Sudanese Schoolgirl Was Sold At Bargains On Facebook, And What Facebook Said

Mark Zuckerberg’s social platform, Facebook, is a world in which we can witness everything that can happen, from the most ordinary stories to the most mythical truths. Both good and bad things can be also found here.

One month ago, one post from South Sudan aroused the anger of Facebook community and the rest of the world: a father openly sold his 17-year-old daughter at a bargain on Facebook and the company has lacked its necessary actions.

The incident took place in October 2018 when activists for human rights detected it from South Sudan. More terribly, instead of caring about his daughter, the man felt excited about the bargain from this deal.

According to the truth provided by Facebook and authorities in Sudan, there were five men (maybe more) participating in the auction. Finally, the winner won the poor girl with the highest price ever for such incidents, including: about Rs 7 lakh ($10,000), half a million cows, 2 luxury cars, 2 bikes, 1 boat, and 2 new smartphones. This has been said as the highest dowry in South Sudan until now.

The human rights activist Philips Anyang Ngong, who always fights against human trafficking, expressed his opinion regarding the above incident that the Sudanese girl has been treated as a commodity, no more. What is more disgusting that among the auction’s participants is the deputy governor of South Sudan.

It’s pity that the deal completed before someone could interfere. As a result, the schoolgirl became the ninth wife of the winner who is at least three times older than her. After that, the groom shared some photos taken in their wedding to Facebook. In these photos, the bride in a luxurious dress seems to have the unawareness of her current situation.

This is not the first time such stories happen in a country like India or South Sudan where cows are usually used as dowries. The United Nations Population Fund stated that 40% of brides in South Sudan are under the age of 18.

Also in this incident, there is another character being much criticized all over the world. That’s Facebook! A few days went by before Facebook knew this incident and rapidly deleted the post. However, it’s too late. The deal had been ended and left many unexpected consequences, like posts that bolster the father and participants in the auction.

What has made activists, groups for human rights, and lawmakers annoyed is that Facebook can be mined for such horrifying actions and culprits don’t have to suffer any punishment.

And Facebook, of course, made some general announcements which are not enough to ease the communities’ anger. If such an incident continues, Facebook will gradually lose the faith of its users across the world, won’t it?