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Afghanistan's Dancing Boys

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BBC World Service - The Documentary, World Stories, Afghanistan's Dancing Boys

The story of the dancing boys of Afghanistan who are exposed to sexual abuse

In a society where the sexes are strictly segregated, it is common for boys to dance for men at weddings and traditional gatherings. But the tradition exposes the boys to sexual abuse.

"Bacha" is a term for a teenage boy who dresses up as a girl and dances for men at parties in Afghanistan. 

In a society where the sexes are strictly segregated, it is common for boys to dance for men at weddings and traditional gatherings.

However, it is what happens after the party that is the most disturbing. Many of the boys, some as young as 12 years old, are taken to hotels and sexually abused - sometimes by several men.

This is a practice that is dramatically at odds with the kind of society that the country's Western partners hope to encourage but - according to some reports - it is also a phenomenon that is growing.

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