Skip to main content


Bangladesh woman forced to remarry husband who disfigured her with acid

Mother-in-law forced her to sign document to free husband from prison

Disfigured after her husband threw acid on her, blinding and scarring her, a Bangladesh woman has been forced to remarry him after her mother-in-law made her sign an affidavit freeing him from prison after the attack.

Financial disputes, marital quarrels and bitterness over spurned advances have inspired acid-throwing attacks in Bangladesh.

Financial disputes, marital quarrels and bitterness over spurned advances have inspired acid-throwing attacks in Bangladesh.

LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) - Nurbanu had originally divorced her unfaithful and violent spouse after catching him with another woman. Eight days later, her husband pulled up on a motorbike and doused her with acid.

Her husband of 18 years went into hiding after mutilating his former wife, but was caught ten months later and jailed for a year.

"His mother paid for his release on bail," Nurbanu says, who is from Satkhira in south west Bangladesh.

"She made me sign an affidavit to have him released. She used my sons to convince me to marry him again.

"People would think a husband would take care of a blind wife. But this doesn't happen,' Nurbanu said.

Her husband continues to beat and threaten her. "This is how my days go by."

Nurbanu is just one of thousands of women to fall victim to acid violence in Bangladesh in recent years. Financial disputes, rejected marriage proposals and domestic squabbles are common motives behind the attacks in this country.

CEO of the Acid Survivors' Foundation in Bangladesh Monira Rahman has worked with the victims of acid and petrol attacks in the country for the past 14 years.

Women's low social status in Bangladesh is blamed for the frequency of the disturbing attacks. Although men have been targeted, the overwhelming majority of victims are female. While the numbers of incidents are falling, the devastating attacks still occur relatively frequently in the country.

Typically, the assailant throws nitric or sulphuric acid at the victim's face, body or genitals, resulting in permanent disfigurement and scarring.

According to the Acid Survivors' Foundation, a total of 59 attacks have already been recorded in the country this year. Of 118 survivors in 2011, 75 were female, and 13 of those were under the age of 18.

Financial disputes, marital quarrels and bitterness over spurned advances have inspired the attacks.

In 2011, the Bangladeshi government announced new restrictions on the sale of acid in a bid to curb the number of attacks, and the number of recorded incidents fell from 500 in 2002 to 111 last year.

Humanitarians say that much remains to be done for women's rights in Bangladesh in order to permanently rid the country of gender-based violence like acid attacks.

© 2012, Catholic Online. Distributed by NEWS CONSORTIUM

- - -

Pope Benedict XVI's Prayer Intentions for January 2013
General Intention:
The Faith of Christians. That in this Year of Faith Christians may deepen their knowledge of the mystery of Christ and witness joyfully to the gift of faith in him.
Missionary Intention: Middle Eastern Christians. That the Christian communities of the Middle East, often discriminated against, may receive from the Holy Spirit the strength of fidelity and perseverance.

Keywords: Bangladesh, acid-throwing, victims, women's issues, women's rights

NEWSLETTERS »

E-mail:       Zip Code: (ex. 90001)
Today's Headlines

Sign up for a roundup of the day's top stories. 5 days / week. See Sample

Rate This Article

Very Helpful Somewhat Helpful Not Helpful at All

Yes, I am Interested No, I am not Interested

Rate Article

1 - 3 of 3 Comments

  1. youkokun
    5 months ago

    @vance: Wrong, this isn't Islamic corruption. People are sinfully human, they have been for centuries. One of the reasons I converted to Catholicism was because practicing Muslims in my neighborhood encouraged my belief that I could be spiritual and practicing religious in honoring God with "works" too. Many Muslims are faithful and act lovingly toward one another; it's just that those Muslims don't make headlines.
    This isn't a religious or cultural thing, it's human, and Catholic humanitarian witnessing could help it. Do not blame their Allah for their mistakes; that's both cruel and too easy.

  2. mgm.
    5 months ago

    What does this have to do with the Catholic Church?is she Catholic or Christian?

  3. vance
    5 months ago

    This is another example of Islamic injustice and corruption.

Leave a Comment

Comments submitted must be civil, remain on-topic and not violate any laws including copyright. We reserve the right to delete any comments which are abusive, inappropriate or not constructive to the discussion.

Though we invite robust discussion, we reserve the right to not publish any comment which denigrates the human person, undermines marriage and the family, or advocates for positions which openly oppose the teaching of the Catholic Church.

This is a supervised forum and the Editors of Catholic Online retain the right to direct it.

We also reserve the right to block any commenter for repeated violations. Your email address is required to post, but it will not be published on the site.

We ask that you NOT post your comment more than once. Catholic Online is growing and our ability to review all comments sometimes results in a delay in their publication.

Send me important information from Catholic Online and it's partners. See Sample

Post Comment


Newsletter Sign Up

Daily Readings

Reading 1, Proverbs 8:22-31
'Yahweh created me, first-fruits of his fashioning, before the ... Read More

Psalm, Psalms 8:4-5, 6-7, 8-9
what are human beings that you spare a thought for them, or the ... Read More

Gospel, John 16:12-15
I still have many things to say to you but they would be too ... Read More

Reading 2, Romans 5:1-5
So then, now that we have been justified by faith, we are at ... Read More

Saint of the Day

May 26 Saint of the Day

St. Philip Neri
May 26: If one had to choose one saint who showed the humorous side of ... Read More