Helena Hassani was only 11 years old when she was coerced into marriage. Years later, after fighting for her independence through education, she secured a divorce and rebuilt her life. Today, she is raising awareness about forced marriage in Australia as reports of it continue to rise.

A childhood taken by forced marriage

Hassani was born in a small village in Afghanistan before relocating to Pakistan as a child. During her school years, her life changed abruptly when she was forced to marry. Hassani spent years trying to escape the marriage. Throughout that time, she focused intensely on education as her path to freedom. In a report by ABC News, Hassani states:

I realised the only way of getting out of it was empowering myself through education, and if I became [financially] independent, I could get out of that marriage.

Hassani eventually completed two university degrees and a master’s degree while working to become financially independent. In 2019, her divorce was finalized—a moment she describes as life-changing:

You know what was the happiest moment of my life? The day that I got my divorce, because I gained my freedom.

Now living in Australia, Hassani says the experience drives her advocacy work. In 2023 she founded the organization Boland Parwaz, which works with communities and government agencies to prevent forced marriage.

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