Hidden by the Burkha

hidden by the burkha



‘Because … I am afraid what will happen if people know what I have gone through,
and because I am a Muslim girl.’

I am 17 and I’m from Bangladesh. My sister disappeared when I was 13 or 14. A couple of years later, when I was coming home from school, a local boy kidnapped me and sold me to a brothel in Mumbai. I found my sister in the same brothel. The boy had sold us both in revenge, because my sister had refused to marry him. She was in terrible condition, sick and suicidal. I was rescued 2 years ago, but she is still there. I can feel her standing beside me and I can hear her voice. If my sister ever comes back home I will stop cutting my arm. I will never trust anyone again.