AFGHAN ANNIVERSARY Afghan Split Family USAGM
Metadata
- AFGHAN ANNIVERSARY Afghan Split Family USAGM
- August 3, 2022
- Content Type Package
- Language English
- Transcript/Script English USAGM SHARE ((PLAYBOOK SLUG: AFGHAN ANNIVERSARY: Afghan – Split Family HEADLINE: Afghan Family Separated During Evacuation Sees “No Sign” of Reunion TEASER: Husband lives in America with two daughters while wife stays in Afghanistan with a son and daughter PUBLISHED AT: 8/03/2022 at 9:50am BYLINE: Mohammad Ahmadi DATELINE: Hyattsville, MD VIDEOGRAPHER: Hoshang Fahim VIDEO EDITOR: Hoshang Fahim SCRIPT EDITORS: MAS, Reifenrath VIDEO SOURCE (S): VOA GRAPHICS: PLATFORMS (mark with X): WEB __ TV X RADIO X TRT: 2:52 VID APPROVED BY: MAS TYPE: TVPKG/RADIO EDITOR NOTES: This is part of Afghanistan special anniversary coverage series)) HFR – TO BE USED WITHIN THE WINDOW 8/10-8/20 AFGHAN ANNIVERSARY SERIES: This story is part of a special VOA series marking the one-year anniversary of the Taliban's return to power in Afghanistan on August 15, 2021. The series includes eyewitness accounts of the day Kabul fell, stories of Afghan refugees around the world, and data-based analysis of the Taliban's record of governance and human rights, among other topics. ((INTRO)) [[During the fall of Afghanistan last August, the Merzay family was forced to separate. Today, they are still waiting to be reunited. VOA’s Mohammad Ahmadi has the story from Hyattsville, Maryland.]] ((NARRATOR)) Khadem Merzay is watching his youngest daughter, 8-month-old Hasti, from his home in Hyattsville, Maryland, a suburb of Washington. She is in Afghanistan, where she was born after he was evacuated during the Taliban takeover last August. ((Khadem Merzay, Afghan Refugee in Maryland (Male – Dari)) “She may not recognize me.” ((NARRATOR)) Merzay managed to leave Afghanistan with his two other daughters, 16-year-old Zainab and 3-year-old Mahya. He said he had to flee when the country fell to the Taliban because his sisters worked for the government, and that put his life at risk. ((Mandatory courtesy: Khadem Merzai)) His wife, Fatima Merzay, who was pregnant at the time, stayed behind with the couple’s 14-year-old son, Mohammad. ((Khadem Merzay, Afghan Refugee in Maryland (Male – Dari)) “She was eight months pregnant. Traveling was difficult for her, and I left my son with her so she wouldn’t be alone.” ((NARRATOR)) Daughters Zainab and Mahya communicate with their mother through the internet — if the connection is good in Afghanistan. ((Khadem Merzay, Afghan Refugee in Maryland (Male – Dari))) “Every time, on the phone, she is telling her, ‘Why aren’t you coming to Mahya’s house? Come to my house.’ She tells her, ‘I miss you.’” ((NARRATOR)) Merzay — who worked in construction in Afghanistan— stays home to take care of Mahya while Zainab goes to school. ((Khadem Merzay, Afghan Refugee in Maryland (Male – Dari))))) ` “They told me, 'Both of your children are minors. One is going to school, and the other one needs someone to take care of her. You have to stay home until we find someone to take care of her.’ It has been six or seven months, but no one has been found.” ((NARRATOR)) Merzay’s sister, Aminah Merzay, lives nearby and is struggling, too, working and trying to learn English. ((Aminah Merzay, Khadem Merzay’s Sister (Female – Dari))) “Only once a week, I might visit his younger daughter because she needs her mother. She is a happy and loving child. Other than that, I can’t help even myself. I, myself, don’t know what to do” ((NARRATOR)) In Afghanistan, Merzay’s wife faces the Taliban’s restrictions on women. They’re not allowed to work, get a secondary education or travel long distances unaccompanied. ((Khadem Merzay, Afghan Refugee in Maryland, Male – Dari))) “She is at home, like a prisoner.” ((NARRATOR)) Zainab says it appears her mother’s hope for a reunion is fading. ((Zainab Merzay, Merzay’s Daughter (Female – Dari))) “Now, she sometimes says that 'it won’t be possible that we see each other again.'” ((NARRATOR)) The Merzay family has been split for about a year now, with no sign of reunion on the horizon. ((Mohammad Ahmadi, VOA News, Hyattsville, Maryland.))
