| Forced to fend for themselves due to the
| |
| | is available throughout the month.
|
| death or incapacitation of their male
| |
| | The ban on working women further
|
| breadwinners, and banned from seeking
| |
| | complicates the scenario for households
|
| gainful employment under the Taliban
| |
| | headed by women. Pushed into a corner,
|
| dispensation, scores of Afghani women are
| |
| | most such women first came out in droves
|
| turning to prostitution to eke out a
| |
| | to beg. Now, many of them are turning to
|
| living Clad in the ubiquitous shuttlecock
| |
| | prostitution as a more convenient source
|
| burqa, she crosses a street in Kabul’s
| |
| | of income.
|
| Shahr-I-Nau district and enters a
| |
| | “Pretending to be beggars, these women
|
| cosmetics and toiletry store. She walks
| |
| | have easy access to clients who are
|
| up straight to the clerk and stretches
| |
| | mainly shopkeepers and their trading
|
| out her hand as if to ask for alms. But
| |
| | partners in Pakistan, Iran and the
|
| this gesture is just a ruse. “It’ll
| |
| | Gulf,” contends a former member of
|
| be two lakh Afghanis (equivalent to 250
| |
| | Taliban’s religious police, popularly
|
| Pakistani rupees) per head, nothing
| |
| | known as Amr bil Maroof. Most shops in
|
| less,” she tells the clerk under her
| |
| | Kabul contain a storeroom or an attic,
|
| breath, casting a veiled glance at me and
| |
| | which can be used for the purpose. But
|
| the one other man present in the store.
| |
| | more security conscious clients prefer to
|
| “I was expecting some good business,
| |
| | fix appointments elsewhere such as their
|
| but I dropped it when I received word
| |
| | homes. For Diva and others like her, such
|
| from you.” “I’m sorry, but this
| |
| | an invitation can translate into a
|
| call is just for an interview with our
| |
| | million Afghanis in one night, which, as
|
| journalist friend here,” replies the
| |
| | far as they are concerned, can buy 100
|
| clerk apologetically, pointing in my
| |
| | nanns.
|
| direction. “It’ll still be two
| |
| | The more wretched of Kabul’s
|
| lakhs,” she insists. “I told you I
| |
| | prostitutes live in brothels, where they
|
| dropped some good business to come
| |
| | have to share their income with the madam
|
| here.” As radiant as her name, which
| |
| | and the resident pimp. RAWA claims that
|
| means an oil lamp in Pushto, Diva is a
| |
| | there are some 25 to 30 brothels
|
| stunning beauty. In the privacy of the
| |
| | operating in Kabul. A Taliban source in
|
| store’s attic, she throws off her
| |
| | the Hauz-I-Awwal police cannot confirm
|
| tattered burqa to reveal a beautiful
| |
| | this figure, but admits that brothels do
|
| crimson blouse and an ankle-length black
| |
| | indeed exist. “I know of one place in
|
| Afghani skirt.
| |
| | the Ashiqan-o-Arifan neighborhood, and I
|
| Diva’s shoes are worn, but pepping from
| |
| | have heard that there are others in Qalae
|
| underneath the hem of her skirt is a
| |
| | Zaman Khan. But they change their
|
| shimmer of gauze stockings. Her neatly
| |
| | location every few months to avoid
|
| trimmed brunette hair falls in straight
| |
| | detection.” When they do get caught,
|
| tresses to her shoulders. Her eyebrows
| |
| | judicial authorities are bribed and the
|
| are plucked thin into perfect arches and
| |
| | accused gets away with only a few lashes.
|
| there is no make-up to mar her glowing
| |
| | Aqazad, who worked at a brothel in Qalae
|
| complexion. Though she looks barely 20,
| |
| | Musa, recalls one such incident. “The
|
| Diva claims she’s 28.
| |
| | Taliban once picked up one of the girls
|
| “I graduated from collage in geophysics
| |
| | on charges of zina, but the pimp paid the
|
| and used to work for the government,”
| |
| | judicial officer six million Afghanis who
|
| she says. But life changed dramatically
| |
| | in turn advised the girl to plead not
|
| for Diva in 1995 when she was abducted
| |
| | guilty. The prosecution was reined in,
|
| and raped allegedly by some fighters of
| |
| | and she was only imprisoned for 60 days
|
| the Hizb-I-Islami in the southern
| |
| | and received 20 lashes.” In Kabul,
|
| Chilistoon district of Kabul. “I
| |
| | however, court cases based on charges of
|
| returned to work for a brief period, but
| |
| | adultery are few and far between. “It
|
| in September 1996 the Taliban overran
| |
| | is difficult to keep an eye on all the
|
| Kabul and ordered women to stay home.”
| |
| | beggars and monitor shops throughout the
|
| Left without a dependable source of
| |
| | day. Even if a suspect is found in a
|
| income, Diva was forced into
| |
| | shop, she can conveniently plead that she
|
| prostitution.
| |
| | was just begging. Besides, it is very
|
| Diva lives with her aged mother and three
| |
| | difficult to prove adultery under the
|
| sisters, one of whom is a prostitute and
| |
| | Islamic Law, which requires four
|
| the other a widow with three children.
| |
| | God-fearing witnesses who have seen the
|
| She has a 15-year-old brother who works
| |
| | act’ as clearly as a thread going
|
| at a smithy for 100,000 Afghanis a month.
| |
| | though the eye of a needle’” explains
|
| With their combined incomes, the family
| |
| | the source in Hauz-I-Awwal.
|
| appears to be in a position to survive,
| |
| | As an added protection, the brothels
|
| however modestly, on its own.
| |
| | entertain the Taliban free of charge.
