$(document).ready( function () { talk_rendercallback({"enabled":"0","islive":"0","eid":6500,"total":"545","discussion":[{"nm":"tigerVN","rs":"0","ms":"US service memvers die for this. IT is disgusting and sicken practice. ","pt":"May  3, 2010 22:46"},{"nm":"Jeffrey Fried","rs":"0","ms":"The practice of pedophilia exists in every country, so it is no surprise that in a country with such a corrupt regime, it exists there too.  At no time did the author of this piece provide the viewers with a sense of the frequency when compared to other countries or a sense of how often this is a matter of slavery vs. a matter of consent.  I am disturbed by this video, but not simply because of its presentation of this terrible practice of sexual slavery, rather in this case because the purpose of this film can only be to discredit the government of Afghanistan in a manner that will motivate even the hard right. If this was a real exposé on pedophilia the focus would have extended beyond Afghanistan.  I am against the wars in Iraq, and as currently executed to prop up a corrupt regime, Afghanistan as well, however, this film is nothing more than clever propaganda used to charge the entire government of Afghanistan by implication because this practice exists at all.  The producers should be ashamed of such a cheap shot that insults all of Islam. ","pt":"May  3, 2010 20:59"},{"nm":"Hamza","rs":"0","ms":"\nIronically, this disgusting practice died under the Taleban. \n\nThe Taleban need to be brought back into power, and then their more moderate (but still Islamist) elements need to be co-opted so that Al-Qaeda and Terrorist organizations can find no safe harbor in Afghanistan. If you want to see what happens when we make business deals and act friendly towards a very orthodox Islamic government system, then lets looks West and see the pros and cons of our friendship with Saudi Arabia. The only difference between Saudi Arabia and the Taleban government was about a trillion dollars and some bad will.","pt":"May  3, 2010 19:30"},{"nm":"Jessica","rs":"0","ms":"HEY EVERYONE: If you want to help- check out this NPO for Afghanistan: \n\<a href=&quot;http://www.mountain2mountain.org/&quot;\>http://www.mountain2mountain.org/\<\/a\>\n\nTHIS is how you can help:) ","pt":"May  3, 2010 14:32"},{"nm":"hasnain mahmood","rs":"0","ms":"it was disturbing to learn about such act. im of the view that afghans need to be given a chance of electing a powerfull and independent government which only can eleminate such practices.unfortunately the current afghan rulers are running their government with the backing of these powerfull warlords,druglords involved in bachaa bazi.As far as i know if a taliban leader is involved in such activities ,he must had given up as american droones can not let him stay at one place for long time and hence he do not get time to do such things.Now if the repoter can openly tell the true affiliations of the persons involved in bacha bazi then one can know why bacha bazi can not be finished from the afghanistan.I will also like to mention that bacha bazi is not related to their reliegion but to their traditions.   ","pt":"May  3, 2010 10:21"},{"nm":"Alex Saylor","rs":"0","ms":"Disturbing is almost too mild an adjective to used. The revelation of this &quot;custom&quot; should be more widely publisized. Educating the public to the hypocrisy which exist within the Muslim community would serve to dispell any tolerance of their so called religious ideology which condons the mistreatment of women and now it seems poor families and their children.\n\nHow can the barbaric behavior of these men be ignored? Many thanks to the reporter and PBS for illuminating this little know behavior. Job well done!\n\nPlease continue to educate the public to this primitive countries wicked cultural behaviors. Perhaps it may prove once and for all that Afghanistan is not worthy of compassion but in need of massive, perhps unattainable, reform.","pt":"May  2, 2010 18:37"},{"nm":"Raquel","rs":"0","ms":"I missed the first part this program, but saw enough of it to make an impact that were disturbing. For those young men who are/were subjects of this piece, their images will stay in my mind for awhile. There was haunting video footage of that one boy who was said to have been killed. He was physically beautiful, with a vacant look in his eyes (possible heroin addiction?) at the same time his confidence shined through knowing he was much in demand. In a &quot;perfect world&quot; ancient cultural practices like the dancing and music part  -- would be skills that someone with his starlike qualities would have been presented to the world, he would have had the money to be educated, given opportunities and he would  be embraced as as a performance artist. And for the pediphilia, there would be laws requiring painful punishment that would be enforced. However, that boy and others like him are purposely kept ignorant, under control, treated harshly and even killed if they anger their masters, they\'re forever broken. that\'s me basing my western values on an ancient unfamiliar culture.   All those boys/ young men will be in my prayers and I hope in yours too, which is a great way to start  ","pt":"May  2, 2010 06:40"},{"nm":"Francisco","rs":"0","ms":"Well, I made my last comment before finishing the documentary and now after reading a few comments I can say that I don\'t see how we as humans will be able to stop these horrible acts. \n\nI was actually surprised that this type of stuff would happen in a society that is known for their deep religious beliefs. I\'m baffled by their hypocrisy. How can this take place in this deeply religious society. \n\nAnd then we are left with the question, how to stop this? I\'m afraid that we cannot stop it since I believe that it is part of human nature. This might be happening since humans walked the earth, this should not be new. \n\nWill western democracy help resolve this problem? I believe not, since we too have this problem. I just think that it will drive it into the dark corners of society. We can only hope that it is oppressed and not widely practiced. \n\nI hope that in the future this will just be one of the dark periods of our history, a time where these acts don\'t take place. ","pt":"May  2, 2010 01:42"},{"nm":"Warren ","rs":"0","ms":"I wish people would stop comparing America with Afghanistan in respect to pedohilia. We have a judicial system here in America that deals rather harshly with pedohiles. And if that isn\'t enough, what happens after you get to prison can be harsh. We don\'t have dances and pimping of children going on in this country....if you do that sort of thing and get caught, your penalty will be severe!","pt":"May  2, 2010 01:38"},{"nm":"Warren","rs":"0","ms":"It is amazing how people can miss the big picture and get off on tangents. We need to remember these are human children that are being taken advantage of. We treat dogs with more respect than these humans. There are people responding here who would rather help some animal than see beyond there selfish and perverted desires and help a defenseless child. Instead of blaming christian or muslim religions, why don\'t we think about these HUMAN children and think of the nightmare they are going through. Whether you are a Catholic priest or a muslim pedophile who rapes children you are wrong. Being denied the natural use of a woman, or choosing to turn away from the natural affection of the woman, this is where your appetites will end, in perversion! I can\'t believe the people who try to justify this injustice, by stating history and culture and whatever nonsense they can come up with. This is wrong and perverted and every old kind of filthy, nasty ,reprehensible degradation that can be leveled on an innocent. I wish i was a superhero who could come to the rescue of these innocents,thinking about this too much will make you want to cry! i guess all we can do is pray to God that there will be some justice.","pt":"May  2, 2010 01:21"},{"nm":"Francisco","rs":"0","ms":"Wow, I don\'t know how people can do this to children. It is depressing that this is not just happening in this region of the world but it is virtually part of every culture. Something has to be done and while I agree that this is in part caused by the oppression of women, I would disagree. These people are just sick, because even in Western culture this takes place. It is just more subtle and in the shadows of our society.\n\nI\'m left wondering if this war will actually help out the people of Afghanistan or will we just replace one evil for another evil when our troops leave.  ","pt":"May  2, 2010 01:11"},{"nm":"MCB","rs":"0","ms":"As the father of two young boys I cannot find the strength to view this program...it is all to horrifying. It would seem that as a consequence of the strictures of this so-called religion (access to young women is severely restricted while young boys are readily available) that such a sub-culture could flourish. As these so-called men express, it is not so much the physical relations that are important, utterly possessing one of these unfortunate boys is an ultimate symbol of power. If your world is a prison what else can one expect?? This practice has existed for centuries especially in this part of the world. You have done a service in exposing this corrupt and immoral practice hopefully hastening a change.","pt":"May  1, 2010 22:39"},{"nm":"Abu Zubayr","rs":"0","ms":"When the Taliban was in power, people got the death penatly for this behavior.\n\nOnly after Taliban is gone, does this culture flourish.\n\n@ Elizabeth... Islam gives ultimate empowerment to not only Woman but all Human Beings.\n\nIt takes you from the worship of the creation, to the worship of the Creator.","pt":"May  1, 2010 21:57"},{"nm":"Elizabeth","rs":"0","ms":"I totally agree with the comments suggesting the link between the subjugation of women in Afghan society and the boys\' exploitation. This is what happens when the voices of women are silent. This is the savage world of testosterone when it is not tempered by the wisdom of the mother. We don\'t need to go to war with countries like this. They defeat themselves everyday when they keep the givers of life in virtual prisons and rape the little boys who are to be their future. When you don\'t respect, protect and LIFT UP women and children you will never build anything. The countries that have realized that have the highest standard of living in the world to show for it.","pt":"May  1, 2010 19:24"},{"nm":"jp","rs":"0","ms":"Sickening. The more I learn about these middle easterners, the more disgusted I get. I don\'t understand the mindset. Don\'t think I ever will. How did we manage to replace the taliban with these people? ","pt":"May  1, 2010 16:32"},{"nm":"basir","rs":"0","ms":"This is a sick thing to do for god sak how can they call themself man and fathers.thank you frontline,I like to know as an afghan i like to help these familes.pleas send me a e mail.thank you. Basir","pt":"May  1, 2010 15:37"},{"nm":"kat","rs":"0","ms":"child abuse is wrong and have to be dealt with, but it is not going on only in Afghanistan or arab nations there are many kids that get molested by their parents and family members in america and no one cares about it until they grow up and write books about it and their family still refuse to believe in their stories, evil exist in every nation it is not only certain countries so lets not make it like it it is some peoples blood to do wrong and the rest are angles.","pt":"Apr 30, 2010 19:28"},{"nm":"Aimlow Joe","rs":"0","ms":"This horrible abuse goes on in all Arab nations and many other societies. It is the cause of suicide bombers. No one straps a bomb and kills themselves and others if they have been have been raised in a healthy and nurturing environment.\n\nA country that practices such brutality will never evolve into a peaceful nation. See Alice Waters and Lloyd De Mause\'s work on the history of childhood and its effect on the emotional lives of nations.\nAimlow Joe\n\<a href=&quot;http://www.aimlow.com&quot;\>http://www.aimlow.com\<\/a\>","pt":"Apr 30, 2010 14:26"},{"nm":"Maureen ","rs":"0","ms":"We need to get these children out of Afghanistan but I understand that Afghanistan doesn\'t allow adoption.  We can\'t just sit by and do nothing.  Write to the President \<a href=&quot;http://www.whitehouse.gov/contact&quot;\>http://www.whitehouse.gov/contact\<\/a\> and Secretary of State Clinton at \<a href=&quot;http://contact-us.state.govand&quot;\>http://contact-us.state.govand\<\/a\> ask them to help us help the children of Afganistan.  ","pt":"Apr 30, 2010 10:04"},{"nm":"Immanuel","rs":"0","ms":"Let\'s bury once and for all the false dichotomy between power and sex, as in: &quot;rape is about power and not sex&quot;. That\'s true in the same way that &quot;bank robberies are not about money&quot; is [not] true. For the male of the species, sexual expression and aggression (though not necessarily violence or degradation) go hand in hand. It\'s just part of our primate nature. Power is about expression of self in all its aspects. In the case of Afghan war lords\' indulging their predilection for young men socio-economic power equates with having the means to keep a bacha bazzi. It is a question of prestige, but only because it is about a form of erotic idealization.  \n\nThe abduction and rape of young men is criminal and should be prosecuted. Clearly not all sexual activity that goes on in these situations can be classified as rape (coercive). For every young man who has to be forced there is one who aspires to be the dancing boy of a powerful warlord; the object of his affection and pride. It is a credit to Frontline that this aspect of acceptance on the part of some kept boys was conveyed in the larger context of the outrageous abuse that inevitably accompanies such practices. \n\nAs Westerners we fixate on the sexual aspect and assume it must be demeaning, though to me it is the least interesting and most natural aspect of the relationship. What I find fascinating is how Afghan men who sleep with other men--men who may well be husbands and fathers--balk at the idea of identifying themselves as homosexual. We tend to be overly concerned with someone\'s BEING gay or straight. Other cultures and ages do not see the necessity of creating a separate identity for certain acts that satisfy a desire. It stands to reason that if I am a husband and father that\'s how I am going to represent myself in society. Never mind that I may have a raging passion for other men sexually. That is, after all, just an one appetite among others: that is to say, something I lack (rather than possess or produce). \n\nIt would be interesting to learn more about this practice\'s resurgence. Specifically, whether there have been cycles of repression and resurgence in the past. It seems to be as old as the Persian culture itself, that is, thousands of years old. It bears some resemblance to the Greek institution of pederasty, and institution that regulated and channeled what appears to be a widespread inclination on the part of the males of the species. An institution that is best classified as a sort of right of initiation in the broadest sense. \n\nIf the relationship were purely exploitative and coercive it would loose all value for the men who cultivate it. While at its most valuable the relationship would be that of reciprocated love. For what could make a keeper of boys more proud that the affection of his charge (\'slave\')? \n\nThe question is: at what age is a human being capable of giving his consent to pleasure? There are countries in which it is fourteen, and an examination of the history of the age(s) of consent would most likely reveal that for the vast majority of human cultures throughout history it has been even younger. But some will argue nature--and even history--have nothing to teach us about such matters. We today for the first time understand what is seemly and &quot;natural&quot;. \n\n\n ","pt":"Apr 30, 2010 04:30"},{"nm":"J. Lyn","rs":"0","ms":"I was distusted by not surprised.  When a society which practices sexual repression and segregates the genders deviant sexual expression will rise its ugly head as it has with Bacha Bazi.  Homosexuality and pedophilia exists in all cultures. Yet, the lack of legal enforcement to curb this problem stems as many of the problems within Afghanistan because of wide sprend government  corruption.  Instead of the government being a solution it is included in the problem.  Perhaps by shinning a light on the practice of the sex trade of boys within Afganistan will help bring public attention to this practice and bring shame to those who involve themselves in it and encourage other countries to put pressure on the Afghans to stop this practice.","pt":"Apr 30, 2010 03:12"},{"nm":"jensen","rs":"0","ms":"why they do this dancing parties only with boys why not girls? the program didn\'t explain that.","pt":"Apr 30, 2010 02:31"},{"nm":"wow","rs":"0","ms":"great documentary...\nnow if only they could fully expose the pope and his pervert priests... alter boys are becoming altered boys. right here in usa..","pt":"Apr 30, 2010 02:19"},{"nm":"Sarah","rs":"0","ms":"I have two little boys and this almost made me throw up.  If a war (fabricated or not) is the only thing that\'s going to get these backwards traditions stopped then maybe it\'s worth it.","pt":"Apr 30, 2010 01:29"},{"nm":"marzia","rs":"0","ms":"I\'m disgusted, both as a Muslim and as an Afghan of these people! Shame on them for exploiting these kids and making their miserable lives even more miserable! Shame on the Karzai government for looking the other way while his ministers, police officers/chiefs, aka Drug dealers, rape and sexually abuse children! These kids are the future of Afghanistan and instead of making sure they get an education, they do this? I think the men of Afghanistan need to cover up and sit at home and let the women do the work. Over the past few decades all the men have done is cause chaos, death, genocide, and disturbing crimes like this! It\'s about time they step aside and let the women of the country better our nation!","pt":"Apr 29, 2010 16:42"},{"nm":"ZedEnglis","rs":"0","ms":"Thank you Frontline. This also happens in many middle eastern countries in different format. Your expose is very important and thanks Najibollah for his courage and dedication to his native country.","pt":"Apr 29, 2010 01:25"},{"nm":"Rebecca","rs":"0","ms":"Well said, R. Scott Harrison.  Thanks for sharing your thoughts.  These children will be in my prayers.","pt":"Apr 28, 2010 23:42"},{"nm":"Muneerahl","rs":"0","ms":"This documentary was truly disturbing.I cannot comprehend the trauma the children and the families go through at the hands of the pimps and the government officials or whoever &quot;is in power&quot;.These crimes need to be stopped.I cannot imagine that the US government or army does not know about these things.All assistance to Afghanistan and Iraq should be stopped until the perpetrators of these crimes are locked up! This seems to be a vicious cycle where the boys are trained to be dancers and then sex slaves and eventually end up pimping other innocent boys.I dread to think what might be happening to young girls and women there! \nKudos to Najibullah and Frontline to bringing this out in the open and i wish this was aired on national televison, not just on PBS.This is a prevalent &quot;tradition&quot; in Muslim societies and they need to do something about it,instead of asking financial or military assistance from the west all the time.They need to focus on education and eradication of poverty.","pt":"Apr 28, 2010 22:48"},{"nm":"Thomas melbert","rs":"0","ms":"May Frontline continue to represent one of the last bastions of investigative journalism.  Yet it seems to me that nothing can be done about the abuses that occur in world\npoverty and overpopulation.  How can anything but an angry and distant God be allowing all this to happen?  There is a logic to animal cruelty, but homo homini lupus.\nThe hopeless minimum we can do is to withdraw and defend  our fallible bastion in the West!  It\'s almost as if our only hope is invasion or exterpation by more advanced aliens!","pt":"Apr 28, 2010 21:13"},{"nm":"Xiocomara","rs":"0","ms":"This has nothing to do with being GAY ignoramuses.  These are young boys who are not old enough to make their own choices.  What the hell does this have to do with being gay. This is all about POWER!","pt":"Apr 28, 2010 18:22"},{"nm":"Xiocomara","rs":"0","ms":"I happened upon this documentary and was unable to stop watching - they way you see a horrific accident and are unable to take your gaze away.  I am so glad that the people making this documentary managed to help Shaffiq. At least I can sleep tonight.  This practise is absolutely disturbing and it makes my skin crawl. It was heartwrenching to see these powerful men and the control they have over these poor boys and their families.  ","pt":"Apr 28, 2010 18:10"},{"nm":"R. Scott Harrison","rs":"0","ms":"Thank you, Frontline!  This story brought me to tears many times.  No child or young adult deserves to be treated like this.\n\nThis might seem rather hypocritical for a Muslim society that condemns homosexuality, but the real issue is child abuse here.  Though ages of consent for sexual activity vary from culture to culture, these are young boys who are taken advantage of when they are most vulnerable.  \n\nSadly, this kind of abusiveness is not all that uncommon around the world in many societies, whether they be of Buddhist, Hindu, Muslim, Christian, or other religious or philosophical persuasions.  Children, including boys, not to mention girls and women of all ages, far too often are still seen by men in positions of power as objects rather than as people.  This presentation is very important and extremely well done.\n\nThe truth is that we can all do something to help stop this kind of abuse.  For starters, we can share about this presentation with others.  Next, for those so inclined, we can pray and/or advocate on behalf of someone who is taken advantage of, in either Western or other societies.  Lest any of us judge, we need to remember that the same kind of abuse happens every day to runaway, missing and homeless youth on the streets of America, Canada, Europe, Australia and New Zealand.  \n\nWhile it might seem hypocritical for us as North Americans, Europeans or others to allow such things to happen when we consider ourselves to be people concerned about the welfare of others, that is only true in so far as we do not act.  \n\nWe may feel that there is little on a practical level that any one of us can do to stop actual abuse, aside from educating others.  However, advocating and praying for those in need as well as giving to reputable organizations that help those less fortunate, in terms of time and money, also makes a huge difference in the world for those most at risk.\n","pt":"Apr 28, 2010 17:53"},{"nm":"Natasha ","rs":"0","ms":"This program struck me to the core. I couldn\'t believe the horrific suffering that goes on in Afghanistan with women and young boys. It is very hard to fight against a government agency and culture. I would love to do something, but I don\'t know what to do. If there is anything I could do please let me know. ","pt":"Apr 28, 2010 16:36"},{"nm":"Bill B","rs":"0","ms":"My earlier message was cut off:    \n        Secondly, the almost total public denial and hysteria concerning children’s sexuality enflames this issue out of all proportion. I personally was five years old when I began experimenting with friends. By ten and twelve it was a constant pastime among many children I knew who were not terrorized by their parents or frightened by religious taboos (and even many who were), and about then I began to gravitate to adults. By fourteen, a psychotherapist my family forced me to said I was the most well read and confirmed homosexual that he’d ever seen and asked me “Now, how do we calm down your parents?” “That,” I clearly remember telling him, “is your job.” Being a good Catholic he had ten children, so I presume he knew something about children.\n\n       Of course, parents can be understood and forgiven for their worries and concerns about their children’s experiences and vulnerability, but not to the extent of hysterical denial, distortion of fact and nature, and inflicting an aura of filth and deprivation about the human aspect of sexuality. How many suicides have resulted from the Catholic guilt imposed over just masturbation? If adult Hasidics want to have sex through a hole in a sheet because their wives are polluted, is that not equally perverse and psychologically depraved? As for children, many sociological studies have shown when so called “abuse” does occur, it is far more often the resulting family and societal stigma, fear, upset, guilt and chaos which do far more damage to the child than whatever physical experience transpired. In fact, an individual may come to self-hate, and self-servingly blame every mistake and misfortune that life has offered on the great “taboo” event that they can remember in the past or may imagine happened many years later all caused by some supposed demon of an adult. This likely self-deception is mightily helped by social hysterical sexual purists or idealists,witch hunts and may even be encouraged by a hoped-for financial payout from some august institution.\n\n      Let us also recall how very acceptable it has been from every era and many cultures that child brides who served the ambitions of the state or just the desires of rich and powerful men were quite common and acceptable. I would be the first to demand retribution for physical harm to anyone, and I am not a member of NAMBLA as someone here accused me of, but we must be careful not to inflate and conjure superstitions. And confusing the issues of slavery or even murder with a particular kind of sexuality, or trying to link them to spread fear, hatred or bigotry is misrepresenting reality and far from dealing with the problem.\n\n       No one molested me. I was not “made” homosexual, except by whatever Gods or nature give such a gift. Nor as an adult am I attracted to “children” any more than any other human being who appreciates their tenderness and beauty, but I think children primarily become a sexual focus when the society and culture is so restrictive and inhibiting of natural and particularly adult sexual avenues. The fact that the bacha bazi boys are dressed as women suggests this. Prison sex or sailor play is primarily a very heterosexual release or routine, a frustration substitution or power play forced on or utilizing those at hand. I personally felt having to somehow pretend or represent the boys as women was the most telltale aspect. It is in the same category as our culture’s dominant male titillation with lesbianism and yet off the wall horror and rejection of homosexuality. \n\n       The world of priests is another example, or the world of the Islamic traditionalists, like the Taliban (who manage to be even more prudish, denying and close minded than our ultra conservative Catholics, Mormons and Hasidics). These mind-controlling, body-denying nature-adverse systems and advocates seek to unduly restrict mutual adult behavior, not only premarital sex, but prostitution and homosexuality. Since even animals engage in homosexual behavior, it cannot be “unnatural” as is the basis of their prohibitions or at least the excuse they so like to proclaim. To this end they also blot out any realization or acceptance that children may develop a precocious sexuality all by themselves.\n","pt":"Apr 28, 2010 14:22"},{"nm":"Nellie Plasencia","rs":"0","ms":"I watched dancing boys last night and was appauled; I know about the despicable acts humans; why is this information not pesented by the national media; all of the USA needs to know what is going on in all parts of the world!  The US should not ever do business with countries that exploit humans......easier said than done.  Seems like power and money rule.","pt":"Apr 28, 2010 10:29"},{"nm":"Star","rs":"0","ms":"Bill B.  Please clairfy?  Are you saying that &quot;boy play&quot; or &quot;boy love&quot; is not a form of sexual abuse of a minor?  Or are you saying that these poor and orphaned children are being helped?  I don\'t want to judge, I just want to understand your point.  You seem to have a background understanding of this that I am missing?!?\n\nDid anyone read the Kite Runner?","pt":"Apr 28, 2010 09:07"},{"nm":"Mark","rs":"0","ms":"This was shocking and difficult to watch. However the documentary represents amazing courage and humanity of PBS and Najibullah Quraishi. Both PBS and Najibullah should be awarded the highest recognitions and awards for having courage to produce such a shocking powerful witness statement of this horrific practice. This is not a tradition that any culture or tribe should view as tradition, this is clearly terrible crime that should be persecuted by all possible and available means and forces. Things like this are product of complex social historical and political circumstances, however ignorance about sexuality and lack of natural, ethical and acceptable sexual life (of those ignorant masters) certainly contributes to creating of this practice as ‘compensation’.\nThis documentary not only saved this innocent boy but affected to the change of mind and behavior of some perpetrators. Hopefully the long term affect will be contribution to reducing and complete eradication of these barbaric and inhumane practices that someone (in his own ignorance) calls tradition. I strongly hope that this wonderful work of the highest professionalism in journalism and humanity will move UN and powerful authorities all around the world to put an end on this practice immediately.\n","pt":"Apr 28, 2010 03:16"},{"nm":"Mansoor","rs":"0","ms":"On Bill B\'s comment I\'m just shaking my head in bewilderment. This probably wasn\'t the appropriate forum to espouse NAMBLA idiocy. This issue isn\'t one of homosexuality, class, religion, culture, or poverty and in no reasonable person\'s mind is it understandable or forgivable. This is straight up only about child molestation/rape and also probably a little related to the subjugation of women in Afghanistan. These 2 issues exist within all 4 major ethnicities and within both sects of Islam in Afghanistan. They transcend class and wealth. I\'m no fan of the Taliban but at least they did something about it. How can America ever get out of the mess that is Afghanistan when the government we support is corrupt enough to allow this practice to continue? Frontline staff, outstanding film and I hope to see more work from you and Mr. Quraishi.     ! ډیره مننه او ستړې مه شئ","pt":"Apr 28, 2010 01:27"},{"nm":"Zuhair","rs":"0","ms":"Islam is not the origin of these sins.  These are common to man.  Islam is more gentle on the passions of men than the other two monotheistic faiths.  Moses and Jesus allowed too little room for human weakness so the people could not bear and they offended God.  When Prophet Muhammed came, he revealed more moderate way in which man can be real man and also faithful.  While the Prophet liked the younger and pretty girls, he may not have done bacha bazi.  Nonetheless, Islam can not criticize those who do.  That puts man in a position where he is trying to improve himself and rise above his nature.  This is pointless and inshallah, the world entire will come to be more understanding of these things.\n\nZuhair Abbassi\nIslamabad","pt":"Apr 27, 2010 23:56"},{"nm":"Hamid Gul","rs":"0","ms":"I am not Afghan but Pakistan man and I am hate to see these things in poor land of Afghan.  But it is not correct to say Bacha Bazi comes from Pakistan.  It is legacy of Persian culture truly.  Those who are read Ghazals of Hafiz in Persian know that some of the greatest Persian poetry is about the bacha bareesh (without beard boy).  Hafiz has his name because he was memorize the Koran before he became Sufi and prefered taverns and boys.  And I am not criticize.  In Pakistan, Pathan people are make bacha bazi on special evening too, sometimes Hazara people in Abbotabad as well.  But it is not originally from Pakistan.  Punjabi culture does not cover women same as Pathan or Arab.  Is more like Indian and values pleasure of woman and sometimes even conversation.\n\nOverall, good movie for understand Afghania and Middle Asia in general.","pt":"Apr 27, 2010 23:50"},{"nm":"Leland","rs":"0","ms":"By defending closeted homosexual pedophiles who claim to be part-time muslims, makes me question a persons motives.  Bacha Bazi is indefensible as much as Catholic priest touching little boys America & Europe.  To try and defend something so reprehensible by stating America should clean it\'s own backyard is such a weak argument.  Any culture that hates women as much as the Afghan culture does cannot help but breed closeted pedophiles.  People are born gay, but Afghanistan creates pedophiles.  I\'ll take a million porno shops over 1 pedophile any day, if your GAY, be GAY.  Stop sleeping with little boys, come out of the closet and try not to get stoned on the way out.","pt":"Apr 27, 2010 23:06"},{"nm":"Lisa","rs":"0","ms":"whoa whoa whoa whoa whoa. this guy is comparing the slavery and sexual abuse of adolescent boys to PORNO in AMERICA!?!?! pornography in america, whether or not you agree with it, is made and performed by consenting adults. it may not be working to empower the actors, but it is still QUITE far from the sexual slavery of CHILDREN.","pt":"Apr 27, 2010 22:11"},{"nm":"Suzanne","rs":"0","ms":"How dare one criticize from afar? This is not about &quot;our houses,&quot; this is about worldwide trafficking and abuse and exploitation of children. The geography of this abuse is neither here nor there.\n\nIt is nothing short of outrageous that one would defend such abhorrent exploitation of children and impoverished families and attempt to make this an argument of nationalism.","pt":"Apr 27, 2010 21:35"},{"nm":"gerorge","rs":"0","ms":"how dare you criticize the ways and ancients traditions of people from afar, take a closer look at your country and societies you will find a least 1 PORNO-SHOP in every corner in every major city in the usa. clean your house first , before you want to put down others people way of life.","pt":"Apr 27, 2010 18:48"},{"nm":"David ","rs":"0","ms":"Every one has to admit that even these stuff happen in the western world even in the churches.","pt":"Apr 27, 2010 15:36"},{"nm":"angy h","rs":"0","ms":"I was appauled at this practice. I couldn\'t help but feel so sorry for these boys. I have a 15 year old son. ","pt":"Apr 27, 2010 14:19"},{"nm":"watts Jai","rs":"0","ms":"thank you Bill B. i feel the same way.\neloquently expressed. ","pt":"Apr 27, 2010 01:48"},{"nm":"Zaphod","rs":"0","ms":"Those poor folks in Afghanistan. It\'s lucky we here in America aren\'t exploited by the rich and powerful, may they bask in their endless benevolence!","pt":"Apr 27, 2010 01:25"},{"nm":"Joe","rs":"0","ms":"There are some important journalistic ethics questions here.  \n\nAt what point do you save the boy from those men.  You know what they\'re up to.  You know what they are going to do but you leave and allow it all to happen?  It was very difficult to watch this all unfold.\n\nI suppose you could argue that by allowing the story to happen before your cameras, you\'re saving more lives, bringing more awareness to the situation but at the cost of watching a child\'s innocence destroyed and doing nothing.\n\nThis is really tough.","pt":"Apr 26, 2010 22:58"},{"nm":"Mary Alice","rs":"0","ms":"How many of these abused boys end up in Al Quaeda? I`m sure they are very bitter. Why does Al Quaeda not mention this degenerate practice? This is what happens when women are not respected in a culture.","pt":"Apr 26, 2010 22:09"},{"nm":"M. Jamil Hanifi","rs":"0","ms":"Bacha bazi is practiced in some social locations of Afghanistan. It is fundamentally a relation of power, an outcome of class inequality. As such and, in principle, it is not different than the sexual abuse of boys in the Catholic church and other corners of Euro-American culture. But Frontline\'s &quot;Dancing Boys of Afghanistan&quot; is clearly s\cripted and staged. Other than the ritual dances, the DBA contains very little local cultural and social integrity and authenticity.    ","pt":"Apr 26, 2010 20:35"},{"nm":"P.Mc Coy","rs":"0","ms":"Funny how some people here are pleading for &quot;tolerance and understanding,&quot; saying that this behavior is not typical of Afghanistan nor is it acceptable under Islam, but these same people, goaded by a maniacal media, won\'t give the same understanding to the Catholic Church. Are you going to arrest Karzai, just like you all want to arrest the Pope? Are you going to make slurs against Islam and Islamic history, just as you all do against Catholicism, with the same kind of hatred one hasn\'t seen since the time of the murderous Jacobins during the French Revolution- or Communistic Atheism?\n\n Abuse of children is tragic no matter who does it, but hypocrisy is far worse! I, for one, will hope that good Afghans prevail in this issue and equally I\'m going to ignore all of these neo-Jacobins, just as I would a White Supremacist!","pt":"Apr 26, 2010 18:46"},{"nm":"Alex","rs":"0","ms":"I saw this whole Program on the PBS last week ! And one question I asked my Self are we really Human ? Or just a Human under the Mask ? No matter civilized or uncivilized - How could you do such a this nasty and disgusting Sexual abuse to the KID ? This is inhumanity and plain wrong - I do not have any word that I can use nor I have any power or anger that I can express how much I hate those people who doing such a this disgusting operation to the innocent KID\'s God bless them and God Bless all of us ","pt":"Apr 26, 2010 17:31"},{"nm":"Bill B","rs":"0","ms":"       This Frontline program, “The Dancing Boys of Afghanistan, about the tradition of bacha bazi, is very sad and misleading because it does not get at the root of something but rather sensationalizes and demonizes a foreign tradition. We are told the practice of bacha bazi, translates as “boy play” which through the program gradually becomes synonymous with “boy love,” and that it originally comes from Pakistan (as an obvious way of keeping it murkily non-indigenous), but in fact, boy love is a tradition always existing in human history, and verifiably dating back millennia in Western culture and to the earliest years of Islamic and Persian history. I have no doubt boy love existed in the earliest caves.\n\n       Abuse, mistreatment, economic influence and even murder can be more often shown to be entangled and a result of heterosexual marriage, but no one is going to ascribe these evils to the very practice of marriage itself! The overly righteous and shallow Frontline expose rallies all the mainstream stereotypes, hysteria ad preconceived condemnations about sexuality, combines them with a foreign terrain, culture and economy where we are warring and provides no real history or examination of the broader issues of societal sexuality in general or the hot button topic of homosexuality, never mind children’s sexuality! In the first moments we see the reporter Najibullah Quaraishi grimacing and trying to insight or instill misgivings in boys who are eagerly looking at the bacha bazi videos for sale and who deny being bothered! \n\n       In our own American culture and relatively recent history we celebrate someone like Horatio Alger’s love of boys and admire his involvement and helping them. Or, in Europe Baron Wilhelm von Gloedon in Italy did the same for large part of an entire town through his art and relationships. These are just two prominent and undisputed examples of boy love that helped not only the boys but often their entire families well being. I remember at age seven or eight sitting in the grand dining room of the country club in Pelham Manor when the maitre\'d came over and ask my parents for my name and address because a vice-president of a major corporation who was in the room wanted to send me a gift. Need we bring up Malcom Forbes or George Cukor or probably tens of thousands of others interested in and helpful to young men?  Several times as a youth while traveling alone in airports or on air planes men gave me their business cards; how sorry I am that I never called them. There is no doubt it happens a thousand times a day in our own culture, so to look accusatively and simplistically to a much more difficult and coarser society with surprise and outrage is worse than ridiculous.\n","pt":"Apr 26, 2010 16:50"},{"nm":"Einsten Barnard","rs":"0","ms":"I do lament to watch such primitive societies still practicing such repulsive and animalistic habits, like the Bacha Bazi.. An act that indeed must be stop and those associated with such act must be incarcerated. I do understand that different societies have different values and traditions, and one must be tolerant of such social habits…….but when such tradition involves raping kids, such action must be stoped, and new values must be inculcated in such obtuse minded individuals.","pt":"Apr 26, 2010 15:10"},{"nm":"bill","rs":"0","ms":"PLEASE DONATE TO SHAFIQ!!!","pt":"Apr 26, 2010 14:52"},{"nm":"Mary B Filou, Ph. D","rs":"0","ms":"This is  a powerful documentary. PBS and the people on the ground are to be commended for bringing this dirty secret to our attention.  The more programs of this type, the more the secrets are exposed, the better the chance of improving conditions  A point not to be missed is the subservient position of women in this society.  One perpetrator commented that his wife\'s opinion did not matter.  When this society accords women greater equality, their voices will help eliminate such bestial practices.  My readings have shown that the more patriarchal the society, the more women are marginalized, the more bestial practices towards women and children are condoned. Womwn of the world should unite to help expose such practices - and perpetrators should be prosecuted to the law\'s max.","pt":"Apr 26, 2010 14:36"},{"nm":"Hani, Canada","rs":"0","ms":"This is why I watch Frontline. Your reporting extends beyond conventional boundaries to bring little-known views and facts to the rest of the world.  You remain objective, yet are not indifferent to human suffering. \n\nThank you. \n","pt":"Apr 26, 2010 14:25"},{"nm":"Laughing Ninja","rs":"0","ms":"Thanks again Frontline for an excellent and brave documentary. Keep up the great work and thanks for helping Shafiq.","pt":"Apr 26, 2010 11:49"},{"nm":"rebecca","rs":"0","ms":"\nthomas\ni am shocked to find that you think this is ok because it is not ofcourse being poor and not having enough to eat is bad but i know what i would choose if i was in this position (god forbid) these poor boys are being abused and this will have a great affect on them and its not just a few we\'re talking about there\'s thousands. wouldn\'t you rather go hungry instead of being abused & forced to have sex with these men and remember they are just kids. one of the boys even sed that he\'d like to also start this in the future because it happened to him sice he was only 11 and now he thinks its ok to do that to other people. some people are saying that its only the problem of the afghanis but it doesn\'t matter what colour, race, religion we are , we should all try to put a stop to this. i\'d also like to say that islam does not condone this in any way and these people might have been praying but they are not muslims because god will never forgive them for what they are doing and they might not be getting any punishment now but in the next life god will punish them and they will rot in hell! it was heart-breaking to watch this and i will donate some money for shafiq and so should all the other people on here! ","pt":"Apr 26, 2010 11:48"},{"nm":"K.N.O.","rs":"0","ms":"This is so SICKENING and sad...","pt":"Apr 26, 2010 09:59"},{"nm":"Unicef SupporterSinceAKid","rs":"0","ms":"The children of the world still suffer, and while they do, we argue about religion, politics, sexuality.  None of that is the issue here.  These children and others around the world, poor and uneducated, are the victims.  Why can\'t we address the questions of how to rescue them and others, instead of slinging hateful, prejudice views at one another?  I, for one, would like to know how I can help.","pt":"Apr 26, 2010 09:28"},{"nm":"Karim","rs":"0","ms":"Dear Mitch:\n\nIt may have practiced in some part of Afghanistan by some people, but meanwhile that doesn\'t credibilly generalize it to each end every Afghans. We as human being have the responsbility to defend the basic human rights, therefore, instead of blaming x and y we should better think of soluations. I am not saying it is carried out by the World Powers, but what I am saying is their dirty games that is still going on in developing countreis and particularly in Afghanistan made a realiable situation and circumstances where as result such crime is born. Remember, rule of law is voilated when there is no strong central authority to enforce law and any law witout enforcment measure doomed to end meaninglessly.\n\nThaks for your kind reply ","pt":"Apr 26, 2010 04:57"},{"nm":"Khan","rs":"0","ms":"Thank you frontline for this enlightening doc, surely awareness of this disgusting practice is our primary weapon in fighting it.\nHowever, to construct some kind of agument for a prolonged US occupation beacuse of this is ridiculous. I am sure nobody wants the US Army to be the world\'s anti-pedophilia police, especially when the US is one of the largest markets for some of these services themselves. In fact, it is the impotence of the US-backed Karzai government that this situation got so much out of control. \nThe fact of the matter is that this problem is in all cultures, and we need to work together to stop it. This is the job of organisations like UNICEF, and many other NGO\'s. We cannot, however, let it become another excuse for American imperialism.\n\nKhan","pt":"Apr 26, 2010 04:29"},{"nm":"Juanito","rs":"0","ms":"Oh Gawd, now we\'ll NEVER leave Afghanistan. When he hears about this, Pat Robertson will organize a crusade of some sort and when his troops get bogged down north of Kandahar, Joe LIeberman will organize a rescue crusade out of Tel Aviv and there\'ll be no end to the insanity. Just send Henry Kissinger to one of the Thursday night soirres, to dress up and dance for everyone. THAT will surely put an end to these things!","pt":"Apr 26, 2010 02:20"},{"nm":"lamr","rs":"0","ms":"When you strip this down to its basics - it is child abuse, pure and simple.  Whether the children are Afghani or from another country, makes no difference.  They are children.  They are being abused.  To not care these children are being abused is heartless.  To say it\'s someone else\'s problem is cold indifference.  ","pt":"Apr 26, 2010 01:11"},{"nm":"khair mohad holway","rs":"0","ms":"what a shame for all people around the globe,  this is not only Afghan problem \nIT  is everywhere but under the curtian, let me give you just one example Churches alround the globe is infected with this desease in deferent form,  I think we should all come together to fight such monesterious act.  from a good muslim. khair God bless all","pt":"Apr 25, 2010 23:17"},{"nm":"Usman Shaukat","rs":"0","ms":"1.Child molestation is child molestation no matter where it happens, period: it\'s not culturally relevant, it\'s not Islam-hate, it\'s not &quot;western media&quot; propaganda------   molestation of an unwilling child is appalling everywhere.\n2.Child molestation is not homosexuality in terms of &quot;gay&quot; (adult  willing men having sex with adult willing men), child molestation is the exploitative use of a child, why emphasize the sex/gender of the child? A child is a child.He/She should not be used for exploitative purposes, he/she should not be sold into slavery of any kind. \n","pt":"Apr 25, 2010 22:15"},{"nm":"Carol Nefedow","rs":"0","ms":"This was an amazing feat of storytelling.\nDefinitely the wheel will turn for these boys, due to this exposure by Najibullah Quraishi.\nOf course I was shocked and felt very sorry for these boys.\nTheir need to repress all that pain is one road to sociopathy.\n\nHow old is Bacha Bazi?\nI can\'t help but think of the brutal culture of Sparta in ancient times. \nThey took boys from their mothers at 5 and 6 years old for training as a warrior. They also had sexual relations with them.\nThey were separated from their mothers and women for years.\n\nWhen they became young men, they dressed a young woman as a boy so that they would be attracted to her and perpetuate the Spartan race.\nNow in Afghanistan, the women wear burkas and are hidden, what effect is this really having on their society.\n\nBeing gay doesn\'t make any difference for these boys, they are still slaves, a brutal existence.\n\nThere is less slavery at this time in the world than at any other time in human existence (see Technology, Entertainment, Design, TED)and that is a good thing. Exposure means the beginning of the end.\n\nWe have very complex, almost impossible problems in Afghanistan but we must do what we can.\nI do believe we must stay there for a very long time. Don\'t go outside the wire any longer but let the people come to us.\n \nCarol Nefedow","pt":"Apr 25, 2010 19:22"},{"nm":"Anti-Trafficker","rs":"0","ms":"It\'s vitally important to distinguish between Islamic practices and cultural practices that long pre-date Islam.  By no means a defense, Bacha Bazi\'s roots lie in antiquity, e.g. the ancient Persian Empire.  And this sort of thing is NOT limited to Afghanistan, the East or even underdeveloped countries.  The organized sexual exploitation of minors (female or male) - while undeniably one of the most henious crimes imaginable - occurs everyday in the United States, Cananda, the UK, et cetera.  It seems different because of the cultural differences, but it the crime is the same.  It all must be condemned, not just what occurs in nominally-Muslim majority countries.","pt":"Apr 25, 2010 18:06"},{"nm":"Shannon","rs":"0","ms":"This is a truly sad. I hope that more boys are rescued from this situation and that the UN becomes more involved in human trafficing globally. My heart goes out to these children.","pt":"Apr 25, 2010 17:31"},{"nm":"Tippi","rs":"0","ms":"I think this statement is very illuminating\n\n&quot;Although Afghani law prohibits homosexuality and pedophilia, neither crime qualifies for the far more unacceptable charges of adultery or pre-marital sex.&quot;","pt":"Apr 25, 2010 17:27"},{"nm":"Edith","rs":"0","ms":"Whether this happens in other places in the world or not shouldn\'t attenuate the rage and disgust we must feel regarding thsi kind of practice. I am losing all hope for Aghanistan, I don\'t think there is any way out of this for these children and the combination of poor, destitute folks and sick, powerful mentally ill and sexually perverse predators is deadly. I call them sick and terrifying when they are in North America and I call them sick and terrifying when they are in Afghanistan. ","pt":"Apr 25, 2010 16:58"},{"nm":"Malaika","rs":"0","ms":"I watched this documentary last night and I could not sleep. I felt sick to my stomach and I could not get the image of rafis face and how he lusted after those children. SICK SICK SICK SICK SICK!!!!!! i can not believe he thought of himself as muslim. that is totally against the Quaran. Some one should emulate the salem witch hunt. they deserve to be burned to death. not saying in any way that this was rigt in salem but, in the case of these children, it would be. CUT OFF THESE DEVILS GENITALIA! AND BURN THEM ALIVE!","pt":"Apr 25, 2010 16:55"},{"nm":"Brianc","rs":"0","ms":"Muslim culture, and more specifically, muslim men, seem to have a real problem with their sexual identity. Women are required to cover themselves and to appear as unattractive as possible. Meanwhile, men hold hands with their males friends and single men and women are allowed very limited contact. Having a sexual relationship with the opposite sex outside of marriage often results in murder, in one form or another. Mostly for the woman. But men are allowed to have sex with multiple partners, male and female. Sometimes within polygamist marriages, sometimes out of convience with males less powerful. \n   ","pt":"Apr 25, 2010 13:55"},{"nm":"Heidi Fogllia","rs":"0","ms":"Afghanistan is a totally abusive and illiterate country. It has been a &quot;punching bag&quot; for decades. It is not going to be anything else--when the government has learned this abuse and it is so deeply engrained--there is nothing else that it can ever be.It is hopeless.","pt":"Apr 25, 2010 13:49"},{"nm":"mimi","rs":"0","ms":"\nWhy cant Australians access frontlines online documentaries?  Its really frustrating and not very nice  :(\n\nIf the content is available in the US what harm is it to allow other countries to view it?\n\nDoes knowledge and information ALWAYS have to have a price tag? ","pt":"Apr 25, 2010 12:31"},{"nm":"customartist","rs":"0","ms":"Is this really any different than the systemic events of the Catholic Church?  Haven\'t there been  peritioners recently accused of obtaining boys for Priests/Bishops?...and all under the guises of trust and divinity, to make it all the more abhorrent?  I think so.  These folk are at least clearly evil.  The RCC however,........wolves in sheeps\' frocking.","pt":"Apr 25, 2010 12:10"},{"nm":"Brett Gasper","rs":"0","ms":"Frontline, you\'ve done it again. You bring to us a piece of the world that we would, otherwise be unaware of. I was a soldier in Iraq and, later, a contractor with Kellogg Brown and Root (KBR) a subsidiary of Halliburton. I became a fan when your stories captured the heart of the reality of the situation in an objective and unbiased fasion. In other words, the reality on the ground.\n\nThis story is simple. If a male engages in a sexual act with another male - it is homosexuality. If the male is an infant or juvenile it is pedophilia. Gay pedophilia is certain to destroy a child emotionally and make them feel dirty once they reach adolescence. The natural reaction is to shut it out and not to think about it. At some time, usually much later, the persoon will re-address the situation and realize that they were a victim and become angry. In any instance, true healing wont occur until he is able to forgive these diseased people and move on. Unfortunately, by this time, the damage to his life, whether in the form of relationship problems, low self esteem, drugs, crime, or he himself becomes s vicimizer, is already done.\n\nThe Afghan people need not feel ashamed, as this sort of thing happens all over the world - just in different forms.","pt":"Apr 25, 2010 12:03"},{"nm":"R.J","rs":"0","ms":"It is always amazing and somewhat enlightening what &quot;straight&quot; individuals in the confounds of a normal &quot;relationship&quot; continue to do to the children. Now mind you when anything remotely free, gay or vaguely homosexual appears in mast media their is this uproar and concern for the children mind you all the while the real cover up is the children. If you are going to be concerned for the children then be concerned and help the children do not mask it behind hate, and bigotry for the gay community. This report unfortunately is no surprise. The same men and governments and societies that kill, torment and ostracized gays not pedophiles but gaymen and women who just want the right to love who they choose hide this and other atrocities. I say it now and will say it again based on my own experience as a child their is no true &quot;straight&quot; man. When we get rid of the pressure that we put on these men to be something that does not exist a lot of this behaviour will suffice. That is the true answer.","pt":"Apr 25, 2010 11:20"},{"nm":"Janaki","rs":"0","ms":"I\'m still haunted by the &quot;vacant/sad eyes&quot; of these tormented boys/children.  How can the government/elders/parents approve of this horrendous deed on their young children?  I pray and hope that the UN protect the VICTIMS from the MONSTERS! ","pt":"Apr 25, 2010 11:19"},{"nm":"Mitch","rs":"0","ms":"Karim\n\nI cannot belive you put this awful practice of the Afgany people on the world powers.  It is what it is - your cultures problem - not the worlds.  Take ownership for something.  \n\nBy the way, the world does more for your country than your country does for itself.\n\nRegards","pt":"Apr 25, 2010 03:08"},{"nm":"Victor Zulu","rs":"0","ms":"I read an article on FOX\'s website describing the confusion in restraining the Afghan men with men sex by the American commanders that work with them.  I asked a friend stationed there and he corroborated the practice.  Every thursday night he said they dress up one of the men and paint him with makeup and you don\'t see them until the morning.  There is something awry in this tribal nation\'s culture that allows it to exist for hundreds maybe thousands of years.  I agree with the post that the suppression of woman, has something to do with it.  Afghani culture and islam lessens the value of woman in society, therefore marginalizing their greater resource to communicate and indulge in intimacy that nutures heathy sexuality.  The christian gospel preached there will transform and open their hearts and, just as important, their culture to allow this type of paradigm shift.  It won\'t happen overnight.","pt":"Apr 25, 2010 02:16"},{"nm":"Maggie","rs":"0","ms":"Now that this horrible practice is out in the open & on (inter)national TV, I\'d like to know what other muslim countries & muslims of faith think about this - and what, if anything, they plan on doing to stop it.  Where\'s the muslim outrage about it?  Is there any?  Earlier comments in this discussion board blaming the practice on Western powers are pitiful & despicable.  People & countries need to take responsibility for their own actions - please don\'t blame the US & &quot;Western powers&quot; for this abuse.   \n\nAnd wouldn\'t it be nice if Saudi Arabia took some of their petro dollars to help care for and support poor Afghan families & homeless children, instead of building madrassas across the border in Pakistan to train terrorists who kill people?  If Islam truly is a religion of peace, then let\'s see what fellow muslims are doing to help their desperate brothers & sisters in Afghanistan.","pt":"Apr 25, 2010 01:34"},{"nm":"ariel","rs":"0","ms":"Doesn\'t the same thing happen in the USA and north america? The only thing is they don\'t report it. There\'s no difference between the two countries. Why don\'t they make programs on the USA? Becuase they only want to create hate towards muslims, to brainwash the public and focus people on these countries, yet they forget their own.","pt":"Apr 25, 2010 00:25"},{"nm":"margret","rs":"0","ms":"&quot;Have we forgotten one music legend that passed away in sleep&quot;? Really? How offensive can you be? If you knew a little more about that particular &quot;music legend&quot;, you would know that he abhored abuse of children. You don\'t know enough about him to even comment. ","pt":"Apr 24, 2010 23:25"},{"nm":"Tanya ","rs":"0","ms":"I wish I had some form of a sentence to describe how I feel right now. Not only do these people bring shame to the Islamic community, but also to humanity. There was one line during this film that really got under my skin, &quot;Power is Power.&quot; Where there is power, there is corruption lurking behind. ","pt":"Apr 24, 2010 22:40"},{"nm":"MArk","rs":"0","ms":"My local PBS station decided, without notice to show a prior Frontline when this was supposed to air.  I had to watch it on line.  I was wondering about bachi bazi after seeing the movie &quot;the Kite Runner&quot;.  Ignorant me was wondering about the scene where the boy to be rescued came out dancing when called by the man keeping him.  Now I understand what it was all about.  Regrettably, I now understand too well.\nChild exploitation occurs in every country unfortunately.  It is almost as bad if they are exploited for labor and remain uneducated.  And they continue the abuse as they learned it.  If they were child laborers, then they make their children the same.  Even in the Frontline report one of the daning boys who was 15 stated he was getting older and in two or three years he would have to stop because the men probably wouldn\'t want him because he was too old.  So, what did he plan on doing?  Star is own collection of 20 to 30 boys as he could afford it.\nThere is the main tragedy.  The sbuae continues.  The hunted become the hunters.  And helping Shafiq\'s family is a wonderful and helpful gesture.  But that is just one person.  Saving one life may be saving the whole world as the statement goes.  But the whole world needs saving.  Well, at least the world of the dancing boys AND girls.\nPeople are worried about the fiduciary corruption in Afghanistan.  What about the moral corruption which causes, at most, a slap on the wrist for the abusers.  But a life sentence for the abused.  Some with a very short life sentence.\n\nIt makes me sad.  Children are the future of the world and they are oft treated like the trash we discard.  I would like to behead those who run bachi bazi brothels.","pt":"Apr 24, 2010 18:45"},{"nm":"Selena Makeba","rs":"0","ms":"I am sure there will be a lot of people who will disagree with what I have to say, but Shafig, the little boy who was rescued in this video should not have been. He was already damaged goods and should have been left in the hands of his abusers if this horrible practice could not be stopped altogether.\n\nPedophiles are not born, they are made. And when children are subjected to sex with adults before they are old enough to ascertain their own sexuality, whatever sex that has raped them, usually shapes their sexual preference for life.\n\nRegardless of whether Shafiq gets an education or not, in all likelihood he also will grow up to become a pedophile himself and subject an untold number of future little boys to the same hell he endured.\n\nThis has been documented (see &quot;Middat Sdom&quot;) time and time again.\n\nIt is unfortunate but this is what happens.\n\nAs I watched this video, my heart went out to all the boys who were poor and to their families who needed the money they had sold their boys into slavery for - but that does not change the fact that pedophilia and pederastie are continuing generational cycles.\n\nI also wondered through out this video, &quot;How could this happen in a society that claims to be Jihadist&quot;? There is no love for Allah among these men, simply a love for their flesh. They should all be wiped off the face of the earth for the shame the have brought upon their nation, their religion and their God.","pt":"Apr 24, 2010 17:52"},{"nm":"Jan kaleolani Ili","rs":"0","ms":"I am truly horrified that these types of practices are still going even today in the 21st.century. I agree of what many have said before that this is not an &quot;OKAY&quot; practice in any country. This demeanors every ounce of humanity within these poor children, but at the same time you wonder how far will people go to survive in such a turbulant homeland. My heart goes out to those boys who have to endure such a horrific and unstable lifestyle!","pt":"Apr 24, 2010 11:59"},{"nm":"Karim","rs":"0","ms":"Dear all,\n\nLet me explaine to those who are not from Afghanistan and meanwhile to those who are from Afghanistan but for some reasons have left Afghanistan since awhile. Bacha Bazi as it is called in Afghan language is not purely new in Afghanistan. It has been existed since centuries and mostly practiced in the Southern and Northern part of Afghanistan. No one has to be belamed for this particular savagary practice, because the belame should go first to the so called &quot; Great Game&quot; players such as the world powers who have selected Afghanistan since centuries as their strategic playground. The decades of war and centuries of corrupt rulers made Afghanistan a land of illiteracy and poorest nation of the earth. The  Bacha Bazi as a bad practice that totally unacceptable in Afghanistan society and also in the Islamic way of life,however if few people practice this in Afghanistan that doesn\'t mean everyone in Afghanistan pro-Bach Bazi.\n\n    We as Afghan shouldn\'t be ashamed of our country and every society has it\'s bad practices. For example, the latest incidence in Estern Europ an old man bred 7 childerns from his own daughter and Catolic prist are another example. If we see it from differnt perspectives, in Afghanistan probably it is practiced because some people are sick mentally and others are victims of poverty and if a there is no job, no income, no security, no future and no life then for sure a person would fall into this kind of traps and even lose their life in this way.\n\nWe better start to think in this way:\n\n 1- Support the people of Afghanistan who has been suffering from differnt of kind terrorism.\n 2- Provide assistance to these people in order to build their country and their homes so job will be created and finally Bach Bazi and other bad practices might be disappear.\n 3- Let the Afghan people decide who to govern them rather than still play based on the great game rules.\n 4- It might take time to get where we want to be, but I am sure finally this nation will get there with your help and assitance.\n 5- Pressuer your own Govt to support the right people in reciepent country.\n 6- The soluatoin to above problem is only can be sloved in context such Afghanistan through religion /clergy preaches coz Afghan people won\'t be stoped by forces but religion can stop those who are practicing such adultary.\n\n    I hope things are much clear now than before. However, this is a parameter of the misery that Afghan people have been living since decades and mostly it can be blamed the world powers and those who use this land as their playground.Furthermore, Afghan people are also blamed to be trapped so easily to any near and far powers and become their play boy on the ground.\n\nCheers,\n\nKarim \n   ","pt":"Apr 24, 2010 06:01"},{"nm":"ernest","rs":"0","ms":"Pedophilia has to do with control and power, vary similar to the inner workings of rapists, and those who physically abuse. With Pedophilia, it has much more to do with this control and power, than with the gender of the child. Pedophiles who abuse boys, prefer younger boys, as the boys reach the later stages of puberty, and their voices change, and their bodies physically changes, the pedophile usually looses interest. If you notice in the video, the men preferred the pretty boys, that is the ones with the more subtle features, which make them look younger. Unfortunately, in much the same way, the church tries to hide their pedophile problem, by declaring it a homosexuality problem, governments around the world do the same thing. By making being Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, or Transgendered a bad thing, children who are abused by a member of their own gender or orientation, are far less likely to reveal such abuse. Likewise, these children are less likely to report being bullied, discriminated against, etc just for being who they are. People ignore the scientific evidence that shows, there are physical differences between the brains of gays and straits, but use faith and religion to damn the gay community. Over 50% of the homeless children in the US, are gay youth who have either been rejected by their parents, or leave due to a hostile environment. Some youth know their parents aren\'t excepting and stay in the closet, others think they have their parents unconditional love, and some kids just are not able to hide who they are. In any case, its a shame children are abandoned by those ho have sworn to love them. I find this as tragic and devastating as what is going on in Afghanistan, because many of these youth sell themselves for money, in order to survive. Many of these kids get STDs including HIV/Aids. In my school district, they have started an anti-bullying program that includes educational information on the Gay community, and gay families. This way gay kids, or kids with gay parents won\'t be harassed. However, a small but vary local group thinks even mentioning gays is preaching for homosexuality. When I watched the front line video I wondered if, Afghanistan\'s society was more excepting of its gay community, than maybe its gay community would help put an end to Bacha Bazi. However, seeing how ingrained it is in their society, I don\'t know that it can change. ","pt":"Apr 24, 2010 05:31"},{"nm":"the view from SF","rs":"0","ms":"I am shocked that &quot;Thomas&quot; who wrote on April 22 at 21:20 seems to think that these boys have a pretty good thing going -- and that as long as they\'re well fed and well dressed, well then, what\'s the problem?\n\nThis is what is at the heart of pedophilia.  And the trouble is that boys are always treated according to a different standard.  Why should it be horrible to gang rape a 12-year old girl...yet somehow okay to anally gang-rape a 12-year old boy -- as long as you dress him well and feed him?  \n\nSome kind of sick way of thinking, I would say...\n\nI agree with posters who say that people who are writing &quot;tsk! tsk! what awful people Afthanistanis are!&quot; need to LOOK IN THEIR OWN AMERICAN BACKYARD.  Let\'s clean our own house first, shall we?  Because believe me, this stuff DOES go on all around you...","pt":"Apr 24, 2010 04:24"},{"nm":"The view from SF","rs":"0","ms":"My heart breaks for these boys but please -- LOOK IN YOUR OWN CITIES AND TOWN FIRST\>\n\nDon\'t anyone kid yourself for a MINUTE that boys aren\'t held in America as sex slaves, too, just as girls are.  \n\nI live in San Francisco -- a major port for Asian cities and Russians as well (esp. Ukrainians).  People who argue that prostitution should be legalized are CLUELESS.  I can\'t believe they could actually believe that women &quot;choose&quot; to be prostitutes.  So many of these women were naive girls who were lured by men with promises that they would be waitresses or nannies, etc. in America...then their passports are taken, injected with heroin or other drugs to make them addicts and totally dependent, then worked like ANIMALS -- much worse than the boys shown here.\n\nHow ANY man could think himself a &quot;man&quot; -- let alone take any pleasure -- from having sex with a woman who &quot;offers herself&quot; to him under these conditions, is something I will never understand.  Most prostitutes were victims of child molestation and abuse...that\'s why they separate themselves from their bodies, as if they are two people. It\'s the only way they can survive emotionally.","pt":"Apr 24, 2010 04:18"},{"nm":"Yalda Faqeerzada","rs":"0","ms":"Wonderful and brave people like Najib Qureshi exist.  Long Life Najib show these sick people to the world.","pt":"Apr 24, 2010 04:00"},{"nm":"N.","rs":"0","ms":"I applaud Frontline for exposing this barbaric practice, no matter where if occurs in the world. That being said, it was a very difficult program to watch. I literally had a nightmare later that night after watching it.  I wonder what the Koran says about this horrible practice? For a culture to be so oppressive of women yet so exploitative of innocent, young boys, is mind boggling.  I don\'t even know what to say except to thank those that intervened and saved this young boy from the horrors that awaited him and even death. Where can I donate to help save other boys from this horrible fate? I\'m still very upset but thank Frontline for exposing this barbaric practice. And spare me the man-boy love deviant rationalization, no matter what culture or country this exits in. Also, these were boys, not men, therefore it has nothing to do with consent, as we clearly saw in the piece when the boy\'s uncle lied to sell him into the Bacha Bazi life. I agree with your post, Brad Taylor. ","pt":"Apr 24, 2010 02:50"},{"nm":"anthem","rs":"0","ms":"this goes back to the days of one, where boys are for sex and women are for making babies and keeping house.\nIt\'s sad to watch this still happen, but I have met some Afghanistan\'s that came to USA and to be honest they don\'t like to talk about this but in their eyes you can see the fear the shame and worry that even here in USA they will be harmed talking about it!\nthis is what has been going on for 100\'s if not 1000\'s of years in this part of the world.. and we want them to be at peace with the rest of the world? this is very sad you can see the excitement in the man\'s eyes when they found that new boy its sick....  ","pt":"Apr 24, 2010 02:34"},{"nm":"Negin Hosseini","rs":"0","ms":"As a professional female journalist, I have always been interested in Afghanistan issue. I do appreciate your work... You not only informed the world of Afghanistan pains, but saved the life of an innocent child. You will be paid instead all the goodness... Thanks.\nwww.neginh.net","pt":"Apr 24, 2010 01:12"},{"nm":"Roy Villa","rs":"0","ms":"I wish there are words that can describe what these men are doing.  But there is none.  These men are not gays.  Western definition of homosexuality does not apply in some parts of the world like Asia;  more so, there in Afghanistan, in that setting.  Pedophilia also comes short here, not in the way sex with minors situation.  The dancing, the costume, the very disturbing pronouncement of the men, the groveling & fighting over the boys all combine an explosion of depravity that leave us short for words.  And here\'s what frustrate us the most:  Either this or Taliban.","pt":"Apr 24, 2010 00:54"},{"nm":"amin","rs":"0","ms":"i am a proud AFGHAN nd to me this is completetly shocking nd it is discusting,\nthis is not a TRADITION as it states, it is a BIG LIE,i know these types of shit happens everywhere in every country east nd west one way or the other, but to say its a tradition is not correct at all, nd these people who do these type of things are muslims just by names thats it, they dont know any thing abt ISLAM, them people are just ...\nits all abt lust nd its a shame to the whole world \nthese people shud be punished right now, by the Afghan government nd by the international community\nmay ALLAH help us and may ALLAH show the right way to all human beings muslims and nonmuslims.ameeen.\n","pt":"Apr 23, 2010 20:20"},{"nm":"George Davis","rs":"0","ms":"CriticalThinker...The boys in this documentary were young adolescents, therefore the men using them are not guilty of pedophilia, but pederasty. Sex with a boy entering puberty is a homosexual act, no matter what the &quot;science&quot; says. I\'m appalled the gay community keeps denying this obvious fact. And who says Roman priests are straight?","pt":"Apr 23, 2010 19:59"},{"nm":"Militant One","rs":"0","ms":"Thank you Frontline for educating us again on a topic we may not have ever heard about or needed to gain clarity.  First and foremost, I saw the episode two days ago, and am steel ranting about why my tax dollars are being spent for the soldiers who are in this country where lewdness and repugnance exists.  Frankly Osama bin Laden needs to be back on the scene so that scum like Rafi and his sidekick in crime can be burnt to the stake.  I watched a man who admitted he has been with at least 2000/3000 boys in his 20 years, and sit closely to his own son who he observed reading with adoration.  Will he become bored one day, and decide to fondle his own son, or perhaps ask him for fellatio.  This country is operating on times that were manipulated by Alexander the Great (Bactria), and it was no secret how he enjoyed a young nymph like servant to slip under his covers.  Perhaps if the women were allowed to voice true authentic feelings, emotion, sexual need, these men would would find normal gratification in sharing sexual intercourse with their spouse versus a pre-pubescent teen.  Youtube is loaded with Bacha Bazi videos, I could not believe that they are so misinformed that they are aiding and abetting pedophilia, and each account that is soliciting for comments and feedback should be suspended.  I too have questioned what is the life lesson that one could learn from something so horrific, but I must agree with the post listed prior, that a young man in the Chicagoland area was beaten to death because he was an honor student, and no one has done a damn thing to protect the other African-American students who share his fear.  I surely hope that we as Americans have a tenderness in all childrens well being, because there are some plights here that are as poignant.  The movie Precious was another abomination that showed a mother who allowed her husband to have sex with his daughter, and she gave birth to two of his children.  Perversity comes with many faces, it\'s mask is almost like that of a geisha, you have no idea who is behind the painted smile.  I work with a children\'s charity, and to me every child deserves a chance.  This is disgusting, no child enjoys being violated, which is why the 11 year old \'s personality changed drastically, he had already been raped numerous times by Rafi and Dastegeer. I never thought I would be saying this, but the Taliban needs to take control of this city, and nuke any party, brothel, etc... that support this heinous act.  The awareness has definitely been ignited, but we as citizens should make sure we are universally diverse with a mission to protect ALL children from pedophilia.  Its time they have some stip clubs, pornography, Vanessa Del Rio, whatever, to divert their attention from boys.  A cousin of mine fought in the war, and he told me that whenever they raided any villages, it was common to see a man in bed with a boy, while his wife was in the next room like a bumbling idiot.  Can you imagine the increase of STD\'s and AIDs?  These poor kids don\'t stand a chance, and their life expectancy must be shot to hell.  ","pt":"Apr 23, 2010 19:58"},{"nm":"Dosky","rs":"0","ms":"Kudos to Najibullah Quraishi","pt":"Apr 23, 2010 19:25"},{"nm":"togato","rs":"0","ms":"I haven\'t seen the video, but I agree with the minority sentiment here that Frontline is wrong here.  It is noteworthy that the filmmaker has no idea where bacha came from.  Has there been a documentary that presents its matter with no sense of its history?  Not a good one.  In the West, there is a never ending convulsion of horror surrounding activities that are neither violent, nor new to our culture or any other.  Instead of wisely approaching the matter according to the facts of each case, we choose to run around in a panic, and paint every case with the same black brush.  If there are abusers and those who neglect young boys, let them suffer.  But if a man cares for a boy, dresses him, and loves him, then it is not for any Westerner to judge.  The country is in shambles, with no end in sight to the war, and the West want to talk about their sex lives.  It is a petty, narrow minded approach.\n\nUltimately I agree with about 50% of the respondents: we should not be in Afghanistan.","pt":"Apr 23, 2010 19:01"},{"nm":"W","rs":"0","ms":"These people call themselves Muslims but they don\'t know what they are doing is against God\'s well...i wish i had power and could teach these guys a lesson ","pt":"Apr 23, 2010 18:32"},{"nm":"Fred","rs":"0","ms":"What we witness here is what can happen within all male cultures, where women are excluded from power.  Whether it is the Catholic priesthood, ancient Sparta, or the warlords of Afghanistan, cultures that exclude the emotional tenderness of women will result in repression of sexuality.  It will find expression in ways that combine sexuality with the abuse of power, and will take advantage of the powerless-- which is this case is young boys.","pt":"Apr 23, 2010 17:34"},{"nm":"Ann","rs":"0","ms":"No matter what part of the world they live in or if they existed in past civilizations, the men who practice abusing children are sick perverted monsters. How can they see a face of a child and not feel compelled to protect them instead.  This makes me so angry.  They may get away with what they do to children, women and the elderly, however, there is a \'hell\' in Christianity and Islam and I\'m certain that they will rot there for all eternity. This world we live in is a dispicable place where precious little children are abused and discarded like trash - may God have mercy on mankind. Thank you PBS.","pt":"Apr 23, 2010 17:25"},{"nm":"Dorothy","rs":"0","ms":"Sad, very sad was what I felt after watching this.\nIt is not any one culture or religion, but it is all a sin.\nThe abuse of power over the powerless. It is always disturbing to watch.\nAround the world it is the same, people who feel too important, too powerful and then loose touch with their humility and empathy for others.\nTragic for the children, for their powerless parents and even for the abusers who have sold their souls.\n","pt":"Apr 23, 2010 17:05"},{"nm":"Kais","rs":"0","ms":"This is wrong on so many levels.  For a nation in which the constitution is based on the Quran\'s teachings - this is poison.  Shame on our Afghan Government for letting this go on.  Shame on Karzai and his followers.  This brings shame to Afghans all over the world. \n\n ","pt":"Apr 23, 2010 16:42"},{"nm":"Joy","rs":"0","ms":"People, this is not a cultural practice or something natural that goes on in Afghanistan! LETS MAKE THAT CLEAR! Please do a research on ancient Greek history and the subject of homosexulaity between holder and younger men( the area known as Afghanistan was one of the regions the ancient Greeks had invaded). The majority of the people of Afghanistan are against this act, but they don\'t have a voice or money to do anything about it. As the mother of one of the victims in the video had stated &quot; Powerful is Powerful&quot;, that is exactly the case in Afghanistan. The majority of the people are poor because of the  many years of war, and heartless neighbors who only want to cause harm to the nation, and put the people of Afghanistan down. SO INSTEAD OF JUDGING, LETS TRY TO FIND A WAY TO SOLVE THE PROBLEM OF CHILD ABUSE, NOT ONLY IN AFGHANISTAN, BUT THE WORLD.","pt":"Apr 23, 2010 16:40"},{"nm":"CriticalThinker","rs":"0","ms":"Men having sex with boys are NOT gay. The science is conclusive that pedophilia is not linked to sexual orientation. There is a close parallel here to the scandals surrounding the Catholic Church. ","pt":"Apr 23, 2010 15:08"},{"nm":"Frishta","rs":"0","ms":"I just finished watching this. It made me vimit. I am so lucky to have left Afghanistan as a child. My guess is that the reality is worse than the Frontline piece especially for young girls. It makes me ashamed of where I come from. I know child abuse exists everywhere but in Afghanistan the government supports it.  ","pt":"Apr 23, 2010 14:54"},{"nm":"renee ","rs":"0","ms":"\n  I applaud the gentleman who found the guts and courage to document this disturbing practice. What\'s sad, is that homosexuality is frowned upon in the Muslim world, and yet, this documentary clearly proves that it is rampant and practiced openly, daily!\n\n  ","pt":"Apr 23, 2010 14:39"},{"nm":"Lorna","rs":"0","ms":"Dastageer reminds me of that midget character in the dream sequences in &quot;Twin Peaks&quot;.  Both of them were creeps.  Yet, this is a cultural practice and who am I to tell them to stop it?  It probably wouldn\'t be going on if the Taliban weren\'t distracted and away fighting the Americans/Brits/Western World.  Sodomy among heterosexual men with boys was common during Roman times with the Castrati boys, kept specifically for that purpose -- and these boys could sing too!  It is very sad what happens to these children and young men.  UNICEF won\'t be able to stop it.  End the war, let the Taliban get back home to enforce the laws and it\'ll stop quicker than you can whistle Dixie.  ","pt":"Apr 23, 2010 14:20"},{"nm":"jaafar","rs":"0","ms":"You really don\'t have to wonder what &quot;society has done.&quot;  All you need to do is understand that a lot of people are sinful.  Christians discuss this fact under the imagery of the Fall.  Utopians imagine that mankind is perfect, or perfectible.  Nonsense. Take one wild terrain filled with wild men, and mix well with the idea that power corrupts (while absolute power corrupts absolutely) and you wind up with men actually enslaving boys for sexual purposes.\n\nI find it interesting that various commenters use this video to berate various &quot;causes.&quot;  Someone said religion was the cause, someone else said poverty was the cause, and you seem to be saying that &quot;society&quot; was the cause.  Oh, and didn\'t someone blame Bush for this?\n\nThe people to blame are the evil men involved in this nefarious practice.","pt":"Apr 23, 2010 14:01"},{"nm":"jaafar","rs":"0","ms":"While this documentary uncovers some shocking things about Afghanistan, in one way the horrified reactions of well-off Westerners are disturbing as well.  Surely, everyone knows that the same sort of thing (meaning precisely the sexual enslavement of boys) went on in the Roman Empire?  I can\'t cite a source, but surely this sort of thing went on in the Barbary Coast, where beautiful Christian boys were regularly sold as slaves to the highest bidder. \n\nProbably the real shocker is that the practice survives into modern times.  But it is not something new; you can find it in the Roman poet Horace.  Where you CAN\'T find it is in Ancient Greece, where the law did not permit pederastic relations between master and slave.\n\nOf course, nobody in his right mind would go to Afghanistan to find a civilized and literate culture, much less a decent one.","pt":"Apr 23, 2010 13:54"},{"nm":"Qais","rs":"0","ms":"Bacha bazi is rampant in Takhar and many other provinces yet Karzai and his cohort turn a blind eye.  It\'s time for a new president in Afghanistan.  ","pt":"Apr 23, 2010 13:13"},{"nm":"Intikhab Ahmed","rs":"0","ms":"Shameful for the society,double standard of the society,hang these sob\'s.this is law less society, ","pt":"Apr 23, 2010 12:56"},{"nm":"Breanna Keys","rs":"0","ms":"When I first watched this documentary I felt sick.  However this is a practice that occurs all over the world, including the United States.  Frankly any sexual slavery is disgusting and wrong. Something must be done to stop these practices or a least greatly reduce it.  By supporting groups that will help these young children it might make a great difference.  Regardless of ethnicity, relgion, or political beliefs something HAS TO BE DONE IMMEDIATELY!","pt":"Apr 23, 2010 12:53"},{"nm":"john","rs":"0","ms":"vice magazine did a piece on this subject\n\n&quot;Kandahar just may be the world capital of buggery. There’s a popular joke here that goes, “Why do birds fly in circles over Kandahar? Because they’re covering their ass with one wing.”\n\nThe rest of Afghanistan is always riffing about Kandahar. “Down there, girls are for procreation, boys are for recreation.” Stuff like that.\n\nPre-Taliban, mujahideen strongmen in Kandahar—including the police chief—were not averse to taking boys as brides. In fact, according to a 1996 New York Times article, a homosexually driven feud led to the rise of Bin Laden’s future hosts, the Taliban.\n\n\<a href=&quot;http://www.viceland.com/int/v12n10/htdocs/pretty.php&quot;\>http://www.viceland.com/int/v12n10/htdocs/pretty.php\<\/a\>","pt":"Apr 23, 2010 12:47"},{"nm":"Afdhere Jama","rs":"0","ms":"\nin 2002, i visited Afghanistan and followed (and later wrote) a similar story. it\'s always shocking when we learn that children are being abused. i\'m so glad &quot;frontline&quot; has brought this issue to the mainstream america. i see a lot of people are asking what we can do. what we can do is to support organizations that help people in these situations. support UNICEF, for example. tell your congress men and women to support causes to curb abuse of children, women, and the elderly across the global south. even in afghanistan, there are good people trying to help their country but they just don\'t have the means. support them. ","pt":"Apr 23, 2010 12:21"},{"nm":"Richard Ammon (GlobalGayz.com)","rs":"0","ms":"I find it puzzling and infuriating that numerous adult men willingly and openly gather before one another to indulge and display their homosexual tendencies yet if two of these men were found having sex with each other they might well be killed by their peers. It\'s psychotic.\n\nIs the presence of an effeminate young man/boy so disconnected from heterosexual male reality that he is seen as a woman/girl and hence the homosexual aspect is removed from the dancing parties? \n\nThe men are seeing girlish figures dance in dresses and so they imagine this gives them permission to act sexually toward them? Do they see their sexual abuse as heterosexual or homosexual?\n\nThere is a very deceptive process going on: seeing boys and imagining girls. But it\'s easy to do since the chosen boys are girlish. It\'s a kind of delusional self-contained selection process.\n\nWhatever the mental tricks going on, the blindness and indifference toward the inhumanity of the abuse puts these men outside normal civilized norms. Are they guys gay? I doubt it. They are more primitive than that: they are animal pleasure seekers who succeed because of money, power and fear. The same weapons as war.\n\nMore on this topic can been seen at GlobalGayz.com (http://globalgayz.com/country/Afghanistan/AFG)","pt":"Apr 23, 2010 11:43"},{"nm":"Thomas","rs":"0","ms":"&quot;...the practice was common in many areas of Afghanistan...&quot;\n\nThis statement means that this exposé is a culturally biased production.  I wonder what the average Afghanistan would say when told that most Americans sat back and did very little when the Chicago lad was bludgeoned to death a few months ago?  Was UNICEF called?  Did any one get up off of their sofas, turn off Oprah and decide to get involved, volunteer, mentor?  Americans; we love to wag our fingers. ","pt":"Apr 23, 2010 11:30"},{"nm":"pc","rs":"0","ms":"Let\'s be sensible and not make this a strictly Islamic issue. It happens all over the world including the States where the rich and famous can buy young boys from their parents. Have we forgotten one music legend that recently passed away in sleep? So please people, look into the mirror before you start pointing fingers at others.","pt":"Apr 23, 2010 10:21"},{"nm":"Chezman9","rs":"0","ms":"Anybody troubled the the &quot;15&quot; year old that looks like he is about 24? Other boys in that country look younger than their age. Is that why we get to see his face; because he is older than 18? \nTC","pt":"Apr 23, 2010 09:37"},{"nm":"Chezman9","rs":"0","ms":"Men having sex with boys has been going on forever....\nI recall that Osama Bin Laden had a huge impact on the boy sex slave business. He came into power and made having sex with boys a taboo. I guess he knew he would need them to blow up instead.\nI really do recall that fighting over boys between the rich and powerfull has gone on in Afgan for a very long time and that Osam really did try to put an end to it... I say we catch him, shave him and sell him....\nTC","pt":"Apr 23, 2010 09:30"},{"nm":"Katherine","rs":"0","ms":"The U.S. State Department issues an annual report on human trafficking each year - \<a href=&quot;http://www.state.gov/g/tip/.&quot;\>http://www.state.gov/g/tip/.\<\/a\> The report ranks countries around the world, including Afghanistan, into respective &quot;tiers&quot; depending on how they are addressing the prosecution, protection, and prevention of human trafficking. Bacha bazi should be included within the report (it currently is not), and Afghanistan should be relegated to a lower Tier as it is obviously not addressing the issue of sexual slavery. I also have issues with the use of &quot;practice&quot; in describing these acts - this is a crime. It is a crime against children, and a crime against humanity.","pt":"Apr 23, 2010 09:13"},{"nm":"Kashif","rs":"0","ms":"I\'m surprised by the people who are quick to blame the US and everyone else but themselves for this horrific practice. From living in Karachi for 12 years with a huge poplulation of Pathans/Afghans, I have seen their conduct towards boys firsthand. I can\'t tell you how many times my brothers and myself were manhandled and/or ogled by Pathans/Afghans. You can\'t even tell your parents if anything happens because they would rather ignore it. Its part of their culture unfortunately, and probably has something to do with how women are considered barely human. \n","pt":"Apr 23, 2010 08:41"},{"nm":"marie mcbride","rs":"0","ms":"I am still in shock after last night watching the Dancing boys of Afghanistan.I do know about ancient customs and mordern day rent boys but this is a terrifying practice .how could someone sell their own child into a horrible situation like that.I thought the president said there were no gay people in afghanjstan.all I can say in closing is how can God allow this to happen.OMG","pt":"Apr 23, 2010 08:16"},{"nm":"Allie Lopez-Cuadra","rs":"0","ms":"Khisraw: Who are you to say that the journalist wasn\'t competent. Or that the report wasn\'t fair or serious. Are you kidding me?\n\nIt is a &quot;bad&quot; practice that wasn\'t treated &quot;fair or serious&quot;. These men are basically buying young children and using them as sex slaves. Why don\'t you enlighten us here? Tell us what is the deep and justified reason for the actions of the disgusting pedophiles?","pt":"Apr 23, 2010 07:18"},{"nm":"Ali","rs":"0","ms":"I am an Afghan myself. My question is that coalition forces who are operating in Afghanistan right now know about all the crimes that are happening but yet they do nothing. I am not blaming anyone don\'t get me wrong all Iam saying is that as long as we do not have the power over the Mod in Afghanistan we won\'t be able to change anything, for my Afghan brothers I should say that the world is trying to help our country. What are we doing to help it we should ask ourselves What can I do to help the poor people of Afghanistan it is up to us now because our fathers were not able to build our country.‘All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing’ ","pt":"Apr 23, 2010 07:01"},{"nm":"Steve","rs":"0","ms":"I\'ve read some posts that were using logic that there are immoral people in the US and Afghanistan, but the problem is that the US prosecutes. Look at the uproar it gets in the US when a child is victimized. It is almost always national news. You just don\'t see that in Afghanistan. One of the main problems is women are not allowed to question men. You need that balance. When women also are taken young and forced into relationships, you are halfway there. It is not such a leap since innocence is lost early on.","pt":"Apr 23, 2010 06:26"},{"nm":"George Davis","rs":"0","ms":"Men have used boys for centuries for sexual gratification, and still do. Just a Google search unearths mountains of filth promoting boy sex. This is not news. What is news, is that a culture that considers homosexual acts a capital crime, dressing males as women in a flimsy attempt of denial. Such hypocrisy would be laughable if it were not so heartbreaking.","pt":"Apr 23, 2010 05:46"},{"nm":"Anthony G","rs":"0","ms":"I am so upset by this film that i feel sick. god, is there no evil that isnt practiced in this world. A country with no laws. Our soldiers dying to protect, what? please someone explain to me how we or anyone can trully reach the people of afganistan? this is a barbaric place. i have a child of eleven, i believe i will be haunted ny the images of the little boy being driven by pedophiles for as long as i live.","pt":"Apr 23, 2010 05:34"},{"nm":"N-K","rs":"0","ms":"I assume this practice existed for years in Afghanistan, but this was further grown and developed after the U.S backed Mujahidin came to power in the late 1990s. I hold both the U.S and the Mujahidin responsible for not only this, but all the hardships our society has gone through after the fall of the Great Dr. Najibullah\'s government. This is not going to be stoped until the Mojahidin are there. Down with the U.S. and Mujahidin!","pt":"Apr 23, 2010 05:30"},{"nm":"Luis","rs":"0","ms":"Indeed this was a difficult video to watch however one that needs to be shown to everyone. Often time’s society embarks on living there daily lives without acknowledging the horrific acts that go about everyday around the world.  I\'m glad that such a topic is being presented which seeks not to glorify child mistreatment but rather to invoke conversation and education on what many refuse to accept.  Perhaps another documentary will eventually be made depicting the utter neglect being seen by the Catholic Church toward innocent and unsuspecting children.","pt":"Apr 23, 2010 04:15"},{"nm":"Philbert","rs":"0","ms":"This program was incredible.  Great reporting on, yet another, swept under the rug topic.  Najibullah Quraishi is an absolute rock star.  Horrific topic, but very well done.  We need to know about this to put an end to it.  Thanks for getting the ball rolling.  \n\n(It seems highly unlikely that Afghanisthan will become the next pedophile tourist hotspot due to this, as other comments have suggested.)  ","pt":"Apr 23, 2010 03:19"},{"nm":"kelton","rs":"0","ms":"anyone who watches this program and still believes in god is completely insane. just think, if you were god, would you allow this? would you allow people like paris hilton to parade around in gucci and prada while children in many parts of the world are so poor their parents are selling the to the sex trade? i hope one day people get over their infatuation with religion so they can open their eyes to reality. ","pt":"Apr 23, 2010 03:10"},{"nm":"brad taylor","rs":"0","ms":"what is most appalling are these comments complaining about frontline exposing this horrible practice. who are you people? what kind of person watches this program and has something negative to say about the journalist or the station that broadcast this? this journalist risked his life to help these children by bringing awareness. i doubt if it were your child you would be singing the same tune. if it\'s not in your backyard, you could care less, right? you people are just as disgusting as the pedophiles and the police that allow them to rape these poor boys. ","pt":"Apr 23, 2010 03:06"},{"nm":"Eric","rs":"0","ms":"WHY ARE WE SQUANDERING OUR BLOOD AND TREASURE IN THIS BACKWARDS ASS COUNTRY?!?  These people are completely hopeless. This is their ruling class openly practicing slavery and child molestation and the police are protecting them. These are the people our soldiers are supposed to be fighting for? There is nothing &quot;good&quot; or &quot;right&quot; about this or any other war.  The only thing to do is get our people out of that god forsaken hellhole.","pt":"Apr 23, 2010 02:51"},{"nm":"Jaele","rs":"0","ms":"Terribly, Terribly SAD for these children.... An excellent job of reporting; showing a REALITY that MUST BE STOPPED!! The REASON there is so many gay men in the Middle East is because women are not allowed to socialize as normal humans even near the male population. Just walk into any male prison population and you\'ll see that they\'ll use eachother as women. I\'ve lived in the Middle East for years, in fact headed back there within the month and this was something EASY for me to recognize. Women of many Middle Eastern countries are treated as MULES instead of as beautiful, social, important, intelligent and capable humans of the opposite sex. It\'s HORRIFIC and it\'s all part of the reason boy sex slaves are even more practiced there. ","pt":"Apr 23, 2010 01:39"},{"nm":"I Perez","rs":"0","ms":"Thank you &quot;Frontline&quot; for exposing this horrifying practice. Hopefully more will be done to protect these children.","pt":"Apr 23, 2010 01:05"},{"nm":"Benjamin","rs":"0","ms":"I think it pretty clear that regardless of the culture or geography, power and wealth have a tendency to &quot;court&quot; perversion.   While the practice portrayed in this show was disturbing, I would suggest that any self-righteous American reading these comments research things such as John DeCamp\'s &quot;The Franklin Coverup&quot; or look into what has gone on at Bohemian Grove. One might also read the book &quot;Why Johnny is Not Coming Home&quot;. all of these things point to similar practices that have been going on in our own backyard.\n   I doubt whther this will be published becuase one of PBS\' main Advisors is David Gergen, a devout attendee of Bohemian Grove.\n    Finally, for all those who think we must show respect for the nation of Islam, like our present Messiah, this documentary probably gives reason to why we should do the opposite.","pt":"Apr 23, 2010 01:02"},{"nm":"Anonymous","rs":"0","ms":"These boys are sold by their own families because they are impoverished and need the money. I was not as moved to pity, after watching this documentary as many of the viewers who commented here. Many of these boys enjoy this, it\'s a life better than poverty. They are trained to entertain and in return, there needs are taken care of. You see that the one guy who was going to turn 18 was not only well cared for but ambitious, with plans to start his own Boy Play business practice. By now he must be quite successful with a little harem of his own. None of these people seemed to think this type of thing was immoral. It was a living for them. By 11 years old the boys know what they are in for. In the case of Shafiq, he was probably 8 or 9 and innocent of what would happen. This was heartbreaking, however teenagers who are recruited know what\'s up and do it as a job. Of course there are risks, as the one boy stated, but it\'s a dangerous country, either they risk their lives doing that, or something else.","pt":"Apr 23, 2010 01:02"},{"nm":"Jerry","rs":"0","ms":"H. Cunningham says it all.  Nothing to do with homosexuality or religion.  It\'s all about power, money, and the absurd repression of healthy male/female contact in Afghan society.  Women of Islam!  Unwrap!  ","pt":"Apr 23, 2010 00:51"},{"nm":"A. Khachiyan","rs":"0","ms":"The practice of &quot;bacha bazi&quot; is nothing unique to Afghanistan--it stretches from Pakistan (i.e. the infamous &quot;Dancing Boys of Lahore&quot;) to Iran, Central Asia and parts of the Caucasus and dates back, as you can imagine, to early Islamic times. For example, a simple Google image search generates a handful of images from a manus\cript of the Haft Awrang (&quot;Seven Thrones&quot;) of Jami dating to the middle sixteenth century, now in the Freer & Sackler Galleries of the Smithsonian Institution, showing young men entertaining suitors. It has been eulogized in painting, song and lyrical poetry for as long as anyone can remember (Gerome\'s twice-removed Orientalist masterpiece, &quot;The Snake Charmer,&quot; 1870, comes to mind). \n\nThat said, I\'m certainly not one for advocating the legitimization of harmful practices through the passive invocation of posterity. But it seems clear that it is not the practice of &quot;bacha bazi&quot; that is the problem per se, but rather, the sadism and brutality with which some choose to pursue it. There is no shortage of sexual deviants in any culture, but the men depicted in the documentary are not so much sinister as, well, provincial and standoffishly patriarchal in that way that provincial men tend to be (note the quaint sheepishness with which the middle-aged, &quot;very successful businessman&quot; Dastager talks about sex). \n\nThe trouble with sexual exploitation in Afghanistan is not that it occurs--or how it manifests itself against boys, girls, women, whomever--but rather that it goes unreported and/or unprosecuted a great deal of the time. Just think of the countless girls who are victims sexual abuse within their own homes and communities--this story is a lot less salacious, but certainly more widespread. \n\nUltimately, this documentary, while wonderfully-shot and informative in its own right, is yet another way of misguidedly tugging at Western heartstrings, not to mention that lurking sense of Orientalism that follows on their heels. For one, we must accept that Central Asian sexuality (and hence Central Asian sexual practices and attitudes on things like homosexuality and age of consent) is fundamentally different from ours. There\'s no use in conflating it with an all-encompassing Western notion of sexual perversion to sensationalize a fringe element of Afghan culture that has little bearing the dire situation facing Afghanistan at large. At the moment, there is little anyone can do for these boys. Rather, attention should focus on helping Afghanistan rebuild its destroyed infrastructure and economy, which will in turn recuperate the cultural fabric and lead to the greater social transparency that allows sex crimes that occur within &quot;bacha bazi&quot; circles and elsewhere to be prosecuted efficiently and fairly. Documentaries like this essentially miss the mark, and even more dangerously, in a way encourage greater indifference and indecision on the plight of Central Asian and Middle Eastern counties. ","pt":"Apr 23, 2010 00:44"},{"nm":"Omar","rs":"0","ms":"The video was very disguesting. These things happen because there is no rule of law and there is no strong government. These kind of people must be hang right away so there will be lesson for their followers. The international community must put a lot of pressure into the Afghan government to stop this barberic act. ","pt":"Apr 23, 2010 00:07"},{"nm":"Tareq","rs":"0","ms":"Watching this program made me sick, but I thank Frontline for bringing this barbaric tragedy to light.  This has been going on for centuries  in Afghanistan.  I know it goes on in Pakistan and other countries in the region.  Although the program was named the Dancing Boys, it is really a misnomer since it should really be called pedophilia.  The primary function of the boys is sexual exploitation.  The secondary function is dancing.  I want to ask the Mullahs and Clergy, and the Muslims at large who love to burn effigies, and flags and throw stones, where is their outrage?  Isn\'t this type of behavior more blasphemous than someone drawing a cartoon? \nHow come they don\'t hang the culprits?  Did anyone notice how all men gathered to watch it and condone it?  \nThis show also showed why the Afghan nation is dissatisfied with the government.  As you can see Man like Dastageer are in power and above the law.  ","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 23:39"},{"nm":"virtual","rs":"0","ms":"TO ROGER: \nIt is naive and down right ignorant to think that this only happens in afghanistan.  Dont you think that this same practice is happening in the US?  Have you ever watched dateline NBC? ","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 23:27"},{"nm":"virtual","rs":"0","ms":"This is practiced everywhere.  I mean Everywhere including ....not just afghanistan.  ","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 23:19"},{"nm":"Haidari","rs":"0","ms":"PBS has shown that it’s an advertising organization. There is crime in every country whether it is child abuse, women abuse etc. As an Afghan I am terribly sad for this horrible abuse in Afghanistan, but what to expect from a turmoil country with 30 years of war??? This horrible action does not anything to do with the Afghan’s religion and It’s an forgiven action in Islam. However, Muslim’s beliefs have always been portrayed negatively by these corrupted Western media. Did anyone make a feature film about Priests abusing the kids in the churches??? NO - It’s SAD, Why they don’t produce something educational rather than streaming these crimes?\n\nPBS could spend the budget of this movie on an educational, economical project rather than advertising this abuse. WHAT DO YOU THINK THE AFGHAN GOVERNMENT SHOULD DO, as a viewer of this Movie?? A country which is still in War, Poverty and Invasion?? \n\nThis movie will not help or secure the Afghan people because most part of country is still governed by warlords. However if it was something educational or economical to show people how to start a business and make a better living, everyone could benefit from it. \n\nSAD..SAD..SAD\n","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 22:28"},{"nm":"Sammy","rs":"0","ms":"I wish Frontline had made it clear to people that this act of &quot;Bacha Bazi&quot; is not a natural thing that goes on in Afghanistan. Just like in the west and the rest of the world, there are rapist, pedophiles, etc., this is what exists in Afghanistan, which for the most part, is very similar to strip clubs all over the world, and the West, where young girls are performers, and are used for sex. The only thing that makes this different is that fact that the victims are boys.","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 22:14"},{"nm":"Anissa","rs":"0","ms":"I was devastated after viewing this documentary. My heart aches.","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 22:07"},{"nm":"yalda","rs":"0","ms":"after seeing this video.  