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Afghanistan
Afghan boy dancers sexually abused by former warlords
2007-11-20
PUL-E KHUMRI, Afghanistan (Reuters) - They are known as "bacha bereesh," boys without beards, teenage boys who dress up as girls and dance for male patrons at parties in northern Afghanistan.

It's an age old practice that has led to some of the boy dancers being turned into sex slaves by wealthy and powerful patrons, often former warlords, who dress the boys up as girls, shower them with gifts and keep them as "mistresses." Afghan police are battling to crackdown on the practice which has angered Islamic clerics who say those involved should be stoned for sodomy, forbidden under Islamic law.

In a society where the sexes are strictly segregated, it is common for men to dance for other men at weddings in Afghanistan. But in northern Afghanistan, former warlords and mujahideen commanders have taken that a step further with competitions for their dancing boys. "Every boy tries to be the first. They are dressed in women's clothes, have bells on their feet and have artificial breasts," said Mohammad Yawar, a former mujahideen fighter against the Taliban and resident of the northern town of Pul-e Khumri.
Posted by:john frum

#10  #9: "Is that because of the strong Christian presence in San Francisco daily life and its influence over the political structure there?"

*snort*

You owe me a monitor, NS. ;-p
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut   2007-11-20 21:13  

#9  You can no more bash Islam for this practice than bash Christianity for gay behavior in San Francisco.

Is that because of the strong Christian presence in San Francisco daily life and its influence over the political structure there?
Posted by: Nimble Spemble   2007-11-20 20:59  

#8  You can no more bash Islam for this practice than bash Christianity for gay behavior in San Francisco

Bullshit. Islam has special fatwas declaring that hairless boys (i.e., pre-adolescent males without pubic hair) are not "men" and therefore sexual congress with them does not qualify as homosexuality. Speaking as an agnostic, it is to Christianity's eternal credit that—despite their objection to adult homosexuality—they make no excuse for the inclusion of underage children in such practices within their own ranks or otherwise.

While Islam presents a broad target, on this particular subject of sexual child abuse there is much to "bash" it for and a host of good reasons for doing so.
Posted by: Zenster   2007-11-20 20:54  

#7  "Afghan police are battling to crackdown on the practice which has angered Islamic clerics who say those involved should be stoned for sodomy, forbidden under Islamic law."
"Many local residents have called for a crackdown"
"Those who do this are the devil"
"Under Islamic law, those who practice this should be stoned to death."
"We know it is immoral and unIslamic"

You can no more bash Islam for this practice than bash Christianity for gay behavior in San Francisco.
Posted by: Fester Threreling6504   2007-11-20 20:39  

#6  enemy traditions are what make them our enemy. We have to not only to defeat them in detail; we have to destroy everything they believe.

Give the man a Kewpie Doll! As study after study shows, poverty and deprivation are almost insignificant as drivers of terrorism. It is Islam in general and shari'a law in particular that is the Root Cause of Muslim terrorism.

Shari'a law is so permeating and ingrained into Muslim consciousness that there can be no victory in the Global War on Terror until this barbaric throwback of a legal code is abolished for once and all time. It epitomizes the Muslim mindset and is the fountainhead of nearly every single evil that Islam inflicts upon this world.
Posted by: Zenster   2007-11-20 12:55  

#5  It is worth point out, too, that this feudal arrangement is a big part of what the Taliban's tribal allies are fighting to protect. They should know a Western, liberal democracy would no more tolerate the rape and enslavement of boys than it would allow women to remain wrapped in bin bags.

This is the diversity of culture the left protests in the street to protect. I hear a lot - even from supposed conservatives - about how if we were to attack enemy traditions we would only foster resentment. To the contrary, enemy traditions are what make them our enemy. We have to not only to defeat them in detail; we have to destroy everything they believe.
Posted by: Excalibur   2007-11-20 10:00  

#4  Our own feudal institutions - schools and churches alike - can still foster the same dependence, abuse and distortion of sexuality into a grotesque paedophilic mockery. The difference, of course, is our civilization is no longer managed by a tiny elite of feudal overlords and this sort of abuse is recognized for what it is.
Posted by: Excalibur   2007-11-20 09:56  

#3  Ah, Zen...here I was getting my hopes up that afghanistannewscenter.com was our media propoganda tool to shame and humiliate the "former mujahadeen"! I didn't really realize this was for real. I thought it was our way of introducing theonion.com to them, or something, LOL!
Posted by: BA   2007-11-20 08:01  

#2  Ah, yes. The non-existent Muslim homosexuality we hear so much about.

I'd say that this sort of abuse pleases Allah greatly. Otherwise it would not be such an entrenched tradition. This is no recent development, just as young students at the madrassahs being buggered by their imams is nothing new either. If it was such a great offense to the clerics, they'd have rallied the people against those warlords centuries ago. The clerics don't precisely because they, too, indulge in molesting young boys as well. A perfect example of negative reinforcement.

This sort of child abuse is a direct byproduct of a sexually hyper-repressed culture that places little value on human life, especially that of women and children.
Posted by: Zenster   2007-11-20 04:52  

#1  This displeases allah
Posted by: McZoid   2007-11-20 04:12  

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