HDNet's 'Dan Rather Reports' Returns to Afghanistan, Presenting a Shocking Look Into the Lives of Women in That Country

Last Updated on Monday, 08 March 2010 23:37 Monday, 08 March 2010 23:37

HDNet In recognition of Women's History Month and in keeping with the program's unparalleled coverage of Afghanistan, "Dan Rather Reports" presents and in-depth and heartbreaking look at the lives of Afghan women. Rather and his team will demonstrate the small steps made in liberating women from the oppressive rules of the Taliban - but how all those gains will be lost if Afghanistan agrees to open up negotiations with this group of Muslim extremists.

It's a life that most American women could not imagine.

In Afghanistan, one in three children don't live to see their first birthday – especially girls. The life expectancy of an average Afghan woman is 44 years and the average Afghan woman has six children - although some have many more. A woman dies here every 27 minutes from pregnancy complications – 25,000 women per year, according to the United Nations. Almost 88% of women are illiterate and most girls enter into arranged marriages, or are sold into marriage, by the age of 17.

Tuesday's program will feature one such woman, Mariam, who speaks to us in disguise so that her family does not recognizer her. Mariam is a gifted writer and poet whose dream of going to college was fully supported by her father until he died. She may even have enough talent to land a scholarship to an Ivy League school, but now, upon her graduation from college in a few short months, her brothers will sell her to her uncle for $20,000. Then, she must marry her first cousin – a farmer loyal to the Taliban.

In contrast to her story, small has been seen since the fall of the Taliban. In places like Kabul women are now able to walk the streets without burkas, and girls can go to school again, however, few of them in are able to move onto higher education and, in the capital of 3 million, there are only a few thousand female university students.

These women, the ones who go against the old traditions, some are risking their lives to do it. Tuesday's program will also look at the alarming violence against women that takes place in Afghanistan - and how most of it goes unpunished.

We'll also talk to soldiers fighting in Kandahar, getting their take on the upcoming troop surge and how they feel it will affect the war.

"Dan Rather Reports – The Price of an Afghan Bride" airs Tuesday, March 9 at 8:00 p.m. ET and will re-air at 11:00 p.m. ET to accommodate West Coast Prime Time.