i was really ashamed of the whole world and we call our selves muslim. i am an 13 year old girl i never thought that these stuff exites in aghanisatan. after seeing this video i dont know if i want to be an aghan or call myself an aghan.. i an really lost becasue i always thought that aghanistan has change and a better place and i want to go there but now i am too scared to after watching this video i dont think i want to go.. ","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 21:50"},{"nm":"Tom Bishop","rs":"0","ms":"The film and book &quot;The Kite Runner&quot; indicate that this practice exists under the Taliban. It is the few powerful and wealthy exploiting the powerless and desperately poor that is the root cause of this problem. As long as there is poverty and governments represent only the wealthy, people will be threatened with economic and sexual exploitation. ","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 21:40"},{"nm":"Thomas","rs":"0","ms":"Now that everyone has genuflected and sneered down at a cultural practice of third world country through western lenses, for such a poor country, it did seem to me that each of the boys was well fed and clothed when compared with where they came from and the street urchins.  Western thought would, admittedly, have been more sympathetic were these boys recruited for religious or military purposes to be warped or maimed, but simply for art and pleasure, for shame.  Yes, we would far prefer to see them all like the armless ones on the streets instead (recall the opening shot).  Frontline thinks they have exposed something really evil here?  Evil is poverty, disease, little to eat, no education, no hope, no future.  A bunch of pampered well fed pretty boys dancing for men, jesus, this looked more like a debutant party than some mid-evil prison that Frontline is trying to make it out to be.  If the producers of Frontline want to see pretty boys dance, they should pay for the trip out of their own pockets and try not to monetize a pseudo documentary.  ","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 21:28"},{"nm":"Peace","rs":"0","ms":"For all those people who\'ve watched this documentary, and are judging the people of Afghanistan as a whole, shame on you. And for most of you this may a shock because you have not heard boys being placed in such situations, other then what is going on with boys in the Catholic Church. Instead of sitting there, judging, pointing fingers, you as a &quot;civilized&quot; part of human society should try to find a way to help prevent this. And also, most Afghan people do not even know what &quot;Bacha Bazi&quot; is. So the act, for the most part, is not widly known in Afghanistan, and only practiced by some perverted aspect of the society in Afghanistan who are also involved in kidnapping children and selling their internal organs to the outside world, including the west. So we as a human race ought to join together to help the ones in need, than put people down and feel happy that you are not an &quot;Afghan&quot;.","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 21:20"},{"nm":"H","rs":"0","ms":"Is this is the Northern Alliance primary Shi’a party supported by the USA to fight against the Taliban?  Discusting what our tax money pays for. ","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 21:04"},{"nm":"Jeannie R Nelson","rs":"0","ms":"Why shoot the messenger?  This vile institutionalized pedophilia must be exposed.  Thank you PBS for enlightening a public that was largely ignorant about this arcane criminal abuse.  I think it\'s time to get the hell out of Afghanistan.","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 19:37"},{"nm":"marwa","rs":"0","ms":"OHHH MY GODDDDDDDDDDDDD this video is so disturbance i cant believe these people call themselves muslim. It has been war more then 30 yrs in afghanistan,cuz of all these sins they do.Qare khudwand sareshan amada and still they dont realised it........Its shockinggggggggggggg.......","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 19:36"},{"nm":"Brandi","rs":"0","ms":"To watch this is sad and you can\'t help but hold on to your heart! In reality you don\'t have to go all the way to Afghanistan, these types of things happen everyday in the U.S. and the people feel its fine!Its being promoted by all the legalization of the same sex stuff here! Whats the difference,  just because one feels they can give consent? Just look around, this is the makings of Bible prophecy and the people are lovers of themselves!","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 19:30"},{"nm":"H","rs":"0","ms":"I don\'t think the Northern Alliance is the same as the Taliban... Infact the Taliban became popular after exicuting one of these child abusers.. That is how they came to lead.  Certain places in the USA has government instituted child abuse.. King County.  No one cares about other people or human dignity anymore we just survive in fear.  ","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 19:06"},{"nm":"Zohal","rs":"0","ms":"I was left with tears after watching this documentary, I was born and raised in the U.S and have never visited Afghanistan, the stories that I grew up hearing about Afghanistan was always about the Afghan Pride and our culture being so rich, and respected, and it was like that, but now after all these wars, after all these cruel leaders, closeminded leaders who have taken over the country, and for years the Taliban, who could never be called Muslim, brain washing men to not respect your women and that women have no rights and to wrap them up with burkas, people have no choice, there isn\'t a good leader either, before the soviets intruded Afghanistan we did have good leaders who modernized Afghanistan, women had rights. But now with ridiculous leaders like &quot;President Karzai&quot; and all the other government officials who seem to not take a stand what can we do. My Heart is burning inside with such anger watching this video, I can\'t imagine this happening to anyone, it\'s beyond farrrrrrrrr from Islam, Islam is the most beautiful religions out there, Human Rights, Womens Rights, Peace, everything about respect and having good morals is in the Quran, Women had rights in Islam before it was established in the U.S. Nobody should ever blame a religion. These acts are done by horrible people who follow not the way of god but the way of satan.","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 19:06"},{"nm":"Nancy","rs":"0","ms":"I applaud journalist Najibullah Quraishi for this expose.  I wonder if bacha bazi would continue should the Afghan women be liberated.","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 19:03"},{"nm":"Elizabeth Becerra","rs":"0","ms":"It is huge mafia using little boys for unhuman things, it is to sad to see how they take the inocent kids from they real family, and use for that animals things. they are bastards that need help and need to pay with jail or something what are they doing.","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 19:02"},{"nm":"AJ","rs":"0","ms":"Interesting how some people are highlighting that this goes on in other parts of the world and hence we should not be shocked at this documentary. Is this your attempt to justify an act because it is prevalent? of course we are shocked and surprised just like we should be when we hear of a heinous act. Just because it happens in other parts of the world does not make it any less horrid. lets take some action instead of making it an issue of national pride or anti-gay sentiments etc.","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 18:58"},{"nm":"rha","rs":"0","ms":"As a mother of a 10 yr old my heart bleeds 4 these poor boys. My anger grows because my American tax dollars are funding this. Karzi and his filty group have allowed this & probably have there own boys. They pray fast & molest little boys (hope others dont believe this is Islam). May ALLAH give them what they deserve in this life & the next.  ","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 18:34"},{"nm":"Conrad","rs":"0","ms":"The US and other governments know about all of this and look the other way.\n\nThis is nothing new. I work in Washington,DC and speak with defense dept and CIA people who know more details than this program reported.\n\nThe Western governments that are in Afghanistan are there for many reasons that involve power, politics, etc.  Are allies there are the very men who run the government, police, the warlords ie. all the men depicted in this film who enslave, rape, torture and ultimately kill these boys.\n\nThese boys are killed when they reach around 18 in many cases. At that point they are no longer considered sexually desirable by their masters. They have outlived their usefulness. No one wants them. As one man put it, &quot; My life is ruined.&quot;\n\nYour tax dollars at work.","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 18:28"},{"nm":"Angie Quattlebaum","rs":"0","ms":"I am the mother of a child survivor of rape. Until this happened I was not aware of the statistics of all the atsrisities against our beautiful children all over the world. It seems as though all of the predators have more rights than the children all over the world. I was saddened to my soul to watch the reality the boys in afganistan are so easily forced into because of their familes income and and the threats of what will happen if they do not agree. And the level of the participants is astounding the people own goverment, police, and all the people who should be protecting them. How can one help? I am just a mom but the paaion I have in my soul for the causes to protect the children of the world but I do not know where to begin. I want to make a difference and be a voice. How can I do this? I want to say to al who did thid documentary you are heros and we have many more people who are willing to help as myself but we need direction. If you have any suggestions on how could start to help please let me know I am ready to fight for our children!! Thank you for great hearts and hard work. We need more people like all who participated in this dangerous rescue and getting it shown to the world so the secret will be no more.\nYou all are guradian angels for the children.\nThank you,\nAngie Quattlebaum","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 18:07"},{"nm":"Mike G","rs":"0","ms":"As heinous a practice this is in Afghanistan--we have similar versions of this sort of exploitation in the West and even here in the heartland of America with the victims being both boys and girls. It is mostly a cadre of well off men who make this possible-either by putting the children into this modern form or slavery or by taking part in these operations by trading videos of sex acts with these children or taking part in the abuse themselves---in my area alone in recent years, we have had men who were school teachers, top officials of local government, religious leaders and others of such high positions get caught with child porn on their computers or by taking part in having sex with minor children. \n\nYou have to wonder what society has done that creates men who think that this sort of activity is somehow justified, just as long as they don\'t get caught!","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 16:24"},{"nm":"xxx","rs":"0","ms":"I am outside the US (I\'m in South America) and when I came to this page to view the video, it says: &quot;Sorry, this video is not available in your region due to rights restrictions.&quot;\n\nIf PBS goes to all the trouble of publishing this story on the world-wide web, it should be available on the entire WORLD-WIDE web, not just in certain countries.\n\nWith all the competing on-line news sources out there, it\'s hard enough to bring traffic to your page. If your site is lucky enough to have someone click on it, you shouldn\'t disappoint them by banning your content simply based on what country their IP is located in. ","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 15:48","er":"Thanks for your comment.  We try to make our shows as accessible as possible, but unfortunately, due to rights restrictions on this program, the streamed video of it is blocked outside the U.S."},{"nm":"yasmin","rs":"0","ms":"This documentary has deeply affected me, it is barbaric that this is going on and nothing is being done to prevent it. I would like to know what we as individuals can try to do about this deeply disturbing practise?","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 15:34"},{"nm":"Hamed","rs":"0","ms":"I am also an Afghan and after watching this documentary I\'m not sure if I can ever call myslef an Afghan anymore. This is such a shame to Afghans. Do these men have any decency? how can any human being try to hurt innecent kids like that is beyond me. And the sad part of it all is that most of these men have young kids of their own and they still engage in this behaviour and openly boast about it. \n\nI have no words to describe the horror I felt while watching this documentary. God knows how many other innocent boys\' lives have been destroyed like this, this is probably just one small example of a much widespread practice. The Afghan government is either unwilling or unable to stop this so the international community must intervene and stop this practice before more boys become victims. ","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 14:16"},{"nm":"B ","rs":"0","ms":"The documentary was very disturbing.  How such a violent sexuality becomes ordinary and institutionalized.  If it happens as a matter of habit in the social life of the community, it is there as an acceptable choice?  Is this apprenticeship part of becoming a man?  The child is conditioned to accepting.  What part does the physical violation play on the life of young men?  How many of these men are repeating experiences they themselves experienced?  It is a system of split systems...a rigidity of cultural behaviors and the shadow side....accepted and unspoken.  There are comparable situations in all societies but maybe not quite so raw or openly corrupt.\n\nIn college, I met a young boy who was a dancer raised by an older man who essentially purchased him.  These situations are likely far\nmore prevalent than we know.  It shocks us because they are children not sexually mature adults.  Sexuality may have much to do with genes but there is also conditioning... trauma.  The intensity has an addictive character for anyone who is abused.  Abuse has nothing to do with dna.  It damages and creates a cycle of repetition.  What is life like after living as a dancing boy?","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 13:22"},{"nm":"Khisraw","rs":"0","ms":"It is a bad practice. But I expected a more fair and serious report on this culture. Who is this journalist? The voice of our conscience or a poor refugee who is desperate to make a hit? These journalists most of the time betray people\'s trust and distort the reality to get the story they want. Seeing this report one would think that it is a widespread practice over Afghanistan, which is not true.\n\nWe need strong and competent journalists and sociologists to report on these deep phenomena. Making this sort of things as shallow humanitarian projects would for sure benefit the humanitarian aid-workers and reporters. I wish they would have also benefited the people.","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 13:08"},{"nm":"Andrea","rs":"0","ms":"Completely disgusting. I cried when I watched the episode. To see these grown men treating innocent children this way with no reguard to their mental well being. how do we help stop this? are there any organizations out there to join this cause and making it known worldwide so this can be stopped? please let me know.","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 12:49"},{"nm":"GCO","rs":"0","ms":"Since talking to retired military officer who spent time in Turkey in the 70\'s and 80\'s I\'ve learned that this practice of touching women for procreation only and &quot;fun&quot; with boys goes on throughout the middle east, not just Afghanistan. War does not cause this behavior. ","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 12:41"},{"nm":"Lorinda","rs":"0","ms":"&quot;Nazir Alimi investigated bacha bazi and wrote an internal report for UNICEF that suggested the practice was common in many areas of Afghanistan. He\'s director of the UNICEF-funded Youth Information and Contact Center in Mazar-e-Sharif.&quot;\nShouldn\'t we all be contacting UNICEF and requesting help for these children that Nazir has addressed? Let\'s support Nazir Alimi who has brought this to the table with UNICEF. Link to UNICEF/Afghanistan: \<a href=&quot;http://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/afghanistan_newsline.html&quot;\>http://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/afghanistan_newsline.html\<\/a\> ","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 12:38"},{"nm":"Roger","rs":"0","ms":"Before Islamic terrorist &quot;fix&quot; our country by flying our planes into our buildings, perhaps they should spend another 1328 years fixing their own society. They cover their woman and dance with their boys. ","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 12:08"},{"nm":"freshta","rs":"0","ms":"This is completely out of Islam, and the fact that they are using innocent children as a form of entertainment is disturbing and crimminal. I feel that these people are just memorizing the Quran instead of reading its meaning and they are performing acts against humanity. All of them even the ones who are smiling while these boys are dancing should be persecuted. I as a mother is sadden how many of this families sell their sons because they have no ways of help. How monsterous is these people and how the government is not strong enough to stop this illegal activity. It is the same as human trafficking","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 11:48"},{"nm":"Lauren Swain","rs":"0","ms":"To John:\n\nThe Taliban are criminals that kill and torture women. Allowing them to maintain power was a crime.  And that crime led to 9-11.    \n\nI did notice that none of perps claimed to be especially devout.  They seem to be the good-ole-boys of Afghanistan that do pretty much what they want because they have money.\n\nI agree, when there is no rule of law, money and power trump morality every time.","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 11:46"},{"nm":"sydda essop","rs":"0","ms":"I totally agree with John Rosenberg.... ","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 11:26"},{"nm":"Nast ","rs":"0","ms":"This documentary was alarming and sad.  How can these men declare themselves to be good Muslims and then defile their faith by engaging in such vile acts.  They are evil and anyone who condones this behavior are evil.  Who is worse, those who do it or those who lets it be done?  At the end, they are common pedophiles. The place, the language, and the culture might be different, but they are engaging in sexual acts with young children.  Pederasty in its worst form.  They might as well form their own version of &quot;N.A.M.B.L.A.&quot; - North Afghanistan Man-Boy Love Association.  This has to stop, the degradation and abuse of children all over the world!   ","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 11:16"},{"nm":"Perry Brass","rs":"0","ms":"What this program did not deal with is that heterosexual relations before marriage are completely forbidden in countries like Afganistan, and are often fatal. If a young man has sexual relations with a woman before marriage, then her father is compelled to kill him. If he does not, then the neighbors, who will find out, will brand her a whore and him a procurer, and then go after the entire family. So this practice of boy-play has very little to do either with Western homoeroticism or traditional Eastern gay romantic customs, as it does with the complete unavailability of women outside marriage. Most of the men profiled in the program were seen as being husbands and fathers; their feelings for the boys were exactly like predatory heterosexual men joking about the availability or looseness of girls. The Frontline documentary did not bring this out at all, and the men were simply seen as homosexual predators, which was wrong. \nPerry Brass, author of How to Survive Your Own Gay Life, and other books. ","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 10:16"},{"nm":"Aryan","rs":"0","ms":"The story of the documentary is true , however, the people and places are remake . It is very horrible and sad side of Afghanistan. And thanks for bringiing this issue to the World.","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 09:40"},{"nm":"Leke","rs":"0","ms":"I was stunned and haunted by this program.  It made me finally realize how wide spread child exploitation is throughout the world.  It would be great if Frontline and other media producers of disturbing documentaries would also list\nsolutions their viewers could be part of.  What can we do to help!!!","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 08:42"},{"nm":"Enraged","rs":"0","ms":"They are Afghans what else you expect. Look at their history they are never in peace.","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 07:34"},{"nm":"Cesar","rs":"0","ms":"I tend to disagree that &quot;bacha bazi&quot; motive for practice is the same with the ancient Greek. In Ancient Greece the pairing of soldiers with boys are for military advantage point of view. The pairing of scholars with boys are for educating the young minds. Formal form of educations was not developed at the time.\n\nThe &quot;bacha bazi&quot;, appears to be a product of social status quo, where most of all the power in a society resides on men. Also, there is common extreme desires in the eyes of these men to put their women in the pedestal of sacredness. Men control status quo by treating women as their property, most of whom were probably denied sexual intimacy. The distribution of power among men varies widely. This most likely preclude the most powerfull men to be capable of practicing &quot;bacha bazi&quot; almost at will. Lust for sexual intimacy is obviously directed to young boys; again to preserve the status quo.","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 06:22"},{"nm":"Janet Drost","rs":"0","ms":"Sexual exploitation of children is rampant EVERYWHERE in the world.  It rages on because those who could stop it--top law enforcement,military,judges,politicians,professors,doctors,clergy,community elites,etc engage in the same abominable behavior/abuse and wield the power/money to cover it up or make sure it never sees the light of day.  Governments appear to condone &quot;child sex tourism&quot;.  Internet child pornography is booming. It continues unabated for the simple reason that it is allowed to. Government intelligence agencies regularly use &quot;sexual escapade set ups&quot; as sources for blackmail in the political arena. As gut wrenchingly inhumane and horrible it is for these victims--we should not at all be surprised.","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 05:40"},{"nm":"Tareq ","rs":"0","ms":"The funny thing about westerners is that they are always &quot;shocked&quot; and &quot;surprised&quot; that such a practice can occur in a nation destroyed by decades of war. Wars that have littered the landscape with the maimed, the widowed and the countless number of orphans, more of which continue to be created daily by NATO bombings. These men are pedophiles, this has nothing to do with culture or religion as some of you are so quick to simplify, these type of people exist in every society and throughout time, the only difference is they are able to flaunt their behavior because there is no rule of law. When there is no rule of law only the worst type of human being rise to the top, and it is the innocent that become their prey. This is just another evil by product of war. You in the west who are quick to judge  Afghan society as &quot;primitive&quot; and &quot;evil&quot; do you not believe that such predators live in your communities? The industry of sex tourisim in Southeast Asia exist because of the west. Those of you in America, go to the Megan\'s Law website, type in your address and look at how many child predators live in your neighborhood. Yes, with the help your tax dollars, only the most soulless and evil of men have clout in today\'s Afghanistan, and you wonder why the Taliban are making a comeback?","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 05:08"},{"nm":"Honor Johnson","rs":"0","ms":"Shameful, pathetic, deplorable, can\'t find the right words to say.  I feel sorry for these boys and their families.","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 05:00"},{"nm":"m w","rs":"0","ms":"Notice that most if not all of these monkeys are northern alliance commanders.  the exact same people we sent our weapons, money and troops to help defeat the taliban who made the practice illegal.  tax money and american effort well disspensed isnt it? im not advocating the taliban but if we are going to liberate a people from a repressive regime shouldnt we, at the very least, prevent an equally repressive from replacing them? we american need to think really hard, and more importantly CARE about what we give our support to because that support speaks volumes of our character as our government is a representation of who we are as a people.    ","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 04:53"},{"nm":"John","rs":"0","ms":"It is a shame that these kind of people exist in every culture, race and religion.  This has become a disease in every culture and every time the religions get the blame.\n\nSatan is getting into the blood from the priest in the church to the poor father in the village.\n\nMay God save us from these satanic animals which comes in many forms and such corrupt Government.","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 04:14"},{"nm":"Michael M.","rs":"0","ms":"There is a huge gay population in Afghan.  The main problem is that it is illegal to be gay in these countries.  Therefore, gay adult males seek partners among the most helpless and vulnerable.  Secondly, because of massive corruption, the laws are not enforced.  These middle east countries need to accept the fact that homosexual people exist in ALL cultures and give them a normal outlet for their sexual and romantic impulses.\n\nA counry is only as sick as it\'s secret.","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 03:28"},{"nm":"From USA","rs":"0","ms":"After watching this documentary, one should be thankful for being a moral person rather than being an American or so forth because when one loses morality, then that person can do anything and anywhere, no matter if its America or Afghanistan. Like in other countries, girls, younger than age 10 gets rape here in the USA but that does not make USA a bad country or the people immoral.\nUnfortunately, some people who made comments seems so ignorant. One has to understand that &quot;the dancing boys&quot; have nothing to do with a religion, its \nrather an immoral practice of a culture.\nHopefully, and I pray, that one day these boys will be freed and the abusers/owners will be punished. and I think this would be impossible to happen until all the &quot;authority&quot; people are also severely punished for their involvement.","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 03:18"},{"nm":"Joe","rs":"0","ms":"I don\'t know if the program on the &quot;Dancing Boys&quot; was more pityful or just as pityful as the comments I read here.  People act so surprised that this type of thing goes on.  Hello, this is the plante Earth here.  This stuff  goes on all over the world and since the beginning of time, this does not make it right.  World religions when properly practiced teach us to be obedient to the Will of God, it forbids such acts.  A sacred bond is made between a Man and a Woman for the purpose of procreation, this is called &quot;marriage.&quot;  In some cultures it is treated differently, but the end result is the same, to &quot;populate the earth.&quot;  Read the Holy books if you don\'t understand. These books are called the Bible, Torah and Quran. Though as many times as these books conflict with each other they all speak of the homosexual &quot;act&quot; in the same way.    Unfortunately, modern society has classed the homosexual &quot;act&quot; as a &quot;lifestyle.&quot;  We now have allowed the church to accept these &quot;homosexuals&quot; to be part of the Civilized Order, though they defy the Will of God.  Furthermore, when a professional who is to be trusted in a specialized field of work such as a Priest, Police or Psychologist breaks with the bonds of trust, this person should be strung up and have his $%#&^ cut off.  Culture will never be civil until we truly act civil to each other, unfortunately this cannot be done because we are all &quot;sexual&quot; beings, and we need to understand that sex is a necessity because it is a very strong brain function ruled by the limbic brain fuctions, these fuctions need to have their exercise.  We all have the ability to stray from God\'s plan, but how we do it and whom we corrupt in the process will be the price we pay.  Will we marry a member of the oppisite sex because of attraction, tradition or respect?  Will we have sex with a Cow, Chicken or Goat?  Will we practice a monastic lifestyle to oneself and watch others fret and stumble through their life?  We need to bow down to a traditional religion of choice, learn to give others their space, tolerance is but a virtue.  Prudence, fortitude, justice are also virtues, ultimately this is called Altruism!  Altruism is enlightening because all religions must be respected. When properly respected, stories like the &quot;Dancing Boys&quot; would simply not exist.                     ","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 02:45"},{"nm":"Hugh","rs":"0","ms":"As disturbing as this program was, I think I was more sickened by the comment in this thread by Mr. Gary Stewart. He lectures that there is &quot;a useful purpose for this, even though we may not understand it&quot;.  As though because it occurred sometime in ancient history that that justifies it today.  That this was simply a &quot;difference&quot; in cultures that required understanding, and not the heinous crime that it actually is.  Mr. Stewart I know that you don\'t care that these children were SOLD to these creeps.  And I know that you don\'t care that this documentary reported the systematic gang rape of at least one of these children.  But do you care that, in addition to being held against their will and gang raped, some are also MURDERED?  Will you at least draw the line at murder?  This is not a &quot;cultural variation&quot; such as using chopsticks instead of a knife and fork.  This is criminal behavior in the form of systematic sexual abuse of children and you are a very sick man if you can\'t see that.      ","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 00:50"},{"nm":"James A","rs":"0","ms":" This broke my heart.\n\nI can\'t imagine the kind of person who would do things like this to little kids (boys or girls) It is particularly disturbing to see it done to young boys because you know it will continue a cycle of abuse (as shown by the 15 year old boy who said he could do it for 3 more years then when he was no longer &quot;wanted&quot; get his own stable of boys. As is often the case, pedophiles (especially homosexuals ones) beget other homosexual pedophiles. These boys weren\'t &quot;born gay&quot; as some would ascribe to all who struggle with homosexuality…. But many of these boys will no doubt struggle with homosexuality and pedophilia for the rest of their lives. I don\'t say that to intentionally offend anyone, but I’m sure many will look to be offended by it.  I have a soft spot in my heart for those who are damaged so profoundly by the selfish actions of others.  And I am also able to make a distinction between those who struggle with sexual disorders for what ever reason, and those who act on them. \n","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 00:47"},{"nm":"just a mom","rs":"0","ms":"Polanski gets Sarkozy to hand Obama a letter pleading for leniency....how different is he from these perverts in Afghanistan? And he has Hollywood on his side!?!","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 00:22"},{"nm":"Sahana","rs":"0","ms":"As a mother of 3 young boys I was discusted and horrified by the information in this documentry. Every child is our child, their feelings, fears, needs are like our own. With the corrupt criminals who run the country how can anything ever be done to stop it. It has been going on for ages and as long is there are evil beings with money it will continue. It was sickening to see that discusting pig drooling and grining as he watched the young man dancing, knowing what was on his mind. I have a 15 year old boy and just thinking about it makes me sick. What is the point of praying 5 times a day when you are a demon.","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 00:16"},{"nm":"GCO","rs":"0","ms":"Afghanistan looks broken, buildings, roads, people wandering around looking for work. It took no time at all for the German to find a willing young man for his pleasure. The children are not in school if their parents are poor. Women are not allowed out on the streets without escorts. Has this country seen freedom from oppression in it\'s 5000 years? I care what happens in the world. We can do better than this ignorant tradition. The financial stress must be crushing for a father to sell the child as a sex slave. I realize it\'s happening worldwide. Very distressing and utterly abusive. ","pt":"Apr 22, 2010 00:11"},{"nm":"Dario","rs":"0","ms":"The most disturbing fact is that both of the guys are not in custody. Hard to absorb this.  Afghanistan justice system is nonexistent and what is happening to these kids is so sad.  What to do when you have such a corrupt society? \nKudos to the Frontline guys. ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 23:55"},{"nm":"AG","rs":"0","ms":"As horrible as this is ... I don\'t think those of us in the USA or UK should get too &quot;high and mighty.&quot;  Anyone who has been subjected to sexual abuse in the USA or UK will tell you, there are the same types of organizations here.  Perhaps not *as* widespread, or *as* tolerated ... but existing nonetheless.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 23:51"},{"nm":"JaredB","rs":"0","ms":"Have any of you looked inside our own country? The good ol U.S. allows football players to rape and they get off completely free. Priests do this all the time and are just moved around. YES, this practice in Afghanistan is HORRID, but we are far from perfect in our own country with just as many despicable things going on. ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 23:38"},{"nm":"N. Tarin","rs":"0","ms":"I am very glad that Najibullah Quraishi was back to Afghanistan. Personally, I am against Bacha Bazi Practice. I definately recommend public awareness and punishment for people who are convicted of those type of crimes. However, I live in a country that guy marriage is legal, but definately not agree on concept of guyism especially by force on children. ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 23:31"},{"nm":"ttjan","rs":"0","ms":"thank you for this documentary that brings light to this horrible, horrific, and disgusting practice of child molestation. What can we do to help? ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 23:29"},{"nm":"Vanessa  ","rs":"0","ms":"The filmmakers of The Dancing Boys of Afghanistan deserve every prize and award possible!!  I imagine this was a very dangerous undertaking.  Thank G-d for people like Najibullah Quiriashi.  Many Muslims and Middle-easterners fled their homelands and never looked back.  The brain drain has left so many countries without the progressive minds to move the people out of history and away from barbaric/destructive traditions and into enlightenment where a man  is free to think and does.  I hope more Muslims/Middle Easterners who have lived in the comfort of the West will show this sort of courage--help your people.  It\'s not enough to just criticize the War.  