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CHAPTER I
An Introduction to Bacha-Bazi
The world is a place of multiple cultures and different traditions. There are different
countries in this world and all of them have different cultures, traditions and customs, rules and
norms. Rules, norms and traditions are made for wellbeing of people living in a society but they
often become boomerang and hurt the feelings of mankind. There are different religions all
across the world and preach different gods but all of them teach one thing that is humanity.
Hence it could be said that humanity should be the lone religion in the world but these traditions
and cultures have often affected mankind mentally and physically hurting their feelings and
interest which could also act lethal for their survival. The present research talks about a similar
tradition or custom which is practiced to keep the legacy of a particular clan intact and exploit a
certain section of human in order to enjoy lives.” Bacha-Bazi” or Boy play is one of the oldest
customs of Afghanistan which came into the limelight thanks to media in the recent past. It has
been carried out in the country for a long time (
Franks, 2013)
.
Literally “Bacha-Bazi” is defined as the sexual act on children by powerful and influential
people in the country. It is very popular in the country and hence there have been instances
where children have been sent abroad to work for mediators and agents to carry this legacy. The
present study will take an opportunity to discuss this custom of “Bacha-Bazi” in Afghanistan.
There are number of people who have considered this act as exploitative on children and also
termed this as child slavery. In the recent past after the downfall of the Taliban group in the
country Bacha-Bazi has revived its past glory and have become exceedingly popular that literally
poses a concerned look on the future of the children in Afghanistan (
Mondloch, 2013)
. The
present study will discuss the key facts of the concept of Bacha-Bazi and will encapsulate the
key aspects which influence this custom in the country. Overall it could be said that the present
study is an investigative study on the concept of Bacha-Bazi in Afghanistan: An act of
homosexual child sex.
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1.1. General Background:
Bacha-Bazi is an old central Asian tradition that has its root deep in the culture of this
place. From different researches it has been found out that Bacha-Bazi didn’t start in Afghanistan
but someplace else which has not been found out yet, but it could be said that it is directly related
to the central Asian culture of exploiting women and children for sexual pleasure. Not many
people are found who are willing to talk about it openly but the acknowledgement of its presence
has been done by many people in the country itself. It is seen as a taboo in the country when it
should be legally banned with immediate effect and this initiative will have to be taken by the
government of the country. Bacha-Bazi initially started with young children from the age of 13
taken to be taught dance and then to make them perform dance dressed like women. Slowly and
steadily many powerful and influential people in the country (Afghanistan) took interest in it
giving money to thee agents and literally behaving sadistically to have sex with young boys
(
Goldsteinm 2015)
. It has been seen in the records that Bacha-Bazi grew exponentially with the
decline of the Taliban regime from Afghanistan in the 2002 and since then Bacha-Bazi has
grown not only in remote villages but also in the top cities of the country like Kabul and
Kandahar. The agents who mainly control the young boys put into Bacha-Bazi are called
“BachaBaz “And the children talking part in Bacha-Bazi are called “Bachaberesh” or a beardless
youth. These children are mainly from poor families who either sell the children for money or for
land and food and clothing or in some cases kidnapped from the close ones and the families. This
custom has been going on in the country for a long time and the government hasn’t been able to
do anything on this. It could be said that during the Taliban regime the Bacha-Bazi did not have
this huge exposure as Taliban was strictly against and hence it could be said that the Taliban was
more focused on eradicating this problem from the country (
Ng, 2014)
.
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1.2. Problem Statement
Bacha-Bazi is a social problem in Afghanistan. Many of the children so far have become
homeless and have been exploited for sexual pleasure and other malicious purposes. This is
clearly affecting the future generation of the country and the agents dealing in children and
Bacha-Bazi have never faced any kind of legal implications. Over the last few years this has
grown rapidly posing serious threat young boys and their families in Afghanistan. Constant
atrocities on children have affected their mental and physical status. It could be said that child
sex is an old and sadistic form of exploitation in children and even in this age of complete
technology it breeding well in the country and this stands to be one of the concerns. It could be
said that most of the Afghan families having male children are under deep stress as kidnapping
child trafficking has increased due to this reason in the country (
Erdogdu et al., 2016)
. There are
number of problems which have been raised due to this reason and hence it is important that this
problem is properly taken care of. This has become one of the key problems in the country and
analysing its impact in the society this subject has been taken for the research as its impact is
immense on the society of Afghanistan. There are no clear provisions developed by the
Afghanistan Government hence justice has been sacrificed that stands to be one big problem in
the country. Overall it could be said that the problem of Bacha-Bazi is a major problem in the
country and this has fueled the research study. Though news information comes up regarding the
different legal initiatives taken up by the Afghan government still this illegal activities of
practicing Bacha-Bazi is ongoing and male children are experiencing it. Very less availability of
information regarding improvements in Afghanistan’s situation on the basis of homosexual
abuse is a major problem of research on the current chosen topic. Complete accessibility over the
different academic materials was not allowed and this restricted from presenting information
which would have increased both the viability and reliability of research on the chosen subject.
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