I visited Maryam when her baby was 2 weeks old. I had been meaning to go sooner, but the steep, icy roads up to her ‘house’ in Kabul prohibited an earlier visit. I guess that Maryam was about 15 when she had her baby, but no one really knows. She lived in a noisy and sparse house full of women and babies — no men, which is unusual in Afghanistan and left the household somewhat vulnerable. It was wintertime, bitterly cold with little heating. I have no idea how these women ever got money for food, let alone heating. Maryam had recently moved to Kabul from another part of the country, didn’t speak Dari, (the trade language of Kabul) and certainly didn’t know how to read or write. When I arrived at her dilapidated mud house, I found her sitting with her tiny new baby heavily wrapped. She gave birth at home and had not had any postnatal care. I undressed the baby to conduct a newborn check. When I removed the baby’s hat, I was horrified to discover a large oozing open sore on the side of the head, stretching down to the face. Probably have been ripped off at the pharmacy.

Click Here To Read More