People need to see a reflection of themselves in the G-d\'s modern world.  This &quot;secret&quot; needed to be exposed.  Afghanistan gov\'t is a sham and should be shamed by all nations for helping to institutionalize the rape, abuse and murder of boys--children.  ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 23:17"},{"nm":"Bleyer","rs":"0","ms":"VERY, VERY, VERY, VERY, VERY DISTURBING!!!!!\n\nWHAT\'S MORE DISTURBING IS THAT THIS HAS AND IS GOING ON IN THE CATHOLIC CHURCH!\nSOMEONE PLEASE PUT THE WOMEN IN CHARGE, THIS WOULD NEVER HAPPEN!","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 22:59"},{"nm":"Frank Martino","rs":"0","ms":"The Americans are in Afganistan for oil pipelines and the opium. Please hold the selfrightousness","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 22:47"},{"nm":"Janet","rs":"0","ms":"I was so appalled that after the program, I sat in a state numbness.  I felt helpless.  I thought, what can I do?  Really, there is not anything that we humans can do.  I am a Christian and I am looking forward to the soon coming of our Savior.  God will then punish all who will have to answer for their sins.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 22:47"},{"nm":"kulsoom faruqi","rs":"0","ms":"They are simply digusting pedophiles who should endure what they put those boys through, the whole country seems to be a barbaric disaster.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 22:47"},{"nm":"Maria","rs":"0","ms":"Do NOT judge people.. this has nothing to do Islam : to the ignorant ones who judge people and know nothing about the religion. Islam prohibits this, this is disgusting and it is a form of torture and sin in Islam. it is not CLEAN. this is extremely sad. Just because some people do it doesnt mean the whole country of AFghanistan does it. This documentary was made to make people aware that every country has their flaws. Yes.. even britain..*cough* to the commenter up there who is so proud to be British. There is a fine line between arrogance and gratefulness... ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 22:38"},{"nm":"vikoz","rs":"0","ms":"Interesting that during the reign of the Taliban, both poppy production (heroin) and bacha bazi were outlawd and greatly limited. Now under the reign of the US and NATO, both are flourishing. Afganistan supplied 94% of the world\'s heroin last year.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 22:27"},{"nm":"Ada","rs":"0","ms":"Afghanistan seems to be a hopelessly corrupt snake pit where the poor are exploited beyond belief! \nWomen have no voice - wrapped in black and helpless.  One guy congratulated himself saying that\nhe was a &quot;cultured&quot; man because he discussed with his wife the fact that he was taking a boy as a partner\nor companion. Aids must be rampant - have they looked at that issue I wonder?  All that gang raping going\non, all male partying with young boys as victims of their whims - such a filthy lifestyle - what role does\npraying five times a day play in it.  No compassion - just filth and hypocrisy!","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 21:58"},{"nm":"H. Cunningham","rs":"0","ms":"&quot;Chris&quot; got it exactly right:\n\n\>Is it any wonder that a culture that literally keeps it\'s female population &quot;under wraps&quot; tolerates a sub-culture of bacha bazi ?...\n\> If you live in a society that represses it\'s girls and women, and you\'re a powerful and wealthy male, then you skip the goat and go straight to the boy.\n\nRural Afghan men do not socialize with women until the day they marry them by arrangement.  Even then, they cannot take their wives out on dates.\nClassical Athens and Sparta were pedophile in part for the same reason.\n\nThese Afghan pedophiles are not gay.  Attracted to the softer skin and higher voices of boys, they would be heterosexual in a normal society.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 21:57"},{"nm":"Denise","rs":"0","ms":"What a despicable practice! It angered me to see a room full of perverse men  lusting after a child. Thank you to those who were not afraid to risk their lives to expose this filthy practice.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 21:55"},{"nm":"Cecilia Fernandez","rs":"0","ms":"As a teacher of young children, I respect ALL cultures and I try to be as open-minded as possible.  However, I draw the line where there is an absolute and clear abuse of another being.  What Frontline exposed on last night\'s documentary is unimaginable.  I am ashamed to say that at may age, 40, I am still amazed about the human race\'s capability for barbarism.  \n     I, too, as many of the commentators above mention, was sick to my stomach and could not sleep last night after seeing that. I could not stop thinking that as I went on about my daily routine, these innocent boys are living this hell.  I feel as if I have witnessed a crime and have done nothing to stop it.  What can we do to help?  I commend and admire Frontline and especially the reporter and crew for risking their lives to do this - that is a bit comforting ,to know that good people also still exist.  I do not judge ALL Afghan people by this horrific abuse of power on all levels, of course, as it obviously happens in ALL cultures whether it is exposed or not.  It is disappointing to be reminded just how barbaric human beings can be.  \n     Mr. Stuart, being objective and accepting traditions in the name of culture or history does not make the practices acceptable.  Abuse is abuse and these children\'s lives are ruined forever because of these men\'s abusive, sick vices - that is wrong whether it be new or ancient.  Children should be protected because they are innocent and monsters like these have always existed.\n         Sincerely,\n            Cecilia Fernandez\n     ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 21:50"},{"nm":"Judy","rs":"0","ms":"When I watched this program last night. I was appalled by what I saw and heard. I do know of other countries that have sex slaves such as India, where the parents of the children are sold into this type of slavery for money. I know the families are doing it for money but that is really desperate. I felt so awful for those boys especially the 9 year old that was profiled, he is so young but was glad he got away from his pimp. But to think this goes on in other countries but believe that this practice is coming to the United States is horrifying to me. Some thing needs to be done for these boys. As one boy said &quot;it ruined my life&quot;, this type of abuse as all other abuses have long term consequences. ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 21:45"},{"nm":"Robert","rs":"0","ms":"\nI have always valued Frontline for its thought provoking programs but the Lost Boys of Afghanistan was unacceptable.\nOnce again Western journalists have given free advertising for what is nothing less than underage prostitution. All you have done is alerted pedophiles across the world of a new sex tourist location. Helping the one boy featured in your program will do nothing for all the other boys. Does anyone at PBS understand that underage prostitution happens right here in the US. Again, in a country with lax or non existent child protection laws, you have enthusiastically said: Hey pedophiles forget about Thailand, Kenya, Brazil, Costa Rica come on over to Afghanistan for the time or your life. What a bunch of dumb asses at PBS. This program is no better than NBC\'s to catch a predator. By the way NBC still airs the same tired reruns--no one has ever explained to NBC after the initial shock people have turned away because no one wants to see that garbage. The next time you decide go after ratings like every other network, could someone with a moral compass stop and say &quot;wait we might just make a bad problem worse&quot;. There is nothing too vile or vulgar when ratings are at stake. Shame on you!! I am so angry at PBS for this piece of gutter journalism. Is it possible to have done the program any other any other way? Oh and I know what\'s next. Frontline will do another &quot;expose&quot; indicating that Afghanistan is now a sex tourist location. When you do please email me.  I want naming rights: &quot;How PBS Made Thailand Jealous&quot; What do you think? Is that creative or what? I almost ready to write Frontline off. I had the absurd notion that programs on PBS and NPR were distinctly different from the commercial networks.\n\nI can now add PBS to the list of networks that can\'t resist reality tv---in this case reality porn----reality kiddie porn.\nGo PBS! Will reality kiddie porn now be a regular feature of your programming---just what Americans need more of. I am not going to waste anymore time on this pathetic program. \n \nSadly child exploitation occurs in every part of the world. As in each and every expose I have seen about child exploitation there is no emphasis on the underlying economic factors that push people into prostitution. I know, talking about economics is too boring.\nI don\'t think I will watch Frontline again.\n   ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 21:33"},{"nm":"Manny Artola","rs":"0","ms":"I never thought a human been could treat/see their children in such inhumane way.  Now I have learned of two deeply disturbing practices out of two war torn countries: Cambodia and now Afghanistan. This and the combodian practices anger me and are deeply disturbing.  I ask, how far do we as a human race can denigrate our own.  It has only been 83 years since the beggining of the major crusades where millions of people were killed by government policies: communism, nazis, and facsism.  All in the name to control humans, under the pretext that it was for the good of the greater majority.  In Afghanistan this practice is used by the powerful, and somehow it seems to me so similar to what the hierarchy of the Catholic Church most have used with their youth that is now in the news.  Both are so diametrically opposed to all I was thought as a poor, but Christian child by my parents in a small farm in Nicaragua.  May God have mercy on these peoples soul. ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 20:53"},{"nm":"Shannon Marie","rs":"0","ms":"To Everyone: \nI seen many &quot;What can I do&quot;?, and &quot;How can I help make a change?&quot; \nRead on, this is posted in love. We are the candles, lets light the way. \nI understand your concerns, your outrage, your feelings of helplessness to an enemy with no face. What you can do to help is this, support people that fight to free these humans brutalized, beaten, and bonded into slavery. How do you do this?\nInformation is knowledge. Put on your battle gear, I will explain,...\nWrite to congress. Become informed, and visit web sights, talk, and pray about it, donate time, and money to the causes that fight for prevention. Donate specifically, any time and money to the ones that go into to help rehabilitate, and give these lost back some hope and dignity. Times are hard, however if you and everyone that reads this call to battle only donates $5.00 to a cause of their choice, we will make a difference in a million lives this time next year, and armed with this truth, your seed will grow. That\'s Gods promise.\nWhere do you start?\nLook up your congress men, and woman that had you vote for them. Get them to read partitions, and your feelings. Try to remain professional. Remember you catch more bee\'s with honey.\nVoice your opinions. Hug your own kids, and remember to do all that you do from this post out with love. Pray that God will use you and he will.\n\<a href=&quot;http://www.stopinternational.org/&quot;\>http://www.stopinternational.org/\<\/a\> and \<a href=&quot;http://www.soroptimist.org/trafficking/trafficking.html&quot;\>http://www.soroptimist.org/trafficking/trafficking.html\<\/a\> are some great ways to become informed. \nEducate your children about the internet. To child predators this is their new &quot;Home Shopping Network.&quot; Educate your self and your children about safety issues concerning private information over e mails, blog sites, and even the &quot;so called&quot; casting call, we want models scams. They are out to exploit, and steal your money, as well as some used to steal your children. \nWatch movies like &quot;human Trafficking&quot; out on Netflix, and at Blockbusters. Fictional, but teen capable (view first to see if this may be appropriate for your child) for them to understand the lures, and tricks of this trade. Go to (of corse) PBS, NBC, CBC, CBS, and scan for TV information. Write to their network, and the people in the show you just watched. REMAIN OUTRAGED! Go into this as you would a battle. \nAbove all pray, and be safe when you go to these dark places to fight. Satan seeks to destroy. Be vigil and protect your selves. Keep in in the front of your thoughts, keep talking about it. Talking and blogging are the first tools and weapons to break the chain of abuse.\nGod Bless everyone of you in your endeavors to help the weak, and suffering to make a difference.\nShannon Marie","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 20:50"},{"nm":"Jon","rs":"0","ms":"This is unbelievable.  These people are from a different planet.  We are all human but this is just sick, just sick.  Why are the Taliban not out there hanging these people by their N%ts????","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 20:48"},{"nm":"sherill","rs":"0","ms":"These men are sadistic and calculating. They groom these innocent boys and entice their families with money for their own sick pleasures. The are SICK!!!!!!! Macho, so call religious creeps.  I was disguised to my stomach. I couldn’t really sleep last night. Thank you KCET for bringing this to the world’s attention.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 20:38"},{"nm":"aditidesai","rs":"0","ms":"i am extremely touched by this documentary regarding this horrid boy play. my knowledge of this was first brought to me while watching the kiterunner which i completely seemed to disregard. however, while i was watching this with my father, it literally brought me to tears. and of course it inspired me. but what is there that we can do other then say \'oh thats so sad\' and return to eating your dinner? its the UN\'s along with islamic world\'s responsibility to take charge. its depressing to know that the officials are so corrupt. anyways, great piece of journalism and i thoroughly enjoyed it. thank you for this. ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 20:36"},{"nm":"Sickened","rs":"0","ms":"I felt bereft when this program ended.  There were so many unanswered questions and things left up in the air, no satisfying plan of action to prosecute and punish the pedophile monsters.  I may have missed it but there was no mention of AIDS/STDs either which must be an issue for these poor children.  If the two perps that were highlighted got out of jail and were back in business within weeks, what hope is there for an end to this barbaric practice?  Bravo to the two correspondents -- follow up please!!!","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 20:32"},{"nm":"PBS Fan","rs":"0","ms":"What an amazing documentary!  And how hypocritical and mentally ill are these abusers?  And why isn\'t the United States, and other governments, doing something about this horror?","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 20:31"},{"nm":"Theo Jamison","rs":"0","ms":"Wow, what an explosive doumentary. Thanks for opening our eyes to the daily atrosities that are happening to our young children all around the world. After viewing this Frontline Documentary, I could not sleep, had trouble eating the next morning, and it stayed with me all day. Please let us know how we can help bring such tragic child abuse to an END. I am asking all of my family, friends, and co-workers to catch this documentary when it shows again. Hats off to the film-maker and everyone else involved in bringing such evil acts to light.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 20:27"},{"nm":"O.","rs":"0","ms":"The Crimes of Catholic Church need investigation as well. \nWhen will the Pope be investigated by FBI?\nAre we not supposed to protect the powerless against the powerful?\nWhat happens to North American and European men who visit South East Asia?\nSex Tourists of the so called Western World in other parts of the world exploiting children.\n \nIt is sad that we use these documentaries as a tool to point and say  how \'civilized\' we are and how \'backwards\' they are.\n\nIt is also sad to suffer from  SELECTIVE MORALITY. \n","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 20:23"},{"nm":"Jane","rs":"0","ms":"The worst predators often feign religious devotion by day and commit inhumane acts by night. If it were otherwise, their own communities would rise up against them, for surely our common humanity prevents most of us from harming the children in our midst. What a tragedy! This story kept me up all night.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 20:14"},{"nm":"Latikka Johnson","rs":"0","ms":"I watched in a horiffic displaced attitude that this was going on over there in Afghanistan,universal moral principles are being ignored by allowing these actions to take place, by this being a taboo subject it is happening opening and publicly and law enforcements should step up and up hold the law","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 20:05"},{"nm":"Sara","rs":"0","ms":"Absolutely broken-hearted after watching this expos\'e of these horrible crimes against innocent young boys. FRONTLINE has done a great job again of bringing to the world\'s eyes pertinent information regarding the plight of those who have no voice. My hope is that more than one person in power somewhere can start actions that will stop these atrocities, not only in Afghanistan, but in other places as well. The sex slave trade is not confined to one place or race or religion...much too widespread. But this situation is so sad.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 19:47"},{"nm":"bridgette","rs":"0","ms":"i saw the end of the program where the reporter was shoving his clothes into his backpack - leaving the country and a boy that was in the hands of monsters, he left hopeless - and there are so many boys - i cant even think straight -how in the world can these monsters -what kind of sick perverse mind -why? i hope this exposes all of them that someone will shed light more reporting more involvement and an end to this disgusting practice","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 19:44"},{"nm":"John Rosenberg","rs":"0","ms":"If only Taliban comes back to power. these warlords will be taught a lesson they wont forget. \nThis is not a religious practice, this is a practice steming from sick hearts backed by the Karzai government (our Allies in War on terror)\n\nfact; No Poppy cultivation and No Sex Abuse on kids, and crime rate down to 0 during taliban times","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 19:27"},{"nm":"US Mom","rs":"0","ms":"My sister is a Registered Nurse in the US and says the AIDS population is exploding in this community, but they keep it well hidden, even by our own government.  God bless these poor young boys and there will be a place in heaven for them when it it their time.  There is also a place in hell for the abusers & the ones who cover it up.  Wish we could just stop the violence from the entire world.  We are truly in jeapordy if we don\'t do something now...","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 19:22"},{"nm":"proud.to.be.British","rs":"0","ms":"Muslims, their culture, their book, islam? So glad I aint one.\n\nI hope whoever is in power next in the UK completely tightens our borders and immigration.\n\nThese people should never cross! This documentary was shocking.\n\nI am proud to be British, proud to be born in the UK and I hope these people go down!\n\nMy views on muslims have now changed completely.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 19:17"},{"nm":"Mike","rs":"0","ms":"This is a long tradition in Afghanistan. The reason the Taliban came to power is there was a warlod who saw a boy, and this boy was supposedly the most beautiful boy in the town. But a another warlord wanted him. So the two fought over him with tanks. You never hear about stuff like this on the news, or on Oprah. All you hear about is schools being built for girls, and Afghanis running kites. My problem isn\'t with what these men do behind closed doors, but the fact that these are boys, and they have no choice in the matter. We in the west hear so much about sexual slavery, Catholic priests, but never about what a hell hole Karzai, and his drug dealing brother have turned Afghanistan into.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 19:07"},{"nm":"Farkhunda","rs":"0","ms":"I am an Afghan-Canadian. I just watched this documentary and I am not at all shocked, but as usual I cried for all these poor people of Afghanistan who are being exploited for decades. I feel so helpless that I can\'t reach them all. Disgusting, inhumane, horrible crimes like these happen in Afghanistan and elsewhere. Those beasts should be hanged. Even though this practice has been present in this country for so long, it has nothing to do with Islam, the religion. These horrific sexual abuses towards children and women exist all over the places. It is really really sad to say that not all humans are actually humans, especially men... By the way, I don\'t want to offend men in general. ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 19:00"},{"nm":"HelplessFeelingVoice","rs":"0","ms":"I just watched this and did the only thing I know right now which seems so little.  I called my state rep Steve Lynch, my two Senators Kerry and Brown, and the DNC of which I am a semi frequent contributor.  I had to leave messages but will be continuing to call.  I feel the same as many in the posts above and sincere thank you to the producers of FRONTLINE for running this story and all that was involved in doing so.  Call your reps people, it might not seem like much but it\'s a good tool.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 18:45"},{"nm":"Mary M.","rs":"0","ms":"Far from being exclusive to Afghanistan, exploitation of children, male and female, for nefarious purposes including sex, is pandemic throughout the world, as it has always been.  It is shocking and appalling that western posters don\'t admit to this; the years-long scandals rocking the Christian church are proof, if they are unaware, as are &quot;kiddie porn&quot; media, and human trafficking of juveniles.  This has gone on for millenia all over, and is absolutely unspecific to any one religion, race, ethnicity, culture, or national origin.  Clean your own yard before you point your finger at others\'. ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 18:45"},{"nm":"patti milton","rs":"0","ms":"My husband spent quite of bit of time over in Afghanistan and talked to me about this several years ago.  I thought he was exaggerating.  It was disgusting to me so I did not want to believe it.  This story confirmed everything he told me about.  Clearly, the culture there and the perceptions are different then anything we can wrap our minds around here in the states.  Does anyone know how to help these kids?  If these parents are willing to give up a child for torture and sexual abuse and possibly murder, maybe they would be willing to adopt out to the US for money.  I would gladly accept any child into my home to prevent them from suffering like this.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 18:44"},{"nm":"mohamed","rs":"0","ms":"It was very painful to watch the program last night. I was appalled to say the least. I could not believe what I was seeing. Young boys lured and sold to pimps, and major forces in the Afghani society were keeping their mouth shut and turning their eyes. Excellent work of journalism. I want thank Frontline, especially Najibullah, who bravery is exhibited throughout his work. ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 18:41"},{"nm":"Dr. M. Jamil Hanifi","rs":"0","ms":"I am a cultural anthropologist specializing in the anthropology and history of Afghanistan. The &quot;Dancing Boys of Afghanistan&quot; is a journalistic travesty and a gross ethnographic distortion and misrepresentation of the institution of &quot;bacha bazi&quot;--boy playing--in northern Afghanistan. Anyone with adequate local cultural knowledge and disciplined ethnographic competence in the cultures of Afghanistan will see that, other than the ritual dancing scenes, the subjects and contents of the discourses in the DBA were staged and s\cripted for the consumption of uninformed, complacent, and sex-absorbed Western audiences. I will be happy to discuss and back-up my views in public with the producers of this program, Mr. Najibullah Quraishi, and officials at PBS and Frontline responsible for airing this program.   ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 18:34","er":"Reporter Najibullah Quairishi certainly possessed the &quot;local cultural knowledge&quot; to measure the authenticity of the scenes his camera was recording. Quairishi lived most of his life in Northern Afghanistan, graduated from the top university in the region, and had a distinguished career as a journalist there, including hosting his own program on Afghan television program which focused specifically on northern cultural matters. The scenes he recorded and interviews he conducted were not &quot;staged or s\cripted&quot; and what he witnessed was consistent with his reporting on the practice and with the testimony of other experts. The producers contacted several Afghan cultural anthropologists in the UK and Afghanistan to speak about the practice, but all declined to interviewed for the program.  "},{"nm":"sherm","rs":"0","ms":" This is not a religious issue. It is a moral dilemma. I was quite en-lightened  by the report, and while I applaud the producer for shedding light on this horrific crime, I am deeply saddened by the fact that this practice is not limited to poor under-developed counties. This problem touches EVERY corner of the universe. This atrocity in my opinion, is analogous to child porn, incest, child labor, child soldiers..and the list goes on. Unfortunately, the mothers of these children, because of societal constraints,  are rendered both powerless and voiceless in speaking out against this and protecting their children. This is more than a moral impasse, which begs me to question-- since the international community is aware that these acts are being perpetrated against children,  what are they going to do to bring these people to justice and     curtail this madness? ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 18:23"},{"nm":"Colleen","rs":"0","ms":"How horrific things like this actually happen in this world.  In a lot of ways Americans are sheltered but we too have our own horrors just as Honduras, Africa, China are just a few that comes to the top of my head.  I felt for the Afghan people as I read some of their comments of being ashamed.  I am ashamed of humanity out of control and there isn\'t one race that I can think of that is not without it\'s disgraces.  ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 18:05"},{"nm":"byrd","rs":"0","ms":"I have a range of emotions after watching this piece of courageous journalism. i applaud the journalists who risked their lives to shoot this piece. i am perplexed and left with many questions though. they are Muslim? and use of boys, dressed as girls and have sex with these young boys and teenagers? a country that forbids drinking and homosexuality. it is perplexing. how does this happen in such an extremist, religious place? do these men see themselves as gay? the whole thing is fascinating discussion to me. would love to hear more people\'s thoughts. ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 17:37"},{"nm":"Phyllis Salyer Carruthers","rs":"0","ms":"The program further clarified for me why we should not be sending troops onto\nAfghanistan-the culture is so unique, and I find quite Bizarre compared to our Wetern Culture.  The program further showed the absolute poverty of the people-where money for food and survival is more important to parents than the boys.\nI learned tht the dancers when they mature become pimps and have their own cadre of dancers People with money and power exploit the helpless in all parts of the world   Why we are putting tax dollars into this area is an action I will  protest to Wash DC  MAY I THANK YOU FOR DARING AND COURAGE TO MAKE THIS REPORT.  At age 84  little shocks me and I see why the culture in Afghanistan\nkeeps women down==powerful womwn would not tolerate this  &quot;bad boy practive&quot;","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 17:33"},{"nm":"Kate","rs":"0","ms":"I liked the reporting style of this program.  The events were presented without sensationalism and the horrid conditions spoke for themselves.  For all those who would like to do something there is a group that is working to end this from of child abuse.  Check out \<a href=&quot;http://love146.org/love-story&quot;\>http://love146.org/love-story\<\/a\>","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 17:26"},{"nm":"sue","rs":"0","ms":"    I watched the program & was sickened at Afghani men/fathers who would do this to someone else\'s sons.Are they a country of pedophiles? They cannot do that to someone\'s daughter since they would have been murdered by the families.But the families of these boys allow this to be done to their sons???? Makes one glad that one is an American!","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 17:05"},{"nm":"Azada","rs":"0","ms":"Front Line did a fantastic job in bringing this horrific crime taking place against innocent Afghan boys in that country. Someone should go to those criminal men who are buying these boys and use them as sex slaves and either shoot them or subject them to rap and torture.  Shoot those pimps first and tell those boys parents to be ashamed of themselves selling these boys to begin with. \n\nActually the problem appears to be deeper that just buying these boys. Sometimes these drug warlords kidnap teenage boys and use them for their sexual purposes.\n\nI agree with Hector Torres some this type of behavior will only attract more sick men into this world. \n\nAs far Robert Pavlick’ comments. Afghanistan has lots of other good things to offer to the world, its beautiful mountains full of natural resources , minds and minerals; its is rich 5000.00 years history etc. Yes it has drug problems, it has some sick people who would do anything with drug money and power but as human being we the Americans can still safe these people from poverty, drug, sub-human practices etc. The source of all these problems is poverty. ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 16:51"},{"nm":"Melissa ","rs":"0","ms":"I watched this documentary last night. My eyes were opened to a world I knew nothing about, and I appreciate those involved in this documentary bringing awareness to a taboo topic. While watching this I see a pattern with very impoverished people being taken advantage of and exploited by those with immense power. I feel this happens worldwide. I am wondering how we can dismember this power imbalance? How do we engage those involved to see that this behavior is wrong? I look forward to hearing from others. ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 16:51"},{"nm":"Vincent","rs":"0","ms":"saw this show lastnite. not surprised as our own government protects the heroin trade with its military. who are these people that occupy the american government? why do our soldiers sacrifice their lives for this stuff? why cant americans gain control of the government? we are doing the same stuff here allowing a few millionaires get richer off of the war machine. the northern alliance is our ally. I am ashamed to to say that.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 16:48"},{"nm":"Nuru Sarela","rs":"0","ms":"An outstanding reporter to let us see the real pict of Bacha Bazi.this Documentary gave me knowledge beyond my imagination, still can\'t believe what I watched was real, I have been sick to my stomach and am very angry. What can one do to assist in ending this? Can we start a petition or something? Is there one out there? I would like to sign it if there is!!\nthe world need to come up and stop this horrible practice.\nAction need to be taken NOW!\nThank you Najibullah, your a brave reporter to report all this, hope that you becaome a part of the little boys life that you helped save\nGOD BLESS.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 16:30"},{"nm":"Gary Fowlie ","rs":"0","ms":"Thank you for this courageous work. It often seems that media only focus on the flotsam of human life, but this piece reminds us of how important journalism is examining our common humanity; especially when it forces us face up to issues like child abuse and sexual slavery. ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 16:29"},{"nm":"Paul Coliton","rs":"0","ms":"I have read reports in the newspapers and on CBC coming from Canadian army medical personnel about the necessity of carrying out surgical repair of injuries to young Afghan boys raped by Afghan police and army personnel . I believe I also read about an effort to justify this on religious grounds because the children are below the age of puberty . I find this difficult to believe ;that any such justification exists  ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 16:28"},{"nm":"Simon B.","rs":"0","ms":"Once again, a High quality PBS documentary. I also had hard times to fall asleep last night. I don\'t want to judge Afghans but this is clearly against human rights. UN most get the proper resources in order to stop all of this. ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 16:21"},{"nm":"Leslie Brandt","rs":"0","ms":"This was the most disturbing report I have seen in a long time. By the time the program was over I was asking why is our military over there we should leave that country to the Taliban and never look back. At least these sick men would not be allowed to continue with this molestation of young boys. I will never understand adults in any country thinking it is ok to use children for sex. It\'s wrong very, very wrong. Thank you for showing this report as I have a completly different out look on Afghanistan.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 16:13"},{"nm":"shahla22@aol.com","rs":"0","ms":"Iam an Afghan women who\'s ashamed of afghan men who suppose to protect their kids no matter what gender and iam also a mother of two young boys. I cried like a baby while i was watching the show how cruel and heartless one can be don\'t they think of their boys while they rape and abuse innocent kids and rob them from their chilhood i couldn\'t sleep and feeling helpless.  As a mother i wanted to reach out to the boys and hug them so thight i have heard of such an abuse, but to watch it the effect is so much greater to the point iam seeing their faces all day and i pray for them to come out decent and strong men and don\'t follow the same path.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 16:09"},{"nm":"Anonymous","rs":"0","ms":"Frontline:\nThis report about the Dancing Boys, made me sick to my stomach. This is horable what is happening to these little boys! I want to do something, what can a woman from the United States do? I am so upset what is happing to the boys there. These adult men out be put away for life! Or worse! \nMarcie\n","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 15:59"},{"nm":"SANDRA","rs":"0","ms":"THANK YOU FOR\nBRINGING SUCH AN EXCELLENT DOCUMENTARY. I ENJOY\nYOUR SHOW AND LOOK TO MANY MORE IN FUTURE.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 15:56"},{"nm":"Fazi","rs":"0","ms":"All those men should be hanged. Absolute disgrace to the human race. Since the US is after the farmer\'s poppy fields in Afghanistan... why don\'t they put the these boys as top priority and save them? I can\'t believe I can\'t do anything about it. I am sitting here sharing my outrage knowing another innocent boy is being raped as I type!!  Absolute disgrace.