‘Bacha-Bazi’ phenomenon in Afghanistan has worried the United Nations
The United Nations in its latest report has called on the Afghan government, to raise awareness of sexual violence in war zones as a crime in the country.
The United Nations released its report on the phenomenon of Bacha Bazi or sexual abuse of teenagers in Afghanistan on Tuesday.
The organization insistently urged the Afghan government in order to strengthen the country’s justice and judiciary systems, accountability and resolution of crimes related to sexual violence, allocate necessary measures.
The United Nations added that Afghanistan should coordinate its action plan in accordance with UN Security Council Resolution 1325 and recognize ‘Bacha Bazi’ as an offense.
The long-standing phenomenon of Bacha Bazi is one of the worst human rights violations in Afghanistan, of which the perpetrators are usually powerful and local leaders. They harass and sexually abuse young boys, make them wear women’s clothes and drool them.
This phenomenon is not explicitly defined in Afghan legislation, and no specific punishment has been foreseen for perpetrators.
A few months ago, the government of Afghanistan, for the first time, drafted a draft law to combat child abuse and child sexual abuse. The plan has been approved by the Council of Ministers, but it has to be approved by the House of Representatives for its implementation, and the president must sign it.
The United Nations has stated that prolonged instability with impunity, cultural discrimination, has restricted the publication of reports of sexual violence in Afghanistan.
According to United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) in 2016, eleven cases of sexual violence against women, girls and boys in conflict zones have been recorded by the parties involved, such as the police and the Taliban group.
