Pedophilia is a popular past-time in Afghanistan amongst the mostly Pashtun culture. Homosexuality in Islam carries the death penalty, pederasty obviously does not. In Afghanistan it takes the form of bacha bazi (boy play), where poor, prepubescent and teen boys are recruited for dancing (mostly in drag) in front of groups of men for their entertainment pleasure, culminating in sex for one lucky pervert. In some cases it turns into gang rape.
It's apparently a vile ancient tradition that regained popularity during the mujahideen war against the Russians in Afghanistan. During the war, the Northern Alliance commanders all had their boy partners, and those same former commanders, now married, continue to maintain what in essence is sexual slavery. Many owners of young boys and participants are powerful, wealthy and married men. They're wives have no say.
Afghan documentary filmmaker Najibullah Quraishi went back to Afghanistan several years ago to document the practice. Filming undercover, he brings to light the seamy, underbelly of bacha bazi practice where the boys are let go when they age out, and some boys wind up dead. The average age of the boys is 12 to 14.
Although illegal, no-one seems to be doing anything about it since, in many cases, the police are also involved. These are devout Muslims who dress their wives in burqas while dressing young boys in women's clothing for a little dance and sex. There's something terribly wrong with this picture. I blame a religion that segregates men and women.
Quraishi's film "The Dancing Boys of Afghanistan" aired in the U.K. and on PBS's Frontline in 2010.
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