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 15:53"},{"nm":"rdstein","rs":"0","ms":" 4/21/10\n   While changing television channels on 4/20/10, The Dancing Boys&quot; was on,\n I was appalled to see what is taking place in this country, the program\n was excellent in the documentary, laws have to be changed, one wonders if \n the very rich depicted in this documentary would like their sons live this kind\n of life, like the rich man who sells and imports automobiles,  The dancing boys\n have no life, no education, parents are allowed to do this.  It could take\n 100 years for change. thanks for the documentary. Undercover investiagation\n at its best.\n","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 15:52"},{"nm":"marcia","rs":"0","ms":"So many religions where sex is restricted or thought of as dirty \nhave the same problems and crimes with sex abuse against young boys. (ex: the Catholic church)\nThere is never an excuse for this behavior.  I commend the documentary film-makers who showed the courage to expose this crime, even if it meant risking their own lives.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 15:51"},{"nm":"CS.","rs":"0","ms":"The love of money is truly the root of all evil, from the powerful to the poor.  That\'s clear in this documentary.  ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 15:40"},{"nm":"Omid Sadat ","rs":"0","ms":"I am an afghan and i have watched the progaram yesterday night, i ashame of it in my point of view the these kind of people deserve execution. ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 15:30"},{"nm":"Sharaon","rs":"0","ms":"I don\'t understand how this bacha bazi practice fits into the super-macho gender identity of these men. The only way I can begin to comprehend it is akin to the notion that rape - of men, women, children -  is not about sex but about power. \n\nThe world is such a baffling place. It\'s hard to process all the info this new media culture bombards us with. How could I have imagined something like this? Never. In a way, I wish I didn\'t know about it now. \n\nI feel helpless about so much more now, because I know so much more. \n\nStill, it\'s courageous, vital work. Najibulla is a very brave and honorable man not just to do the story but to stay in Shafiq\'s life. ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 15:28"},{"nm":"LB","rs":"0","ms":"What an absolute disgrace.  Barbarians. Anyone who harms a child should be shot immediately. This show made me sick to my stomach.  The whole WORLD should have to watch this.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 15:26"},{"nm":"G. Yosh","rs":"0","ms":"To Mr. Stuart:  As an educated man I understand that maybe we shouldn\'t be quick to judge other cultures for their practices, but how can you in any way defend the abuse of innocent children?  These are boys who are forced into this life, not grown men/women following custom. Even if it has &quot;happened since the time of the Greeks and Romans&quot; it still doesn\'t make it right.  Furthermore, even in Greek and Roman times this behavior was considered outside the norm and not condoned by general society. Child abuse is child abuse no matter what the context and custom. ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 15:21"},{"nm":"rose","rs":"0","ms":"My heart broke for the vulnerable children in Afghanastan. The corruption in the police Dept. reminded me of Mexico. My support for the War has ended. I applaud PBS for showing this documentary. How educational. I too will continue to educate and protect my children against these hideous monsters that should be burned alive.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 15:19"},{"nm":"sakina","rs":"0","ms":"I\'m originally from afghanistan and watching this documentary last nite brought tears to my eyes. those young, innocent little boys are being used by disgusting pedaphiles. the govt needs to hang them all!!","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 15:18"},{"nm":"Shaun","rs":"0","ms":"There is a reason I watch PBS, and not the local news, as I found myself being pulled to watch the Frontline story on these boys, and the men who are in my opinion , sick twisted and should not be allowed to prey on these young boys. I can not imagine how this can go unnoticed and ignored. But also encouraged by the local authorities .\nAmerica has its sick ad twisted , but to know that these vile men were being filmed , and not at all ashamed to say , they have raped, and taken these young boys and put them into a life of harm and shame. \nI was happy to know that at least one boy was taken away from this sad and shameful way of life , that they had in no way chosen for themselves. ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 15:07"},{"nm":"Orlando Dias","rs":"0","ms":"Unfurtunenately this is the tip of the iceberg. Slavery and child abuse goes on throughout the world including the US. Just look at our priest scandals, it goes on with school coaches and it crosses every line within our own society except that they have not made a scating documentary like this one. Well done Frontline now let\'s expose our own abuses before we thror more stone at some poor country like Agfganistan!","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 15:01"},{"nm":"Fatima","rs":"0","ms":"Not all muslims are pro taliban, I certainly am not.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 14:53"},{"nm":"Kathleen","rs":"0","ms":"I read the novel &quot;The Kite Runner&quot; by Khalid Hosseini.  There is a character who is a warlord and half German.  The boy is kept as a dancing boy before he is rescued.  There are implications that an orphanage owner allows the warlords to take some of his boys, so he can feed the remaining.  The novel has an amazingly real feel to it.  it would seem that the story is very close to real life.  When the novel was turned into a movie, the boys in the movie had to leave Afghanistan for their own protection, because they had offended local custom by acting in the film.  The producers moved the boys and their families and agreed to take care of them for years.  Why isn\'t more being done to help these real boys?","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 14:27"},{"nm":"Paul LaMotte","rs":"0","ms":"I just gave up my support for the Afghan War. Why are we helping these people? The child abuse aspect is bad enough, but the blantant lies these people live by is insane, and it goes all the way to the top. If they will lie about the life of a child what else are these people willing to lie for? Does our government really think we can work with these people? \nPaul LaMotte","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 14:17"},{"nm":"Stephen Simeroth","rs":"0","ms":"This is Afhganistan, Our military is there. If frontline can find these jerks then why can\'t our special ops take care of them. These people are just as much an enemy as the taliban or bin laden.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 14:13"},{"nm":"Dawn","rs":"0","ms":"I was disturbed but very interesetd watching the Dancing Boys of Afghanistan last night.  I watched it both times as it was played back to back. As deeply upsetting as it was to watch this report and learn about the sex trade in Afghanistan, I realize that the same thing is happending to women and girls worldwide, day in and day out. I do not know if I found this story so disturbing because these are male children sold into sexual slavery and that practise is so offensive to me, or if I am just that desensitized to the mass victimization of female children and women world wide.  Thank you PBS/ FrontLine for a well done, thought provoking story.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 14:10"},{"nm":"tslupe","rs":"0","ms":"There are many customs in the world we disapprove of. Unfortunately, we seem to have hands full being the world-police and probably cannot at the same time be the world\'s sex police - although we are trying. If we think we can change a thousand years of tradition while fighting a war, then the war is probably lost.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 14:08"},{"nm":"L.Campos","rs":"0","ms":"I saw this documentary last night and it made me enraged to see those boys being taken advantage by the men who destroyed their innocence and their childhood. It had been going on for ages and its all over the world. Why UN did not do anything to stop the &quot;Sex Slaves & Sex Trade&quot; among the children going all over the world? They knew abouit it and didnt do anything to stop and protect the children. It made me sick! I was hoping to see those criminals being punished, but no consquences? \n\nI am thinking of the boy - Shafiq, I hope he is still safe and I hope that they are helping him and protecting him from those devils! Not only him, other young boys, men, young girls and women. I was really fed up with the &quot; Government and United Nations&quot; doing beautiful work ( rolling my eyes)! \n\nI pray for those who suffers so much in their country where the governments, politicans, etc have not do anything to protect the children and families.\n\nL.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 14:01"},{"nm":"Bridget","rs":"0","ms":"This is so confusing to me.  These are religous men who pray many times a day.  I can\'t get my head around this.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 13:55"},{"nm":"sayed yusuf","rs":"0","ms":"I am not shocked by your vedios because these people will do every thing possible for money. This is the western gift of democracy to Afghanistan and taking away the Islamic rule of law and principles away from Afghan society. No one is innocent. From the gov officials to corrupt educators and silent religous scholars.Afghan people need to revolt and take control of their society. ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 13:52"},{"nm":"A Christian","rs":"0","ms":"I admire this reporter for his courage to undertake such a gut-wrenching, gut-burning cover.  Like an angel of God, who at times could only stand by to anxiously watch and listen, Najibullah Quraishi has brought to us this horrific story.  Yes, it is his job to get a great story to the public.  But he went further than the call of duty.  He used wisdom, risked his own life, and in time acted on his own conviction to save at least one boy.  That one life, Shafiq\'s, could one day be the catalyst to some incredibly good future breakthrough.  All it takes is one person to get things started in the right direction.  And he now has a clear vision of what he wants to do someday - save other\'s like himself, who suffer this same evil fate.  May the Lord God grant little Shafiq\'s request and give him success, then.  So it\'s not what we know or how much.  It\'s what we do that God measures.  Thanks, Najibullah, God will remember your sacrifice, because you kept His law to be your brother\'s keeper.  That\'s love.  He will multiply the good you\'ve done now. ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 13:52"},{"nm":"Jim","rs":"0","ms":"Outstanding reporting!  Glad to see that thoughtful, in-depth, well-researched journalism is not dead.  It can still be found on PBS.  ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 13:46"},{"nm":"Gary Stuart","rs":"0","ms":"Your Afghanistan Special on &quot;bascha bazi boys&quot; was enlightening.... before passing western harsh judgement on this practice we must look at the  historical, cultural underpinnings. In America the Native American beardache system was deemed &quot;unnatural&quot; among the invading occupiers of settlers who were aghast at man boy love hence blaming the Savages as heathen and immoral. How do we have the right to judge any other cultures habits or rituals as bad that do not conform to Western Judeo/Christian values. It was a very good expose...remember Greece and Rome didn\'t have issues about homosexual  man boy or even woman boy relationships...I too agree with the forced sex-slave aspect of this informative Frontline special. The Spirit in the Flesh is a great compilation to shed much needed light on these indigenous practices... All I\'m pointing out is that there are other indigenous/native practices that don\'t fit into our current belief systems that are much older than or Modern religions... this has to be included as NOT to slant Afghans, Native Americans, Grecians or even Roman society in a Negative light. It serves a purpose, even if we do not understand it. It also makes homosexuality look bad.....","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 13:45"},{"nm":"Irma C.","rs":"0","ms":"It was so sad to watch this documentary.  I have never been so sad in my life; I don\'t think I have much experience in what or how the world it\'s really like.\nIt makes me mad, learning since I am a child that God created man, to hear that we are descendents from monkeys that now after viewing this documentary I am about to believe that it\'s true that God didn\'t creat man. That we are animals after all. Therefore; we behave as such, but then on the other hand if that\'s true why does it hurt so much?  why hearing this horrific stories make me sick, and hurt my soul?","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 13:44"},{"nm":"dee","rs":"0","ms":"i could not finish watching it. i was appalled by the whole system. by segregating women, they are committing crime worse than anything else. not only a childhood is stolen, its molested, degraded and humiliated to the core. as a young mother and a paediatric doctor, i am shaken, really shaken. this shouldnt go on.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 13:44"},{"nm":"Chris","rs":"0","ms":"Let not fool ourselves.....the practice of &quot;boy play&quot; isn\'t something that the mujahideen just &quot;picked up&quot; in Pakistan, while seeking refuge in Pakistan during the Russian occupation of Afghanistan. Sex between men and boys has been a tradition since before the Golden Age of Greece. Is it any wonder that a culture that literally keeps it\'s female population &quot;under wraps&quot; tolerates a sub-culture of bacha bazi ? Folks, the limbic system of the homo sapien brain, and the drive for sex, is always periodically going to find a way to dominate human behavior.  If you live in a society that represses it\'s girls and women, and you\'re a powerful and wealthy male, then you skip the goat and go straight to the boy. Cynical.....you bet......but right on the money ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 13:43"},{"nm":"Drew","rs":"0","ms":"Completely disgusted!  I have a 12-year-old son who means the world to me.  My thoughts went to my fellow-Canadians and fellow-Americans that have given their lives in Afghanistan.  It causes me to re-evaluate our involvement there.  I understand that we should not judge the whole country by this practice.  However, I do ask, why are we there?  We are there to make sure that something like 9/11 will never happen again.  The way to change things there is to do exactly what Frontline has done, make these guys famous and pressure the Afghan government to do something about it.  Also, there is a role that international organizations can play here.  An unforgettable report, in the same category as the Farmer\'s Wife, as far as impact on the viewing audience.  I had no idea!  Although we do have our problems, this report reinforces the greatness of the West and the openness our of societies relative to education, women\'s rights, religious freedom and an aggressive media.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 13:37"},{"nm":"Helen Piechotta","rs":"0","ms":"Due to so many comments on this spectacular documentary, I see your blog is full. I am trying again to comment because I feel my comments are not being accepted. It took bravery on everyone\'s part to air this but it was necessary; I hope it opens our eyes to the &quot;real world&quot; I feel, in that part of the world, change would be difficult, if not impossible.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 13:35"},{"nm":"Leonard","rs":"0","ms":"I am a huge Lakers fan and was glued to the TV watching the game 2 against OKC last night. During the half-time break, I stumbled upon this program and couldn\'t change the channel back to the Lakers\' game until it ended. Eventhough Lakers had won the game, but it has failed to give me any joy. My thought was with those boys still oppressed, for I have a young son myself, and I can imagine the pain experienced by those families being torn apart by poverty. Porverty can make us do terrible things against our will, no-matter how fundamentally decent our humanity is. Selling your own offsprings to known harm ranks among the worst possible concession to poverty. I tip my hats off to Frontline for reminding us that our global society still has a big gap to close, before equity for all.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 13:32"},{"nm":"Hawa","rs":"0","ms":"Thank you for sharing this story. This is an example of such countless cases in Afghanistan. I am an Afghan and I know that there are million children in Afghanistan like Shafiq who was sold and abused. We can help them in many ways if we want. As we noticed the main problem was poverty, other problem is that Afghanistan is a male dominated society, where is no value for women and children. Those warlords and commanders each collected many wavies in their house under one roof... Have you ever thought how their life will be like?!! Nobody can make an interview with those women or make a video of them to show the world. I have relatives who are commander\'s wife and I have seen it. Afghanistan is a country where is no value for human, specially women and children.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 13:31"},{"nm":"Veronica Santana","rs":"0","ms":"Oh my dear lord, please be with these inocent frightened souls. Take them with you if that will stop their suffering!","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 13:23"},{"nm":"Karen Avey","rs":"0","ms":"I spent an hour crying and vomitting and then another hour shaking in bed, wondering how I could ever \'unremember\'.\n\nAt the same time, I cannot be more grateful to have had the chance to see \'The Dancing Boys of Afghanistan\'.\n\nThankyou,\nKaren","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 13:20"},{"nm":"childsVOICE","rs":"0","ms":"Thank You, Frontline, for informing the American public about this travesty. If the American citizens contact their state representatives asking for the U.S. to put pressure on the Afgan government to investigate and enforce existing Afgan laws, would that help? \nI\'ve added your page link re: this story to the blog at www.myspace.com/childshopeandvoice . I hope this helps. I\'ll be notifing everyone I can to get informed then take action against this practice.\n\nThank you, again!\nchildsVOICE","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 13:19"},{"nm":"Abdul Aziz","rs":"0","ms":"Being an ex-muslim it disheartens me that all the Muslim commenting here are pro Taliban. Islam mandates that homosexuals should be killed: stoned, hanged, and thrown of cliffs.  For example google the excellent documentry: &quot;Jihad for Love.&quot; The thinking is that the Taliban would serve justice by killing homosexuals is scary, or that the concept of human rights is totaly lost on these people is sad. The Taliban were agianst this practice, but did nothing about issues with young women being married to old men or similar horrific issues with women. Plus know how wide spread homosexaulity is in the Islamic world due to the unavailability to have a girlfriend, I doubt the Talibs didn\'t do the same thing. What is need is not for the Taliban to bring shariah to the country, but for it to move away from Islam, and related barbarism like the exploitation of these poor boys. Sadly there is little the west can do to influence these changes, they need to come from within the Islamic world.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 13:17"},{"nm":"Teresa","rs":"0","ms":"Disgusting on every level! I was so upset by this that I could not sleep last night... Every time I seem to turn around these days I hear stories of child abuse and human trafficking and now this.... I hope they rot in hell for they have done to those poor boys.  Well done Frontline for bringing this horrible practice to the surface....","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 13:13"},{"nm":"Lauren","rs":"0","ms":"This is truly heartbreaking.  I had read of this practice in the novel Kite Runner.  The novel not clearly explained that this is a widespread practice in Afghan culture.  As Americans we should remember that there are areas of the world that do not enjoy the checks and balances of a well established nation.  As a result, many practices are illegal but go unpunished due to the (lack of) power structure.  One of the issues in Afghanistan is the  lack of centralized authority, which leaves the country without enforcement of laws.  As stated in the documentary, there are laws against many of the facets of these crimes. Those laws are not being enforced. Perhaps we should support those who are trying to rectify that situation.\n\nWe should also recognize that our Western morals are not shared uniformly around world, and a country\'s own history plays a great part in its accepted practices.  We must know that the Islamic faith does not condone this behavior and it is silly and ignorant to charge that it does. This is a cultural practice, not a faith-based practice.  We have to remain above the fray in order to be of use in the conversation and resolution of human rights violations.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 13:09"},{"nm":"Larry","rs":"0","ms":"Everyone of our elected officials needs to see this program, then ask themselves if this is what we are defending. These people are completely lacking in conscience, they have no sense of right or wrong. I don\'t want another American, Canadian, British, Spaniard, or others to die on behalf of such wretched people. Karzai is suspect, his own brother is suspected of being a drug runner; the whole place is corrupt. I wish we could instead, shelter the children of Afghanistan from their country and give them a normal life, where parents won\'t sell them and sick men rape them, then pray to &quot;their&quot; God in the morning. If we can\'t help the children, bring our troops home!","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 13:08"},{"nm":"Hani","rs":"0","ms":"Horrific. ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 13:05"},{"nm":"Lisa","rs":"0","ms":"My heart grieves for these children.Abuse at the hands of someone you have been taught to respect and trust is the most devastating kind it completely degrades you in your own eyes.Any society that so completely segregates men and women for almost everything but sex will surely foster this kind of behavior.Absolute power corrupts absolutely.Men like this always seek out the most powerful places in any society they want a place where whatever they do no matter what will be ignored.They also seek out victims who cannot fight back.Boys sometimes girls others.When half of a society is forced to be silent who can speak out against them.Girls are treated just as badly and worse.But they also in some of theses countries also have to undergo female circumcision(genital mutilation)to make them acceptable as wives.The fact is until we get people to understand that no one has the right hurt others just because they can afford to,this will go on.Keep in mind that these are followers of a  Holy book that forbids homosexuality.I think that is why they dress them in women\'s clothes ,it somehow allows them to pretend as though the boy dressing and dancing like a woman means they aren\'t homosexual pedophiles.Trying to say that they aren\'t really aroused by the boys but by the costumes and dancing.I think the fact that the 15 year old plans to own a stable of boys of his own one day says it all,in a society where homosexuality is a death sentence he is just following what he knows .\n\nLisa","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 13:00"},{"nm":"rachel richman","rs":"0","ms":"Truly heart broken and still in complete shock about your show last night.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 12:55"},{"nm":"cary","rs":"0","ms":"Since last night when I watched this program my heart is on the point of breaking the worts part of it is that I can\'t do nothing to stop this horror. I hope that someone will do something about it after Frontoline exposed this crime which is the ultimte since it involves children. I cant stop thinking of it","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 12:55"},{"nm":"St Paul","rs":"0","ms":"An unusual program, to say the least.\n\nIt hearkened back to the Illiad for me, where warlords such as Achilles kept boys and girls for sexual use back in their camps, competing with one another for the most prized. It was one such camp girl that nearly caused the Greeks to lose the Trogan War, when Achilles\' girl Brisēís was taken away by Agamemnon in jealousy, who was the Greek\'s supreme commander. And it was Petroclus who died as Achilles male lover, taking Achilles\' place fighting while Achilles pouted over his loss of Briseis, celebrated to this day on famous Greek pottery with prominent genitalia exposed as Achilles bandages his lover. \n\nOr,it hearkens back to Alexander, who had his male lovers on his military campaigns in Persia. Alexander left a huge footprint in this part of the world, where ballads are sung even today about his exploits, and he may have left this bisexual army tradition in the region as well. \n\nIt even hearkens back to Plato, who wrote the &quot;Symposium&quot; about Aristotle and his famous teacher philosopher Socrates, who partied with flute girls, dancers, lots of wine and drunken Athenian leaders. A contemporary fictional French account of this lifestyle depicts it as a high-flying and potentially volatile existence, where slave owners could snuff out their slave\'s life in a fit of pique without legal consequence.\n\nWhich brings me back to this program. 1) The pederasty is indeed normalized, as it was in ancient times, and it appears to be a kind of acquired taste centered around status and sexual domination. It isn\'t how we generally think of homosexuality in our society, but if we looked at our own society more closely, we might find all of these aspects in subcultures here. 2) The lives of these slaves are completely in the hands of the owners, and this seems to be a big part of the motivation for playing this game. 3) The game seemed to be played out of situational boredom, as men might organize a hunt for their entertainment.\n\n4) The psychic (and in some cases physical) destruction of the boys seemed to be central to this culture, at least at certain levels as it was depicted, by forcing the boys to service large numbers of men at will; not just the owners.  This begs the question what happens to the majority of these boys when they no longer service their masters. It would have been good to have this information presented by Frontline.\n\nThis report should give our leaders great pause in considering any plan to nation-build in this region of the world.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 12:54"},{"nm":"Dev","rs":"0","ms":"What can one do to assist in ending this? Can we start a petition or something? Is there one out there? I would like to sign it if there is!!","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 12:44"},{"nm":"Hector Torres","rs":"0","ms":"I understand the need for the world to know about this disgusting practice and to try and do something to help stop it however i fear that broadcasting the show will only bring an influx of pedophiles from other parts of the world into this region ready to spend untold amounts of cash in order to participate in this horrible practice in turn making the owners even more powerful.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 12:33"},{"nm":"Rick Cowen","rs":"0","ms":"After watching this show and posting a comment I went to Yahoo and searched the term &quot;bacha bazi&quot; and was not overly suprized, although discusted to see many refrences to this term.  I was also not suprised to see many of pacha bazi videos on YouTube.  The Internet although it is a great tool is also a way for sick people to move thier stuff around the world.  Rick Cowen","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 12:31"},{"nm":"Robert Pavlick","rs":"0","ms":"Is this the kind of culture that we are sacrificing our young men and women in the military to defend? A country whose gross national product is illegal drugs; a country that treats women as property; a country that would impose a death penalty against two consenting adult males for loving one another, but has no problem whatsoever allowing same sex activities so long as one of the two is a non-consenting minor. Any country that traffics in slavery and using children in the sex trade isn\'t worth saving.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 12:08"},{"nm":"Aradhna Masih","rs":"0","ms":"I watched this documentary last night,and was just digusted by how these men keep these little innocent boys, who are poor and use them as their sexual toys and entertainment. There is clearly no value of human life. So what if they are poor? aren\'t they human beings? This really disturbed me -just looking at the documentary i wonder about the little boy and what psychological damage it has done on him for the rest of his life. And i also believe that this practise is not only in Afganistan but also many places of the world that is unknown of, or maybe there are alot of crimes that human kind is unware of. Watever it is, one day judegment will come upon everyone, all we can do is pray for these kids, only God can help protect them, their own parents forsake them for money, but only God can listen to their cries. \n\nThank you Najibullah, your a brave reporter to report all this, hope that you becaome a part of the little boys life that you helped save\nGOD BLESS.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 12:07"},{"nm":"Bobbi","rs":"0","ms":"What can you say about an act so dispicable. Those men can call this abominable disrespect for women and children &quot;Bacha Bazi&quot;, but this act is known all over the world as rape and pedophilia. In a region of the world which prides itself on righteousness and a superior belief in Islam, shame, shame on you! Those men are truly a disgrace.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 12:02"},{"nm":"rich","rs":"0","ms":"What about the physical and psychological damage to the kids, what about disease.  What happens to them when these thugs are done with them.  Evidently some form their own troupes or become pimps--as, presumably, they have done for thousands of years, thus perpetuating this nightmare.  What happens to the rest?  The attitude to women was stunning.  &quot;They have no say.&quot;  &quot;They have no choice.&quot;  &quot;She must do as I say.&quot;  The film never explained the mysterious first (apparenly false) father.  And the attitudes of these disgusting pederasts, the leering insistence on their \'love\' for their boys.  What a corrupt benighted god-forsaken place.  We need to be out of there.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 11:58"},{"nm":"rich","rs":"0","ms":"I suspect that this is a survival of Greek practice imported into Afganistan by Alexander the Great.  It was also customary in the Roman military.  The paralyzed child in Matthew 8.5, Luke 7.2, and in a related story, John 4.47 may be one of these.  He is brought forward by a centurian whose faith moves Jesus to perform the miracle.  The Greek word the centurian uses to identify their relationship is the ambiguous term pais.  It can mean &quot;son&quot;, but it can also mean &quot;servant&quot; and is used in other contexts to refer to a boy kept by a military officer.  &quot;Other times, other customs&quot;.  Rich","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 11:57"},{"nm":"Behjat ligon","rs":"0","ms":"I still can\'t believe what I watched was real . I have been sick to my stomach and am very angry that there is nothing we can do about this horible thing.Is there?","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 11:52"},{"nm":"DisVet","rs":"0","ms":"This Angers me to no end! Words leave my mouth. It helps me understand why in s\cripture God destroyed Sodom. My heart and mind ask, what can be done? here in America and across the world. Action need to be taken NOW!","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 11:45"},{"nm":"Farid Qazi, MD","rs":"0","ms":"I am a Pakistani and I have heard of this thing but this documentary gave me knowledge beyond my imagination, These men would not ;let their women dance or do prostitution so these boys are doing that job, they have no clue of how their religion is against these practices , the world need to come up and stop this horrible practice. ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 11:43"},{"nm":"Fran Stevenson","rs":"0","ms":" I am amazed at Najibullah bravery in exposing this form of Human Trafficking.  There are 27 million people globally who are trafficked and like these boys they need programs just like Frontline to expose the unjustice that runs rampant through a supposed civilized society.  All it takes for evil to flourish is for good men and women to do nothing.\nFrontline I challenge you do an in depth program on Human Trafficking here in our homeland.  We as Americans are just as inhumane.  This is not cultural it is a justice issue for the rigts of human beings, men, women or children. ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 11:43"},{"nm":"Rick Cowen","rs":"0","ms":"As a law enforcment officer who investigates child abuse I found this story very interesting.  It makes me wonder what kind of secret societies are in the United States for this kind of thing.  It also makes me wonder how these things still go on in this day and time.  But then I look at the poor or the world and it don\'t take long to find an answer.  I just pray for the boy and all children.  Rick","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 11:38"},{"nm":"red woman","rs":"0","ms":"this story stayed with me a day after- thats why i had to write- it made me sick inside-\nthat f... pedophile would not get an inch away from his country before someone in the real world would arrest him for his sick behavior towards little boys- he\'d better stay right where he is- in aphghanistan- because everyone would hunt him down like hungry wolves- hes is a sick man-\nall of those men are breeding that- sick behavior towards little boys-\nit is not that i am anti-gay either- two consenting adults can do what they want-\nbut to enslave children and give them no other choice- but to have sex with men for their families to survive is appalling- what kind of level of consciousness do these people have? what kind of a sick world do we live in to allow this to happen? i am greatfull to this man who made this film-\nhe was brave.\nbut what do we do now to stop this outright abuse of boys?\n\nhave the govt step in from other countries?\ni will pray for these children and hope some people over there are brave enough to help them further.....","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 11:37"},{"nm":"ElNora","rs":"0","ms":"Our country supporting a war that is adding hourly to our soaring deficiet, while we sacrifice our best men & women for a system that defies morality & deciency? Disgusting!","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 11:13"},{"nm":"nina  rahman","rs":"0","ms":"dear frontline,\nthank you and Mr najibullah for this incredible story.\ntruly\n\nnina","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 11:03"},{"nm":"nasima rahman","rs":"0","ms":"dear frontline\nyour program on afghan boys got me speechless. i was shocked to my bone.for i have,not in my wildest dreams expected this kind of horrible situation in afghanistan. i am terrified to think how many boys are really victim of this animal behaviour.i believe, after watching this story afghan authority, afghan people as well as the parents will come to their senses and do something to stop this inhuman practice.i thought,as a civilized society are we going backward? we must thank Mr najibullah as well as frontline for this incredible story human suffering.