- Transcript/Script USAGM SHARE ((PLAYBOOK SLUG: AFGHAN ANNIVERSARY: Afghan – Split Family HEADLINE: Afghan Family Separated During Evacuation Sees “No Sign” of Reunion TEASER: Husband lives in America with two daughters while wife stays in Afghanistan with a son and daughter PUBLISHED AT: 8/03/2022 at 9:50am BYLINE: Mohammad Ahmadi DATELINE: Hyattsville, MD VIDEOGRAPHER: Hoshang Fahim VIDEO EDITOR: Hoshang Fahim SCRIPT EDITORS: MAS, Reifenrath VIDEO SOURCE (S): VOA GRAPHICS: PLATFORMS (mark with X): WEB __ TV X RADIO X TRT: 2:52 VID APPROVED BY: MAS TYPE: TVPKG/RADIO EDITOR NOTES: This is part of Afghanistan special anniversary coverage series)) HFR – TO BE USED WITHIN THE WINDOW 8/10-8/20 AFGHAN ANNIVERSARY SERIES: This story is part of a special VOA series marking the one-year anniversary of the Taliban's return to power in Afghanistan on August 15, 2021. The series includes eyewitness accounts of the day Kabul fell, stories of Afghan refugees around the world, and data-based analysis of the Taliban's record of governance and human rights, among other topics. ((INTRO)) [[During the fall of Afghanistan last August, the Merzay family was forced to separate. Today, they are still waiting to be reunited. VOA’s Mohammad Ahmadi has the story from Hyattsville, Maryland.]] ((NARRATOR)) Khadem Merzay is watching his youngest daughter, 8-month-old Hasti, from his home in Hyattsville, Maryland, a suburb of Washington. She is in Afghanistan, where she was born after he was evacuated during the Taliban takeover last August. ((Khadem Merzay, Afghan Refugee in Maryland (Male – Dari)) “She may not recognize me.” ((NARRATOR)) Merzay managed to leave Afghanistan with his two other daughters, 16-year-old Zainab and 3-year-old Mahya. He said he had to flee when the country fell to the Taliban because his sisters worked for the government, and that put his life at risk. ((Mandatory courtesy: Khadem Merzai)) His wife, Fatima Merzay, who was pregnant at the time, stayed behind with the couple’s 14-year-old son, Mohammad. ((Khadem Merzay, Afghan Refugee in Maryland (Male – Dari)) “She was eight months pregnant. Traveling was difficult for her, and I left my son with her so she wouldn’t be alone.” ((NARRATOR)) Daughters Zainab and Mahya communicate with their mother through the internet — if the connection is good in Afghanistan. ((Khadem Merzay, Afghan Refugee in Maryland (Male – Dari))) “Every time, on the phone, she is telling her, ‘Why aren’t you coming to Mahya’s house? Come to my house.’ She tells her, ‘I miss you.’” ((NARRATOR)) Merzay — who worked in construction in Afghanistan— stays home to take care of Mahya while Zainab goes to school. ((Khadem Merzay, Afghan Refugee in Maryland (Male – Dari))))) ` “They told me, 'Both of your children are minors. One is going to school, and the other one needs someone to take care of her. You have to stay home until we find someone to take care of her.’ It has been six or seven months, but no one has been found.” ((NARRATOR)) Merzay’s sister, Aminah Merzay, lives nearby and is struggling, too, working and trying to learn English. ((Aminah Merzay, Khadem Merzay’s Sister (Female – Dari))) “Only once a week, I might visit his younger daughter because she needs her mother. She is a happy and loving child. Other than that, I can’t help even myself. I, myself, don’t know what to do” ((NARRATOR)) In Afghanistan, Merzay’s wife faces the Taliban’s restrictions on women. They’re not allowed to work, get a secondary education or travel long distances unaccompanied. ((Khadem Merzay, Afghan Refugee in Maryland, Male – Dari))) “She is at home, like a prisoner.” ((NARRATOR)) Zainab says it appears her mother’s hope for a reunion is fading. ((Zainab Merzay, Merzay’s Daughter (Female – Dari))) “Now, she sometimes says that 'it won’t be possible that we see each other again.'” ((NARRATOR)) The Merzay family has been split for about a year now, with no sign of reunion on the horizon. ((Mohammad Ahmadi, VOA News, Hyattsville, Maryland.))
- NewsML Media Topics Arts, Culture, Entertainment and Media
- Network VOA
- Embargo Date August 3, 2022 10:07 EDT
- Byline Mohammad Ahmad
- Brand / Language Service Voice of America