|
| Aqazad, a 35-year-old Tajik woman, is not
| |
| | “One of the reasons I left the house
|
| as glamorous as Diva and only half as
| |
| | (brothel) was that every two or three
|
| business-like. But her price is the same:
| |
| | days a group of Taliban youngsters would
|
| 200,000 Afghanis. “The money is only
| |
| | drop in and want to do it for free,”
|
| enough to buy 10 naans, which is less
| |
| | says Aqazad. “I decided to move out.”
|
| than what my family needs to feed itself
| |
| | A former member of the religious police
|
| for one day,” she points out, defending
| |
| | confirms the involvement of the Taliban
|
| her rates. Aqazad has four daughters and
| |
| | in such affairs and even provides an
|
| two sons. The daughters sometimes take in
| |
| | explanation.
|
| laundry, while thee sons, both of them
| |
| | “Communists and lechers have grown
|
| less than 10 years old, beg on the
| |
| | beards and infiltrated the Taliban ranks.
|
| streets. Her husband was an Afghan army
| |
| | They will do anything to defame the
|
| officer who died in the battle of
| |
| | Taliban.” He recalls the time when some
|
| Jalalabad in 1989. Between 1992 to 1996,
| |
| | of his colleagues took him to a brothel.
|
| Aqazad ran a grocery stall in the
| |
| | “There they smoked hashish, performed
|
| northern Khairkhana district. That lasted
| |
| | adultery and cracked jokes about Islam.
|
| till the Taliban ordered all stalls run
| |
| | Some four months later, the entire gang
|
| by women to be closed down.
| |
| | disappeared without a trace. And it was
|
| According to Aqazad, she is extremely
| |
| | only later that a friend told me that
|
| good at tar-shumar, the cross-stitch
| |
| | they were ex-communists from the
|
| embroidery which is used to decorate
| |
| | Ningarhar province, out to have fun.”
|
| women’s wear and shoulder bags. “I
| |
| | There are indications that poverty-driven
|
| could embroider for large handicraft
| |
| | prostitution is not confined to Kabul
|
| exports who pay well, but the Taliban do
| |
| | alone. Faced with abject poverty, women
|
| not allow women to interact with male
| |
| | in other cities of Afghanistan are also
|
| businessmen. And I have no male relatives
| |
| | turning to this profession. Mariam is one
|
| through whom I can deal with the
| |
| | of them. She lost her husband in a rocket
|
| exporters.” Both Diva and Aqazad hail
| |
| | attack on their house in the western
|
| from that enormous cross-section of
| |
| | Border City of Heart two years ago. She
|
| Afghani society whose male breadwinners
| |
| | lived for six months without the means to
|
| have either been incapacitated or
| |
| | buy food for her six starving children.
|
| consumed by the 20-year war, leaving the
| |
| | Following a period of acute anxiety
|
| women and children to fend for
| |
| | during which she went as far as
|
| themselves. The World Food Program
| |
| | contemplating suicide, she turned to
|
| estimates that this segment numbers
| |
| | prostitution.” Among my clients were
|
| between 60,000 to 120,000 individuals in
| |
| | many Taliban soldiers and qomandans
|
| Kabul alone. Banned from work by the
| |
| | (commanders) who were generous as well as
|
| Taliban, these women have very few
| |
| | gently,” she recalls. But things got
|
| options other than begging on the streets
| |
| | really bad when the massing of Iranian
|
| or becoming prostitutes in order to feed
| |
| | troops on Heart’s border around
|
| themselves and their dependants.
| |
| | mid-1998 brought hordes of unruly Taliban
|
| “There are hundreds of prostitutes
| |
| | youth to the city. “They were wild and
|
| roaming the streets of Kabul and their
| |
| | tight-fisted, and when I demanded money,
|
| numbers are rising every day,” asserts
| |
| | they said they would prefer to pay my
|
| Zarghuna Hashemi, a Kabul-based
| |
| | daughter who was reaching puberty.”
|
| spokeswoman of the Revolutionary
| |
| | Four months ago, Mariam sold whatever
|
| Association of the Women of Afghanistan
| |
| | little she could muster to buy a ticket
|
| (RAWA). “They are not the regular
| |
| | to Pakistan.
|
| professionals we had in Kabul before or
| |
| | The wisdom of the Taliban’s so-called
|
| during the war. These women are a product
| |
| | Islamic policies is being debated all
|
| of the economic turmoil of the last three
| |
| | over the world. While concerned members
|
| years.” The economic turmoil in
| |
| | of the international community continue
|
| Afghanistan has indeed been severe. Over
| |
| | to express their outrage at the state of
|
| the last three years, the price of wheat
| |
| | affairs, the predicament of the women
|
| flour has risen by around 450 per cent to
| |
| | living in Taliban controlled Afghanistan
|
| 80,000 Afghanis per maund. While a
| |
| | goes from bad to worse. Taliban rhetoric
|
| five-Kilogram canister of ghee carries a
| |
| | may claim that the ban on working women
|
| price tag of 210,000 Afghanis, kerosene
| |
| | has been imposed to protect them from the
|
| oil costs 60,000 per gallon. The prices,
| |
| | “ignominy” of dealing with men and
|
| moreover, continue to escalate while the
| |
| | braving the world on their own. But it is
|
| average government salary remains stuck
| |
| | these very repressive policies that are
|
| between 110,000 to 300,000 Afghanis per
| |
| | forcing increasing numbers of Afghani
|
| month.
| |
| | women to resort to the beasts of
|
| The monthly wages of manual laborers are
| |
| | professions in the desperate struggle to
|
| even lower and do not exceed one million
| |
| | survive.
|
| Afghanis, provided, of course, that work
| |
| |
|