\ntruely,\nnasima rahman","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 10:54"},{"nm":"Katae","rs":"0","ms":"Thank you to those filmmakers and to Frontline for bringing this atrocious practice to light.  I pray every possible thing that can be done to stop these boys from being humiliated, abused and murdered will be done. I can\'t believe people can not only be so cruel but so vile.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 10:52"},{"nm":"Laura","rs":"0","ms":"What can we do to help these boys? Is there a group that seeks to rescue them? Do our leaders in Washington know about this?","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 10:50"},{"nm":"PBS ROCKS","rs":"0","ms":"Systematic destruction of innocence and the sex trafficking of children is a worldwide problem that nobody wants to deal with. At the end of the day, I blame the parents,governments and organized religion. The parents have the responsibility to care for their children. Maybe they should pimp themselves out, not their own kids. I also find the world religions equally culpable. The 10 Commandments, for example, is a ridiculous list which obiously did not come from God because it never mentions protecting children. Also, this ridiculous obsession with sex and pornography has to be controlled. Get the smut off the internet!","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 10:50"},{"nm":"brandy","rs":"0","ms":"WOW!!! being a mother of 3 boys this program caught me attention....I thought I was going to be watching something totally different. This is mind blowing. Its hard to understand how this goes on ,and people can just turn a blind eye to this .Afghanistan is like Mars to me .","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 10:47"},{"nm":"John","rs":"0","ms":"Did anyone on the Frontline staff stop to think about how unethical it was to donate money to the subject of a &quot;documentary&quot; film they were producing? This is a sad day for a program with usually high standards.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 10:46","er":"The Frontline senior editorial team gave a great deal of thought to both the question of attempting a rescue of Shafiq and supporting his new life with personal financial contributions.  But in this case, our deeply felt humanitarian concerns for the fate of an 11 year old boy trumped the conventional standards of journalistic non-involvement in the lives of a film\'s subjects.  After consultations with Western authorities and non-governmental agencies in Afghanistan, we endorsed the producers\' judgment that a private rescue effort was the only sound course of action.  We decided to use our personal funds to aid the family financially to help eliminate any economic imperative for an impoverished family to send their son back into the world of Bacha Bazi and also to help educate an  intelligent boy to better his chances of a brighter future. In the end, we felt our responsibilities as human beings would not allow us to do less.  Maintaining a strict distance between journalists and their subjects is a sound and important standard. But sometimes there are there necessary exceptions to any rule.  This, in our judgment, was one of them.\n"},{"nm":"carol scates","rs":"0","ms":"I was so angered and depressed by this practice that I could not finish watching the presentation. One of the worst things people in any society can do is pervert the innocence and trust of children. I work with teens - many from a Middle Eastern heritage, and they are some of the best and brightest students anyone could wish for. When I saw the faces of those boys, I saw the same kind of features of kids I know personally. Men like this are always are always so quick to extol the good treatment of their women and families in the Muslim faith, and criticize the depravity of &quot;the West.&quot; They need to look in the mirror. ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 10:45"},{"nm":"Teresa","rs":"0","ms":"Unfortunately, this type of thing happens all over the world... and unfortunately, it\'s probably more common place in many cultures than we think.  I think it\'s atrocious.  Unfortunately, there\'s not much people in the United States can do...  As a woman, and as an American, I wouldn\'t even be allowed to set foot into Afghanistan, let alone set foot to try to even begin to stop this unbelieveable practice.   I\'m curious, though, they refer to being &quot;drunk&quot;  I thought both homosexuality and drinking alcohol were taboo for Muslims?  ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 10:43"},{"nm":"Mustapha","rs":"0","ms":"Thank you to Frontline for exposing this degrading practice of Bacha Bazi to the rest of us living in the US with little experience and understanding of the a Afghan Culture. \nAs expected, the reaction of the non muslim audience was well expected because of their limited knowledge of Islam. \nI will limit my comment to this as far as the Sharia law (Islamic law) is concerned: All adulterer and homosexual practices are 100% punishable by death. If interested for further details, I will invite you to conduct your own research on the matter and askimam.org will be a good source.\nBack on this investigative report,  I will try to separate the facts about this abominable afghan tradition practiced by few afghan deviant  from the moral realism of Islam based on recent events in Afghanistan and some of the article above and ma Allah help me in my task. \nAs you can recall, the US government invaded Afghanistan in 2003 on the pretense of being a safe heaven for terrorist (Muslims), which was then ruled by the Taliban which stands for student.  \nWith the support of then their ally the Northern Alliance which was the sworn enemy of the Taliban which will later discover why, the US was able to push back the Taliban and gain control of Kabul. Takhar which is the city where the story took place and located in the north of Afghanistan was controlled (and still is) by the northern alliance commanders, from top government officers to police officers as the documentary shows. \nAlthough the practices of Taliban as portrayed by the media appeared violent to the rest of us, it was a significant deterrent to crime. The Taliban viewed themselves as the enforcers of the law of the land which the Sharia.  Was it any wrong with that? \nAs watcher of those punishments being carried out, we were hang up on the effects (death) without trying to find out the cause (crime) which was purposely hidden by the news industry because the goal was to make the case for war by depicting the Taliban as barbarian.. Although the regime was very destitute, crime was almost inexistent; there was no drug, no corruption problems no pedophilia and homosexuality because people were thought moral discipline according to the law of the land. \nAs the documentary portrayed, moral turpitude is rampant in places like Takhar with the poor and weak having no one to turn to because of the institutionalized corruption condoned by our government through their silence and financing of the provincial government in Afghanistan. \nPassages in the Frontline article like: “a disturbing practice that is once again flourishing in the country”, “an ancient practice that has been brought back by powerful warlords” suggest that Bachi Bazi was at one point abolished but yet the author deliberately fail to give credit the Taliban regime. \nAnother article from nowpublic.com on the same subject traces the origins of this practice back to 5000 years, which will be pre Islam. \nThis type of moral deviance is nothing new to us Muslims and it is Bidha or innovation which is straying from the creed of Islam. In the 3rd century of Islam, such group emerged as a group called batinis. They innovated Islam by saying that homosexuality and incest were permissible. Their beliefs were also inherited by the Qaramitah, Isma’ iliyyah, Qadiyanis and Baha’is.  They caused a great harm to muslims until they were decimated by the Abbasid leader Al Muktafi in 300H. \nI hope this was a great source of clarification on the separation of the afghan cultural tradition and Islam. \nOther source: “The lofty virtues of Ibn Tymiyyah”\n \n\n\n\n\n","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 10:43"},{"nm":"Jennifer","rs":"0","ms":"No coherent summary, after last night.  There are particular ills being visited upon women and girls as well behind closed doors.  But a deviant uses what is available.  With the women not accessible, it\'s the boys.  Someone wrote that with women so badly treated, why should we expect that children would be treated any better.  So true.  \nIs every man who practices this custom a pedophile?  I don\'t think so.  This is a comment on humankind.  Is there no limits to how low we descend?  How can so many (not just a diseased few) not recognize that this is a fellow human being?  Very sad and depressing for all of us.   It was incredibly hard to watch, but bravo for getting any footage of these monsters, however you got it.  ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 10:33"},{"nm":"Bruce T Kongslien","rs":"0","ms":"This is what happens when women are excluded from a society.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 10:32"},{"nm":"Stephanie ","rs":"0","ms":"This is awful! Is this program going to be aired again anytime soon?","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 10:32","er":"Check your local listings to find out when the show will be rebroadcast in your area.  Or you can watch the full film online \<a href=&quot;/wgbh/pages/frontline/dancingboys/view/&quot;\>here\<\/a\>."},{"nm":"adriana essert","rs":"0","ms":" \n Thank you so much for the report about, &quot;dancing boys&quot; in Afghanistan.\n I am very worry about this poor kids ,that do not have anyone to protect them. I would like to contribute some money, for the protection of more kids. Let me know where I send my donation.\nsincerely","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 10:30"},{"nm":"Roy Galvan","rs":"0","ms":"Sad , but young men get abuse in every country .","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 10:26"},{"nm":"Kathy Clark","rs":"0","ms":"Someone please tell me what I can do to help stop this horrendous practice.  I cried throughout the program and am weeping again jsut thinking about those children.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 10:19"},{"nm":"Eric","rs":"0","ms":"America should leave this Country immediately. If this part of the World actually does pose a threat to our security, we should just blanket bomb the place into total rubble, which it is practically now. The Government is corrupt and the people living there are illiterate. Their practices are as old as history and will never change. Isn\'t this a Muslim Country--abuse the women one way and sexually abuse the boys in another. The United States is complicit in promoting this practice by our support of the government and protection of the population. They will never self govern, they are collective to stupid and &quot;pre-historic&quot; to understand and appreciate anything other than what they live in--squalor.  ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 10:16"},{"nm":"Dena","rs":"0","ms":"Although this is indeed appalling, from my reading of history this appears to have been common practice since the time of the Roman Empire, or even before that. Perhaps not the dancing part, but Roman warriors choosing young, attractive men to take to war with them. The total lack of guilt or shame is mind-boggling.  The perceived machismo of the Afghan war lords is a joke!  Perhaps ridicule will end this practice, if nothing else does.   ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 10:16"},{"nm":"Joseph","rs":"0","ms":"What\'s truly shocking in this program is to see--if that is the right word--the boy\'s mother dressed in what is practically a tent, with a tiny screened peephole to look out of. There is obviously more than one sexual problem in a a society that treats women in so grotesquely dehumanizing and degrading a manner. This seems to pass without notice while the dancing boy thing is decried. Just which cultural barbarity is acceptable? Just the ones effecting men?","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 10:13"},{"nm":"George Gauthier","rs":"0","ms":"The institution of boy concubinage has a long history in the Persian cultural world which includes much of Afghanistan. For instance, Persian love poetry is typically addressed to a comely youth rather than a pretty girl. In societies where women are sequestered and relegated to reproduction and domestic management, men often turn to boys for companionship, entertainment, and sexual gratification. \nThis documentary brings out the harsh reality behind the institution. The rich, the powerful, the connected use their wealth and influence to buy children and youths from poor families. The owners keep the boys in line with violence and threats.  As one of them said, he does not want his boys to have any interests beyond bacha bazi. That means no school, no real friends, separation from family. What happens when the youths become too old to please their owners? They lack education, social skills, or even a knowledge of the family trade. Do they turn to petty crime or what? Few can move into &quot;management&quot; like that fifteen year old they interviewed.  I wish the documentary had sought out former sex slaves and showed what became of these unfortunates.  \nAlso I always thought slavery was forbidden among Muslims. Yet here it is in the twenty-first century.  ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 10:12"},{"nm":"Caroline","rs":"0","ms":"As a mother of an 8 year old boy, I commend Mr. Quaraishi for continuing to return to his home county to shine a light on this horrific practice. I watched the program last night and this morning cannot stop thinking about all of young boys preyed upon innocent lambs. I was shocked when one of the warlords (the one who eventually helped Mr. Quaraisi) described how during one of the wars, each of the military commanders had his own boy (his own sexual slave) and that he felt pressured to have one as well, as a symbol of power. My impression is this problem stems, in part, from the fact that women are so repressed in this country. I believe, if women had more of a voice, they would certainly not allow their sons to be sold into sexual slavery. (Why a father would allow this to happen is another question.) It made me sick how Dastager smiled and laughed throughout most of the program, acting as though he was simply teaching his &quot;apprentices&quot; how to dance. I think that\'s how most of the society there accepts the practice--oh, they are just &quot;dancing boys.&quot; The only thing that can be done is to continue to shine a light (a bright light) on what happens after the night of dancing is over. I keep thinking of the one fretful boy, owned by the old smiling warlord, who repeated over and over, (after telling how every time he went out of the house, different men came up to him and demanded sex) &quot; My life is ruined. My life is ruined.&quot;","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 10:12"},{"nm":"Ivy Causby","rs":"0","ms":"And to think our tax dollars pay for afghan police and their training.  How many billions is it now?  Warlords and the like are having a field day. Utterly disgusted my heart go out to the children.  Coodos to Najibullah for bringing it to us all.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 10:06"},{"nm":"lili","rs":"0","ms":"I think the only solution for this problem is to punish these wealthy men strictly, ....if one man among them was hanged in public then i think they will all get a lesson our gov should hang them at least if 5 wealthy man hanged in public all will stop im sure of this..these ppl are not stopping becz the Gov z taking part in this act...MR.karzai should show it to the world if his office members are not guilty of it.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 10:05"},{"nm":"sadehodrick@yahoo.com","rs":"0","ms":"i believe that children from every part of the world are pure and innocent and should always remain that way until they are old enough to make that decision. The families that sell their innocent children should be imprisoned and have their parental rights stripped of their parental rights and the abusers who find no wrong in this crime should be punished in the ways people were punished in the biblical days, but worse. My heart goes out to those children who are the true sacrificers. I hope to donate to end this shameless and brutal crime among children in Afghanistan. ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 10:05"},{"nm":"Leif","rs":"0","ms":"NATO, US Armed Forces, Unicef, and most major human rights organization are fully aware of this issue. My brother served in Afghanistan and was fully aware of these types of practices and has tried to discuss them back home, but is usually met with disgust and is accussed of being intolerant and xenophobic. I applaud Frontline for bringing this issue to the forefront. I believe it is important for the American Public to be aware of this issue and consider it as we continue to argue over nation building in Afghanistan. ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 10:02"},{"nm":"FC","rs":"0","ms":"Dear Sir/Madam,\n\nI would ask all that read the posts and watch the show to remember not all Afgans are involved in this practice. These acts are disgusting, immoral and the perpetrators aught to be punished. All I am asking is not to let your personal bias or judgment paint the picture that all people in Afghanistan are involved in the practice. ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 09:51"},{"nm":"Desiree ","rs":"0","ms":"This topic brought me to tears.  These kids are at such disadvantage, all I thought about is how unfortunate it is for some human beings in this world.   My wish is for this exposure to the world make changes to how these kids and young people are being treated.   Many thanks to FRONTLINE for exposeing this horrible act against these young people.    \n\nDesiree","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 09:48"},{"nm":"Paul","rs":"0","ms":"Where there is poverty, there is exploitation.  Reprehensible practices such as child prostitution will be with us until the substantial disparities in wealth and opportunity are remedied.  ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 09:45"},{"nm":"Kelia","rs":"0","ms":"Very hard to watch, I noticed that the young boys all look as if they are on some kind of drugs, no youthful sheen to their skin, but they are being taken care of (yeah right). The ring leader the older guy, that was teaching the 11 year-old to dance & music is a monster, I could just see the innocense in the little guys eyes, to hard to watch.  And this Dastager guy,moves around as if he\'s satan himself.I wish all these kids could take the &quot;midnight express&quot;. ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 09:38"},{"nm":"Josh in Philly","rs":"0","ms":"I don\'t care if i\'m not being PC, but to me, any culture that allows child rape and the suppression of women, is barbaric.\n\nWow, for a second, I thought I was describing the Catholic church.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 09:32"},{"nm":"Marva Tan","rs":"0","ms":"rhere was no mention in the show that the main trafficer in boys seemed to be drugged all of the time - his pupils were dilated, his eyes looked glassy, he had a big dopey smile on his face in most scenes. The boys seemed drugged at times also when they mechanically answered questions, I wonder how the drug trade is intertwined with trafficing of boys since drugs are a big part of the Afghan economy. In response to Joshua, if it were just free boys dancing for men, I would find this an interesting custom. It is the fact that the inslaved boys may be gang raped by men after the dance and killed when they get older and less cute that is unacceptable and a crime. ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 09:28"},{"nm":"Peter","rs":"0","ms":"Extremely brave reporting and deeply disturbing view into what was probably a common practice 1500 years ago.  Women are too low in status to protect their children.  Men are too power obsessed to value other people\'s children.  I think many of the comments here reflect homophobia and parental fear.  Clearly any society that does not value and protect children and women cannot be condoned.  The physical abuse, rape and murder of boys is a horrible crime.  This show also reveals, however, that many more men have homosexual feelings than our own modern society would admit.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 09:27"},{"nm":"MargaretV","rs":"0","ms":"Please! How can we help!?","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 09:20"},{"nm":"Paul","rs":"0","ms":"Jaw dropping program, hard to know where to start.  Upside-down world where the bad guys (Taliban!) put an end to this practice and opium production.  It seems the Taliban too had their boy toys, just banned the dancing, I don\'t know.\n\nPiled on to the obviously appalling, this felt like a glimpse into prehistory, and brings to mind the saying &quot;civilization is a thin veneer.&quot;  That said the West is far from spotless, but this was so raw.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 09:08"},{"nm":"Bud","rs":"0","ms":"Would someone please remind me why Americans are dying in this hellhole. Afganistan is a world leader in opium production , manufacturing hashish and obviously the sexual explotation of children. So of course we\'re sacrificing our sons and daughters to protect their way of life. Incredible !","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 09:00"},{"nm":"Patricia Greenaway","rs":"0","ms":"This program was shocking, and terribly depressing.  The corruption--moral, judicial, economic, familial--seems so complete, that I fear there is no hope for these poor boys, or for Afghanistan.\n \nThanks to Frontline for exposing this practice--and for saving at least one child from an unthinkable future.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 08:59"},{"nm":"Lisa Lenoir ","rs":"0","ms":"As a journalist and a grad student in International Public Service, I found this report touching me on many levels. We are global citizens who must not turn away from such disheartening and exploitative behaviors. While watching, I thought how money and lack thereof makes people do inhumane things for what they deem is necessary for survival. And for what? The lost innocence and dignity of young children in this case. And what made it even more tragic is the mothers had no say at all! So tragic. Contrary to what some think about journalists and their inability to be compassionate, we do become involved in stories where sitting back and just reporting is not an option. Thank you Frontline for showing how good journalism is done! ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 08:52"},{"nm":"Pauline","rs":"0","ms":"This film, in my view, serves to reinforce that much of the Muslim world is woefully stuck in the ancient past.  When Iranian mullahs publicly state that women and/or their behavior are the cause of earthquakes, and when Afghan men proudly claim that women have no voice, then no wonder that a practice like Bacha Bazi survives in the 21st century.  There is so much work to be done.  Thank you Frontline for bringing this horrific story to light.  I hope you will do some followup.  ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 08:51"},{"nm":"Dick Bedard","rs":"0","ms":"On the same day our Supreme Court by an 8-1 vote struck down a law banning the sale of dog fighting and crush videos, FRONTLINE exercised our right to see the mentality that exists in certain minds, less we ever forget and drop our guard. Hunger and lack of money does clearly motivate the actions on one side of these issues, as witnessed in nearby Haiti. The other side is motivated by a need for mood alteration that is beyond our comprehension; but never forget that it exists! John Adams wrote to his wife Abigail, &quot;Education has made a greater difference between man and man than nature has made between man and brute.&quot; FRONTLINE, public television, the Supreme Court and all others involved in our continued education deserve our thanks and support. Ignorance can never make the horrors go away. ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 08:46"},{"nm":"Dr. Fara Movagharnia","rs":"0","ms":"I am so furious at the Afghan authorities for allowing it to happen. I wish I had the power to castrate everyone of those bastards. I hate those responsible for molesting children all over the world. I am sure there are many like kids like them all over the Afghanistan and the Middle East. Boys and girls are being raped while those responsible are beating their chest with their holy book.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 08:42"},{"nm":"Racheal James","rs":"0","ms":"my heart breaks . i cannot believe this.little boys born into hell. that dasteger(whatever his name is). pure evil. i hope all those men die a painful death","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 08:21"},{"nm":"Elissa","rs":"0","ms":"Has anyone considered the possibility that because in the Muslim religion, young unmarried women are not permitted to venture anywhere without male chaperones, and young girls and women who mix with men not their relatives are subject to honor killings, and girls and women are segregated from men in general, that there just aren\'t many females available for men\'s dancing fantasies and sexual demands?  Or is this practice totally for homosexuals?","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 08:06"},{"nm":"P. Wanjeri","rs":"0","ms":"This was heartbreaking to watch. We are clearly fighting the wrong war ( on terror) if we are letting this practices go unabated. Any society or religion that spends too much time controlling sexual behaviors seems to be the same one perpetrating sexual crimes against children. Maybe if they didn\'t require their beautiful women to be covered up or virgins before marriage, they would not be lusting at young innocent boys. Thanks Frontline for a great show.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 08:00"},{"nm":"Chris Hanson","rs":"0","ms":"If only Taliban comes back to power. these warlords will be taught a lesson they wont forget. \n\nNo Poppy cultivation and No Kids","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 07:54"},{"nm":"S. F. ","rs":"0","ms":"This report was heinous and intensely disturbing.  The U.S. has put forth such a valiant effort to assist Afghanistan.  Are we doing so to turn the country over to sex offenders?  I appreciate Frontline bringing this to light, and I hope it brings about a massive public outcry from around the world for the innocent children of Afghanistan.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 07:51"},{"nm":"Bathilde Diouf","rs":"0","ms":" I religiously watch frontline on Tuesdays. So I chose to watch instead of working on my 25 pages paper. What my eyes have seen and what my ears have heard hunted me all night long. Even watching, I had to repeat loudly to myself “This is real! Oh my God how can this be?&quot; over and over for it was like a live nightmare! The documentary grabbed my conscious by the neck since then, I find no peace of mind. It was mind-blowing, too raw, too rude, I felt agitated, angry and soooo deeply sad, sorry and a sense of shame for witnessing such inhumane treatment! I almost got upset at frontline but I seriously thing that frontline ought to be praised for giving us the opportunity to do something about this and make sure that we sponsor enough this kind of programs. A child is the future, a child represents hope. These children are born to be sacrificed for the abject pleasure of beasts. This documentary has to be widely broadcasted in theaters. Please send the link to your friends, post it on twitter, facebook, everywhere. These criminals have to be prosecuted by the international court for the afghan government is part of the problem.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 07:47"},{"nm":"Mustafa","rs":"0","ms":"This is a very shameful truth to my native country. This issue has been part of the culture for some time. The problem is that most of Afghan population is uneducated and they DO NOT understand the meaning of their religion (Islam) so they do not know that this is a BIG SIN and not to mention they do not have compassion for humanity since they have had so much hate and WAR in their country. The only way to get this to stop or to decrease the despicable act is to educate the Afghan Nation that this is not OK to do and that the victims should stand up and press charges on those that victimize them and that the Afghan government should be prosecuting those that commit these acts against those Boys. SO educations is the root of solving this big problem and it is the root cause of many problems in any 3rd World countries.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 07:29"},{"nm":"Mary Madsen","rs":"0","ms":"It is hard for me to believe that there is this huge number of men in the country who are truly pedophiles. Many of them must feel pressured to engage in these activities and act like they are enjoying themselves out of fear of offending a few of these warlords. One military commander &quot;changed&quot; and helped Shafiq. There are no doubt many more who will change once the fear of offending the warlords is removed.  I also doubt that there are NO men who actually love their wives and take their wishes into consideration.  It is a &quot;macho&quot; image they feel the need to project.  Thank you Frontline for exposing this practice.  It is a first step in ending it. Hopefully more men will feel empowered to speak out and help these poor boys and end the cycle of abuse.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 07:21"},{"nm":"Asad","rs":"0","ms":"Thank you Frontline for brining this sick and dispicable practice out in the open.  Yes, this has been going on in parts of Afghanistan for centuries. Some of the rulers of the country have been participants and supporters of the practice, namely Amir Abdur Rahman who was a homosexual and openly practiced this life style. It is not common amongst all the people, only pockets such as Kandahar, Takhar, Jozjan and Logar are known centers of this practice.  No help from outside will change this, no government can root it out, corrupt or otherwise.  The country needs a deep cultural revolution to bring it closer to the modern era.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 07:12"},{"nm":"rick","rs":"0","ms":"much worse than the catholics!!","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 06:53"},{"nm":"Norma Moll","rs":"0","ms":"Sodom and Gomorrah!  I cannot comprehend how a practice like this can continue in this century.  Thank you Frontline for airing this show, please continue to follow this despicable practice there. Maybe if enough attention is bought to it something can be done to stop this.  Although I cannot see how we can effect a change for that or the plight of the women there. The government is so corrupt and the country so poor it needs extreme intervention and I can\'t see any civilized countries willing to spend the time or money to help these poor suffering people. It would be awesome if some of our celebrities would get involved as they do in Africa and other struggling countries.  That would certainly reach a wider audience and maybe bring in some funding to help.  I\'d be willing to donate if I could know that some progress was being made.\nGod Bless the Children.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 06:41"},{"nm":"zamman","rs":"0","ms":"This is the worste thing happens in Afghanistan. In deed this is one of disheartening and terrible story, i wish we  together  could stop this but like you show in the movie, that the seystem is too bad there and now one helps to stop this, and it is against the law there but no one applies law over there, through you we ask the goverment of Afghanistan to hang any one who does such thing,that way you can stop this but if they leave them free we will never be able to stop it , as this is against our religion and humanity, and if the goverment dose not do any thing about it they should remember that soon people return to Talibans as Taliban took serious action about such events and those who were doing that , during the time of Taliban no one had the currage to talk about suck shameful action,then why now this should happen we have every thing there. this is the most sad day in the life of Afghans to see their homeland kids are sold i am very sorry to hear, and see it . I would like to thank all of you for reminding us to help your children and safe their lifes . Thanks.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 06:41"},{"nm":"Wayne","rs":"0","ms":"Our entertainment industry also capitalizes on feminine behavior in men. How often does &quot;Ssturday Night Live&quot; include comedy routines with cross dressing men and that is by no means the only example of this sort of stuff. Animal behavior expressed in dominance and arousal is excused by darwinian teaching that humans are also animals. Throughout history many men have exploited boys to satisfy their lusts for dominance and the arousal that can result.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 06:35"},{"nm":"Ed","rs":"0","ms":"I am utterly and completely devastated by this, it was too painful to watch. This is too depressing. I can\'t believe these disgusting sick warlords, they really need to be put to death.  \n\nThis needs to be shown to the Karazi government, and to the governments of Nato, this is what we are fighting to protect? I am pretty sure all those Warlords in this video are most likely our allies , or the allies of the Karzai government.  \n\nHow can we call claim to be civilized if we can\'t even protect the most innocent amongst us? Catholic priests, Afghan warlords, people who do things like that to children are monsters in every sense of the word and need to be wiped out.\n","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 06:25"},{"nm":"Bagher","rs":"0","ms":"thank you for this excellent program.\n\nwhat was Taliban\'s position with respect to this shameful practice ??\n\nkeep up the struggle for awareness.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 06:02"},{"nm":"azzedine","rs":"0","ms":"The most disturbing and upsetting thing I have ever seen on tv, seeing a little boy dragged into a car and taken away to a life of abuse and sexual slavery.what I find hard to understand is that the paedophile master who claimed that he owned between 2000 and 3000 boys, is considered a pillow of the community and was seen going to the mosque on friday to pray.\nStill what I find even harder to understand is that parents sell their young children knowing full well what will happen to them simply because they are poor and need the money!!! nothing can justify the sacrifice of your own children, you are supposed to do the sacrifice for them.\nI pray Allah to save those poor boys from their living hell.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 05:42"},{"nm":"Mike Fatah","rs":"0","ms":"The United States, as well as other western nations will continue to do nothing if history is any indication of this.  Governments don\'t really care about human rights and are worried about their own interests in the region.  These kinds of atrocities, whether they be in Darfur, Bosnia, Palestine, Vietnam/Cambodia/Laos, Afghanistan or anywhere else, happen with the full guarantee of impunity from local and foreign governments.  We all must organize and not rest until we the people hold our own governments accountable to take immediate action!","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 05:22"},{"nm":"wendy renee","rs":"0","ms":"&quot;A great revolution in just one single individual will help achieve a change in the destiny of a society and, further, will enable a change in the destiny of humankind.