a relative's family for 200,000 Afghanis (about $2,800). At the time, Nazia had no idea what marriage would mean, so she didn't protest. Now she knows, and the boy's family wants to take her already. Nazia said she wants to play and be with her family. "I like school. I like learning the alphabet. The whole class is friends with me." Nazgul regrets her decision but said, "We didn't have anything, not even a mattress. I was forced to sell my daughter." She is trying to persuade the boy's family to let Nazia stay home for three more years.