Interview: 'As Soon as I Was Taken Inside, I Knew it Was a Prison'

September 24, 2019

Radio Free Asia Gulchehra Hoja

RFA: Tell us how the authorities pressed you to agree to undergo forced sterilization.

Zumuret Dawut: The family planning office gave me a letter and said: ‘Come back on the date stated in the letter and we will offer you a free operation to stop you from becoming pregnant.’ On hearing this my husband pleaded, ‘Does she have to undergo this procedure. I know it will effect her health. As long as she doesn’t have any more children, isn’t that good enough?’ They said, ‘If you don’t comply it will effect your entry back into the country in the future, also your children’s schooling.’