Bookseller of Kabul fears blood vengeance from Pashtuns

Jonathan Tisdall:

Shah Mohammad Rais, better known as the "Bookseller of Kabul", says he fears blood vengeance after Åsne Seierstad's bestselling book about him has been translated in an Afghan language.

Rais said he feels like a refugee now, and is even considering seeking asylum now that the story, which he has tried to block on the grounds that it was too revealing, puts him in personal danger.

"I can no longer live in my own country. This is a great tragedy for me and my family. We must now reside outside of Afghanistan," Rais said.

According to Rais this is because of the release of a version of the book in Farsi from an Iranian publisher is now available in Kabul. Another version from Pakistan, in Pushtu, is reportedly on the way, meaning the story will be accessible in Afghanistan's other main language.

Rais argues that Seierstad's book reveals details that can offend the largest ethnic group in Afghanistan, the Pashtuns, a group that still actively practice blood vengeance. Rais said that the revelation that his sisters have had boyfriends is dangerous as this is strictly forbidden.

The bookseller's family is now split in three, with Rais, his youngest wife Suraya and three children heading to Oslo, his eldest wife Aziza in Canada with other family members and only his eldest son Iraj Mohammad still in Kabul, minding the bookstore.

The trip to Oslo was originally planned to allow for research for Rais' own book on the controversy around and behind the "Bookseller of Kabul", and he still plans to investigate a lawsuit against Seierstad and publisher Cappelen.

"I am considering applying for asylum. I believe Norway can be a good land to live in. But my wife doesn't like this, she has some poor associations with Norway. She would rather live in Sweden or another place in Europe," Rais said.

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