Why the issue of Bacha Bazi deserves international attention

Of late, the sexual exploitation of minors has become a raging issue for several nations across the world. Among these nations, the South Asian country of Afghanistan sees a disturbingly high incidence of sexual exploitation cases, among which the practice called Bacha Bazi has drawn widespread attention and criticism from all quarters. In this practice, young boys are made to dress up in feminine clothes and make-up, in a sexualized manner, and, subsequently, in a lot of cases, forced into flesh trade. The prostitution and slavery of these young boys has become rampant. This paper examines the reasons for sexual exploitation of minors in general, and the resurgence of the practice of Bacha Bazi in Afghanistan in particular. It details the Taliban’s role in abolishing Bacha Bazi, as well as lawlessness in the post-Taliban rule, which became a major reason for the blooming of this condemnable practice. The study also discusses the role of the taboo of homosexuality in conservative Afghanistan in the flourishing of Bacha Bazi. Finally, it analyzes the lack of willingness of the international community to fight against Bacha Bazi, and offers some suggestions for the elimination of the practice. However, as important human rights scholars have noted, such a practice is very difficult to abolish, even when it threatens to challenge the very basic foundation of human rights and civilization in the 21st century.

• Autores: Verma, Sreyasi
• Tipo de recurso: Article of journal
• Fecha de publicación: 2019
• Institución: Universidad Católica de Colombia
• Repositorio: RIUCaC - Repositorio U. Católica
• Idioma: eng
• OAI Identifier: oai:repository.ucatolica.edu.co:10983/23573
• Acceso en línea: https://hdl.handle.net/10983/23573
• Palabra clave: BACHA BAZI; SEXUAL EXPLOITATION; TALIBAN; WAR; HOMOSEXUALITY; EXPLOTACIÓN SEXUAL; TALIBANES; GUERRA; HOMOSEXUALIDAD
• Rights: openAccess
• License: Derechos Reservados - Universidad Católica de Colombia, 2019