&quot;\nHow can we achieve this revolution?  By educating ourselves with a great teaching of humanism - valuing life.  Which can be found in Nichiren Daishonin\'s Buddhism, found in the Soka Gakkai International organization.\nNam-Myoho-Renge-Kyo...Nam-Myoho-Renge-Kyo...Nam-Myoho-Renge-Kyo...\nWendy  ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 05:17"},{"nm":"Lynne","rs":"0","ms":"Child prostitution exists worldwide. From Thailand selling 5 y/old Virgin girls, to Russian, Africa, Afghanistan & here, in the United States. Until societies as a whole, realize that &quot;counciling&quot; a child (or any innocent) rapist is not a punishment.. it will not only continue but increase as the world\'s population grows. Evil knows no cultural, financial or moral boundaries. I think to myself, over the years - how many young children\'s souls did the Catholic Church contaminate with evil perversions. There seems to be a connection between sexual repressive organizations/societies & child sexual abuse. ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 05:09"},{"nm":"Joshua","rs":"0","ms":"I guess I will be the first person to dare to provide another voice. While words cannot begin to descrive by objections to the sexual slavery and sexual trade between youth who are powerless, on multiple levels, and elders, I find it offensive when we Westerns apply our morals around gender roles and same displays of same gender interest to what looks to be a cultural tradition.On one hand, we think nothing of Southern Beauty Pagents for girls, but have a fit over young boys dancing for other men. At times, I wonder, how much of our revulsion is driven our societies deeply instilled homophobia, rigid ideals around gender roles, and sexuality. ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 04:34"},{"nm":"Fatima","rs":"0","ms":"As a Muslim, as a mother, as another human being, I was beyond disgust at what has happened to the Afghan society.  It reminds me of what I use to read about the British soldiers during colonial times.  What is going on has to be stopped.  I would support any plan to help protect and rescue children from abuse.  As an American, I want my government, to agreesively help the Afghan family to become whole.  This is a total brreakdown of society.  As an earlier commentator said, &quot;when mothers, women are not valued, the protectors of children, then this can grow.&quot;  These pedophiles, must be stopped.  No one who saw this can put their head in the sand.  No one can say they did not know.  I know that I will ask my community to make others aware, and help these children, woman and men, to stop this heinous practice.  No human being can see this, and not be revolted and furious.  ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 04:29"},{"nm":"david","rs":"0","ms":"The evidence that this is tolerated at all levels of government and society in Afghanistan is that the criminals didn\'t think twice about being filmed and acknowledging what they did!","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 03:52"},{"nm":"Ri","rs":"0","ms":"Still seething with rage, shaking with pervasive sadness, and in shock!  Power, money and economic disparity make for a horrific end - more often than I\'d like to admit.  Why?  Why shamelessly and systematically abuse children, little innocent boys, in such a cruel and heinous way? And WHAT can be done to stop it?!  (I happened to be awake at 1:00am EST in the USA.  This program needs to be rebroadcast at a more appropriate time so that more people can see it and add their collective outrage and voices toward some solutions on behalf of these innocent and precious &quot;babies&quot;.)   ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 03:45"},{"nm":"Timothy Williams","rs":"0","ms":"I would like to do is to congratulate Frontline for absolute EXCELLENCE in reporting. Najibullah Quraishi risked his life and provided us with some truly stunning video. FABULOUS JOB FRONTLINE!!! The reporting was courageous and of a quality no other news organization manages to get together. \n\nTo see a whole group of men mesmerized at a dancing 15-year old boy is amazing and truly disturbing. Is this country we are trying to &quot;liberate and democratize&quot;? Unfortunately, the program did not delve into the relationship between the sexualization of boys and Islam. The basis of the abuse and enslavement is part of the tenets of Islam. Stoning/lashing/killing of women, enslavement/rape/killing of boys is something that is ritual to Islamic countries. It is something that is so abhorrent to us...\n\nI just hate having our troops defending these creeps makes my hair stand.\n\nTim Williams\nP.S.: I also watched the episode where Frontline went into the Taliban lines. GREAT STUFF! You are crazy as well as educated. Just love it....\n\n\n","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 03:42"},{"nm":"Nageen","rs":"0","ms":"I saw the documentary last night.The plight of these childern is very very sad!We in developed nations have many things to thank for, but to think that in some other part of the world people have to kill their basic human rights in order to survive.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 03:26"},{"nm":"Madeleine","rs":"0","ms":"What happens to the boys when they reach 18? How do they survive? God help us all.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 03:26"},{"nm":"caj","rs":"0","ms":"Afghanistan is hell on earth. Oprah needs to do a special on it to bring it more publicity. Only education and exposure to this horrific practice will eradicate it. I wish for a Women\'s Revolution in the Muslim world. They are the only ones who can bring about change to that patriarchal, misogynist culture.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 03:18"},{"nm":"ann ","rs":"0","ms":"yes..truly heart broken -for these boys and their mothers...what about their religion??they are not afraid  of their god?/they are satisfying only their flesh..no morals ....no guilt. AT ALL ..??/","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 03:16"},{"nm":"Crystal","rs":"0","ms":"I work with children everyday, newborn to 5 years. These children I have known since they were babies. It breaks my heart again and again when I come in contact with yet ANOTHER abused child coming to our workplace. I am not so much shocked or suprised by this as unfortunately I am in contact with these situations everyday. Of course it is disgusting to me, it is always more frustrating. For every one of us trying to do good for children, there are 10 more trying to take from them. Our activism must stay strong always! And though this is hard to see, the REAL truths, in all the sickening smiles of the adult men in this show, HAVE to be seen! CHILD ABUSE IS A REAL AND HURTFUL PRACTICE IT INVOLVES THINGS WE NEVER WANT TO THINK OF,BUT WE HAVE TO BE DISTURBED AND SHOOK UP ENOUGH TO GET ANGRY AND DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT! I pray for peace and future love for these boys in Afghanistan and all the kids in this world. To look in the eyes of my kids at work I can never stop and I will pray all who see this will join me.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 03:11"},{"nm":"sd","rs":"0","ms":"What can I add to this discussion?  Well for starters why is it always the US to solve the world\'s problems? There are countries all over the world--Thai girls being sold to pimps for foreign pedophiles is one that comes to mind; runaway boys and girls here in the US selling themselves to stay alive is another. What is happening in Afghanistan has probably been going there since time began.  There is no quick solution to these problems, but I just think that some countries just don\'t have any values and it should take their own people to stand up to this. If the US could do anything then we are once again the &quot;imperialist&quot; they think of us. And don\'t forget who got us in this war there--GW. But in anyone has a good idea it is Greg Mortenson author of Three Cups of Tea--educate them.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 03:09"},{"nm":"mslilsaint","rs":"0","ms":"This was a sick sick case of abuse...Afghanistan hid the women to rape the boys.Pray Pray Pray.Repent Afghanistan!your tough military is after your boys..Cry loud spare not\n","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 03:08"},{"nm":"paykai","rs":"0","ms":"Very disturbing report. But we have to know that it is not a common practice there. Also, it is not just the poverty but the powerful warlords who are assisting us with our achievements there under our protection and financial gains commit these terrible acts. Remember the Canadian sodier who walked on a rape scene of a you boy and reported it but was told to keep quite? Haven\'t you watched the Runaway children here in the US and their fate reported recently on our own TVs? Aren\'t you aware of the R&R trips our people take to Hong Kong and Combodia just to use young kids (some even months old)? War destroys all and every value in a society. War not only kills people but their souls too. Lets not judge their religion or culture but the situation they are in. Lets stop the war. They are born with the same innocence we are but robbed of it with animosity and hatred of war. By the way, watch a report about how many Porn Tapes are produced and mailed from Los Angeles that involves children and another report about the Park of San Diego that people like &quot;the Afghan called German)are busy hunting children. Google another report on the human tranficcing to be used as sex slaves here in the US. I believe more demons are living among us now a days. I am sure these good reports are eye openning. By the way, don\'t believe the guy who said he is doing it with his wife\'s approval. He does not care what she thinks or better yet, she can\'t do a damn thing about it because she is too afraid to talk about it.     ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 02:52"},{"nm":"For Change","rs":"0","ms":"This was an eye opening program.  this practice has probably gone on for centuries.  This is a country that gives it\'s female citizens absolutely NO rights, allows them to be abused by their husbands and even has the majority of them thinking they must cover every single inch of their body including their face all in the name of religion!  Mothers are not allowed to protect their children.  They have no input in their up bringing.  \n\nIt should be illegal for the Father\'s of these young boys to sell them to others for any reason.  But, obviously having laws do not matter much!  \n\nThere are many practices in the Middle East that most of us Americans could never begin to imagine.  The problem is, these things have gone on for generation after generation and it is acceptable there, it is their culture.  It is their country not ours.  They live differently, think differently, their religious beliefs are different, their way of life is different.  It is not the USA!  \n\nThe people of Afghanistan must want change and be willing to sacrifice to get it.  Womens rights in the US did not just happen.  Women banded together and fought for that.  Labor laws in the US came about because people spoke out and demanded change.  Civil rights in the US did not happen over night and with out protest.  So, the people of Afghanistan must band together and fight for their own causes.  It will not happen if we do it for them!  It is time for change but, they must make change happen themselves. \n\nMy heart breaks for ALL children of Afghanistan.  It seems both boys and girls are abused in one way or another!  They have no voice and their mother\'s are not allowed to speak out for them.  No wonder their is so much anger and sadness there.   ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 02:51"},{"nm":"Brian","rs":"0","ms":"I find it strangely humorous that this is happening in a Muslim country, where they are supposed to be so &quot;respectful&quot; of women that they hide them from the world as much as they can.  It seems as though &quot;respect&quot; toward women goes as far as raping young boys instead of engaging women (other than wives, who are apparently only brood mares) in sexual activity, which would be an &quot;affront&quot; to the Quran. \n\nSome have said that Muslim countries find so many raw recruits to become terrorist &quot;martyrs&quot; because there are so many sexually frustrated men within the culture, something which I previously found questionable.  No longer. Any culture that can justify this (and it goes beyond Afghanistan in the Islamic world, enough so that British officers of the 19th C., like Kitchener, who had a reputation for possible homosexuality were said to have gone &quot;Egyptian.&quot;) pederasty has to have issues with repression of normal sexual behavior.\n\nI think sex in American culture goes a bit too far, but better that than tolerating pedophilia.  Afghanistan could use more American cultural imperialism on sexual and many other issues.  That parents would knowingly sell their children to be raped is beyond comprehension; I would rather cut my childrens\' throats if we were starving than sell them to be raped.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 02:38"},{"nm":"Lupe","rs":"0","ms":"It is disgusting how individuals who have power can easily get away with such horrible crimes against our most vunerable population--the children.  Although I detest knowing about such atrocities being committed against minors, it is a reality that we cannot escape.  Wanting to hide my head in a hole like an ostrich to avoid issues like this may seem as though it would provide me with some peace of mind; however, in actuality, not confronting the problem will only make matters worse.  I may be living thousands of miles away from Afghanistan, but I know that I can be part of the solution to this problem by creating awarness and by informing people about how to make a contribute through Frontline to help a young victim move forward with a normal life.  ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 02:38"},{"nm":"christina","rs":"0","ms":"This documentary really did a great job of bringing awareness to the practice of Bacha Bazi. I remembered reading &quot;The Kite Runner&quot; and crying when reading some of the passages that alluded to the boy being a sex slave and doing Bacha Bazi dances. It\'s even more heartbreaking when you actually see this on a film. want to help inany way i can.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 02:37"},{"nm":"David Ayoubi","rs":"0","ms":"My heart bleeds for those children that are left behind. This is pure evil.\nMay God punish them for the evil they do.\nMaybe Mr. Obama should reconsider pouring money and the blood of our troop in such a blackhole, Karzai\'s blackhole.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 02:36"},{"nm":"bill","rs":"0","ms":"First of all those who are appalled by this should think first about their own countries. This happens in almost all societies not just Afghanistan. Start with US where the most trusted individuals,  priests,  were sodomizing little boys, maybe not in the same fashion as it is in Afghanistan but same abuse. Then again these priests were doing this all over the world; Brazil, England, Chile are the latest I have heard about. Secondly, it starts with the USA who is supporting most of these warlords  because they fought against the Taliban. Most of these warlords were put into power by the US-supported Afghan government, which is,last I heard, the second to last most corrupt government in the world. How can a society who has the most corrupt individuals in power who are supported by the worlds most powerful country stop such abuse? As evil as the Taliban government may have been such things were completely banned and punishable by death.  The current government passed a law that states that such things are punishable by death however like the article states, they bribe themselves out of prison and that law is useless. Ofcourse the enforcement of such laws would completely eradicate such practices, as was the case under the taliban, however with such a corrupt government supported by the US there is no hope for these children. Also, you have to realize that these children and their families are so poor that they this is the only and absolutely the only way they could survive because they dont have any other options due to the warlords controlling everything. So the problem starts  at the top, the very top. there is a saying amongst the locals &quot;The birds fly over Kandahar using only one wing, the other covering their posterior. Now the locals “Birds flew with both wings under the Taleban…but not any more”. so the whole US strategy that is supposed to help afghans and afghanistan needs to be fixed before such problems are fixed. ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 02:34"},{"nm":"Sue","rs":"0","ms":"My son\'s father voiced concerns over the chance our boys being abused when they were young. I was horrified that could ever happen and where that thought came from. He was from the same part of the world as the program portrayed. Abuse of boys was something familiar. I have since read that abusing boys in particular Islamic countries &quot;justifies&quot; desire for not indulging in women.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 02:27"},{"nm":"Cesar","rs":"0","ms":"I am totally shocked about these misplaced morality. It is as if the social norm has gone berserk, schizophrenic.This is probably what happened in a society where men thought of their wives as just sacred reproductive machine. Men put them in a pedestal, where intimacy with their wives are discouraged, and lustfull desire are redirect to young boys. In both cases, the boys and women a treated as their property. In both cases, they are the ultimate display of hypocracy by a powerfull group in a society.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 02:24"},{"nm":"Nick","rs":"0","ms":"I served in Afghanistan as a US Marine during the spring of 2004 in the Oruzgan province north of Kandahar. The widespread practice of raping boys by pederasts is known by ALL American and NATO troopers.  The affectations of adult males for adolescent boys is openly acknowledged by the adult perpetrators. Indeed, it seems to me that from my admittedly limited exposure to Afghan society that almost all Afghan men appear to prefer recreational sex with boys than relationships with women.  Thank you FRONTLINE for all you do to enlighten Americans to the many harsh realities of this troubled land. ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 02:19"},{"nm":"Henry Ritter","rs":"0","ms":"Of all the stories Frontline has reported over the years, I found this one the most disturbing.  The ritualized sexual abuse and enslavement these children suffer is heart-breaking and the refusal by most Afghani men to discuss or even acknowledge its existence is infuriating,  But the fact that Afghanistan\'s legal system is so corrupt that the well-connected perpetrators apparently went unpunished ... that\'s what\'s left my stomach in knots.  (Question:  the boy being praised as a &quot;good boy&quot; by his [I think] &quot;owner&quot; -- his unobscured face looked dazed and made me wonder if the country\'s abundant opium crop plays any role in perpetuating this barbarism ?)  As upsetting as the show was, Frontline is to be congratulated not only for bravely exposing this awful situation, but also for helping to rescue one of the victims.  That the show\'s staff members contributed money to help relocate the family was very moving.  Thank you.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 02:17"},{"nm":"peter stevenson","rs":"0","ms":"This is human trafficking in its most discusting form! Absolute power is allways accompanied by absolute evil, in poor,war torn,and ununified places, evil rules the day. Pray people,pray as governments will not save you. God alone is your sanctuary.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 02:14"},{"nm":"Esperanza Perez","rs":"0","ms":"I am just heartbroken after watching the program. I have a little boy & I\'m protecting him from psychopaths like this!!! How could a parent put their child in harm\'s way??? I would sell myself before I would allow anyone to get near my child. I\'m disguisted & could\'nt stop crying, but thank you for letting us view what is happening around us.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 02:12"},{"nm":"LZ","rs":"0","ms":"The journalist who did this program is like a guardian angel.  Keep doing what you are doing to help them.  I am happy that there are people like you who make such a difference.  I will pray that human beings develop a sense of respect for all others and stop seeing another person as an object to be used.  I also hope the U.S. (my country) does more to help these poor families who are taken advantage of.                ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 02:10"},{"nm":"Mostaeen Jouya","rs":"0","ms":"I am extremely shocked digusted and cried watiching your report and video which reflected a shameful practice in Afghanistan, Bacha bazie. Afghanistan has been so much unfortunate that despite its reach and long history could not eradicate social agonies such as this. I thank you and thank Najibullah, the reporter, that put his life in a real risk to rescue the innocent boy. Hope this should be the beginning for rescuing even more innocents from those so called &quot;Bachabaz&quot; criminals.\n\nMostaeen Jouy\n","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 02:09"},{"nm":"Lawrence ","rs":"0","ms":"This was a very good program on PBS tonight. What caught my attention was one of the boys dancing in a circle for all those men that would be eventually bidding to have sex with them or they\'d take turns. I wasn\'t sure about that part. Some of the men joining that horrible gathering, are policemen also. What I don\'t understand is why they beat the boys badly, then kill them if they tried to escape. Or those evil men would search for the boys that managed to get away and then kill them. I\'m sure they\'ve killed endless boys over the years that we don\'t know about. So sad.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 02:06"},{"nm":"Rey Reyes","rs":"0","ms":"For as sick this brutality against young boys makes me, being someone who was sexually abuse by 4 guys for 5 years. I can not believe what makes a person take advantage of a young innocent boy. I know we have to stop this, one way or another, we us human beings need to STOP this Brutality and Punish the guilty. Share with your different communities in the internet and let the whole world know what is happening in Afghanistan.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 02:04"},{"nm":"Erwin","rs":"0","ms":"We\'re spending how many billions to bring \'democracy\' to Afghanistan??? While I am certain many, many, Afghans refute this practice, it\'s there..was there before, is there now, and will likely be there in the future. Rafi and Dastegar are vile human beings....but, though this report will serve to bring sunlight from the shadows, I doubt many viewers feel we can make much of a difference. Whether it\'s Eurasia, Afghanistan, or any other hellhole on the planet, change doesn\'t come over night. And n this instance, I doubt very much whether, at the outset, ignorance can be wiped out in a few years..let along a few hundred, which, I fear is when this kind of behavior will be seen for the cruelty that it is. ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 02:04"},{"nm":"Mohammed","rs":"0","ms":"I was flipping through channels and I found this program.I am deeply sad,disturbed and sick in the stomach for watching these animals(I do apologize to the animals)abusing these kids. \nI wander what the coalition forces are doing about a decade in Afghanistan if the can not stop transgression, drugs and violence!!! \nI ask God to give these pedophiles the punishment that they deserve.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 02:03"},{"nm":"janvier25","rs":"0","ms":"Do people really not know that child slavery widespread around the world? That there are 27 million actual slaves in the world today, people who work without pay who cannot leave because of the threat of violence? And, incidentally, that most of the chocolate we eat is produced by slaves, half of them childen?","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 01:58"},{"nm":"LenaLove","rs":"0","ms":"&quot;Humans&quot;, are the only species I know that are willing to destroy their seed ,their extension of themselves ,their mark in the world. These are men giving abortions to boys; killing their dreams,hopes and innocence. Men they look up to ,men they treasure, men they want to be like, destroy them at birth.Would you feel valued ,if your &quot;own father&quot; placed no value on you? I\'m praying for a change. I am crying now I have to go. To the Afgan children, see you at the top!!!!!","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 01:57"},{"nm":"john","rs":"0","ms":"Having lived through a predator and his rape of my 8th year of existence,I had to fight to live above and beyond my memories. These men have no idea of the long term damage their actions do to the developing mind. I could not help to feel anger as I watched this program. What is mind boggling is the wide spread acceptance of this practice amoung goverment/city officals. I just don\'t  understand why a father would sell his boy into the sex trade business for any amount of money. The few have much power over the many but in numbers unity should existe. From what I gathered, this society is a homophobic,sexist, sexual confused and closeted society. I can not see a change ever occuring for them.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 01:57"},{"nm":"Alexandra","rs":"0","ms":"Sadly abuse such as this happen everywhere not only in Afghanistan, it just happens in different forms.\ni.e. sub-Saharan region (Senegal), Eastern Europe (Poland, Romania), south-eastern Asia (Thailand), South America. As long as there is a demand...","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 01:49"},{"nm":"Sandra D.","rs":"0","ms":"Males and Females have a need to express and release their sexual desire. This is not our fault but a product of our biology and it\'s processes. As civilized societies, we need to find non-abusive, non-exploitive (especially of minors and non-consenting adults)and yet potentially productive avenues to enjoy/release/relieve our hormonally driven needs.  Can you imagine what would happen to any society, much less Afganistan, where we were all understood and were encouraged, focused, and taught how to be the sexual beings that our biology made us to be without shame or perversion? An Iranian cleric today said that earthquakes were the result of female sexuality. What an expression of his deepest psychological fears and a disturbing relationship with his own sexuality. What if we released sexual desires and yet channeled them, teaching and enforcing to our young (and old) what was exceptable behavior, whist also giving them a joyful release of hormonal build-up. What if we treated sexual needs as the same as nutritional needs?  We don\'t really impose religious theology upon our need to eat, breath, sleep,and expel.  What if we treated hormonal needs in the same way?  And why haven\'t we historically done that (within written history? Maybe I could express this better or more eloguently, but it seems that sexual desire is not the problem, instead it is our social constructs that see such as immoral and thus encourages, tolerates, and profits from the oppression and resulting perversion therein seems to be the culprit. What do you think?  Thank you, S.D.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 01:38"},{"nm":"Cassy","rs":"0","ms":"I was absolutely blown away ... one thing I recognized in the background was the near absence of women in society there. I think when you have such an extreme absence of women this creates an imbalance; I see Bacha Bazi as the extreme that\'s diverted man\'s attraction to another place ... and what a sad and devastating place in the ruination of those boys\' lives. I pray to God, the light of His glorious gospel shines in this country. Truth shall set them free. And justice.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 01:35"},{"nm":"Ann","rs":"0","ms":"When the family unit does not have the cohesiveness to protect and value life at all costs then the base unit of a society does not exist.  A nation is only as strong as its weakest and most vulnerable and how they are cared for and protected.  \nWhere women and children have no face and no voice this is what happens.\nThis is a living example that when people live double lives - a &quot;good and devout person by day&quot; and a devil demon by night there is no value of the other - only self gratification at all costs.\nI am curious as to the HIV virus in this country and Pakistan as it was stated by the retired military commander in the documentary that they were introduced to this practice by the Pakistans during the Russian conflict.\nUNICEF has no statistics most likely because this is a closed society for every action there is a reaction.\nMay we always support the internal struggle to care for and nurture the weak and honor every human being.\nMay the Lord Almighty help us all to make the right choices and to be supportive of each other to do likewise.\nMorality can never be legislated nor enforced by might.  It must come from the spirit of good toward the other and toward self if it is to be real and lasting.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 01:35"},{"nm":"Penney","rs":"0","ms":"I have one question.  Where are the Imams & mosques? I thought most of the countryside was still made up of a very conservative Islam.    Where in the Quran or Sharia law is this  ok?","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 01:34"},{"nm":"Kathleen M Economy","rs":"0","ms":"Dear Frontline, \nAfter watching this story my current unemployed status (here in the US) is still full of relative luxury, protection, and privilege when compared to these innocent boys and their families in Afghanistan.  In my world, I still have a sense of justice, opportunities, choices, and hope.  In the US and majority of us are protected from predators, pedophiles, and abusers.  For many in Afghanistan, their world is just the opposite.  Thank you, Frontline, for making me, and others, realize how trivial my worries are, how well off I am, and how we all need to get beyond ourselves and help others. The first step is to become informed, and when the opportunity arises, act against these injustices.  ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 01:33"},{"nm":"J. Hogue","rs":"0","ms":"Very well done.  Informative, fair, and forward.  \nPray for the children of Afghan and everywhere, for you know this isn\'t the only place such gross practices go on.  Bring justice for these children. \nAdditionally, I felt it very disgusting when the one man in the film commented that they were children and that they would get through it.  So sad that people take such advantage of their innocence and think they will just get through it.  ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 01:33"},{"nm":"Jill K","rs":"0","ms":"I am entirely devastated. What has become of the teenage boy who believes his life is ruined and fears for his life at the same time? Certainly there is no better encapsulation of the horrific impact on the lives of these young boys: life is over AND fear of death in conjunction. What I would not do to save him. Frontline, can we afford his salvation?","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 01:32"},{"nm":"Irma","rs":"0","ms":"Dear Frontline,\nI was falling asleep when I came across this story.  I could not believe my ears, this is an awful practice that we (society) cannot allow.  Children and women apparently are not values in Afghanistan and it\'s sad that these people are victims of this terrible injustice.  I would not only like to help with donations, but also would like to do something to stop this.  Thank you for educating us and bringing this to light, this dark little secret needs to be exposed.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 01:30"},{"nm":"Joe Miller","rs":"0","ms":"I was stunned by your program tonight!  Saddened, angered, and even humbled by the powerlessness associated with this practice. I hope your show will have an impact in Afghanistan and that maybe, just maybe, your having exposed this ugly practice to the world might be the beginning of the long process of one day eradicating it from Afghani society. However, we cannot fool ourselves -- it will take generations, if ever.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 01:30"},{"nm":"Mother of three","rs":"0","ms":"When I tuned into this on pbs I was stunned. I couldn\'t imagine a mother allowing her own son, her child to be subjected to this. The story of shafik was sad also. I will hold these children in my prayers.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 01:28"},{"nm":"Chris","rs":"0","ms":"This was an excellent, eye-opening documentary. I wonder though, why there was no analysis of the reason why so many men participate in this horrendous degradation of young boys? Surely there must be some connection culturally to the fact that women\'s sexuality is so completely and utterly reviled in this culture.  Women are made to be invisible in what is (along with Saudi Arabia) the most misogynistic culture that has ever existed. It comes as no surprise that where women are stripped of their humanity, and where men and women are not permitted to be with one another in anything remotely resembling a human fashion, that these horrid distortions of human behaviour emerge.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 01:22"},{"nm":"Ghizal","rs":"0","ms":"I too watched this program with my jaw wide open and my heart racing with anger. My outrage disperses in many directions, and who do I tackle first...the parents, the men, the boys, the country, the government, the so called police, or on-lookers? \nIf this story can be leaked into the mainstream media and taken as seriously as a celebrity breakup, then there would be some hope for these poor children... it doesn\'t cost much to support a family in Afghanistan.\nThere\'s abuse from everywhich direction and stopping it is a war itself. ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 01:21"},{"nm":"Jackie","rs":"0","ms":"The strange thing is that Afganistan was very modern before the Taliban. The woman were educated and held jobs.  A great book is The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini. (also a movie ).  It goes through life before the Russians and Taliban and has a part about Bacha Bazi.  He also wrote A Thousand Splendid Suns, which deals with how women are treated. Both books were great but disturbing.  ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 01:20"},{"nm":"John","rs":"0","ms":"The systems in Afghanistan are either broken or non-existant!  Where to start - the corruption, abuse of power, lack of education, no enforcement of any laws, abuse of women/children, on and on.  Basically, lack of systems and as a result no checks and balances this is what you get!   US should be helping build systems for this country so they can take care of this type of stuff themselves through education and law enforcement.  So sad...","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 01:19"},{"nm":"sergio valdez","rs":"0","ms":"Truly sad something must be done to take care of the Afghan children. and it must start with the afghan government upholding the laws which they themselves are breaking.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 01:15"},{"nm":"Thierry","rs":"0","ms":"What a wonderful and sad program that showed how sick society has become for pleasure...These poor boys are treated like sex toys for whoever has money and power.\nWhat is a human life worth over there?\nThe ancient Bacha Bazi practice is nothing more than slavery, and it should be stopped!\nAfter watching this program, how can we pretend this is not happening? \nMay help and justice reach these boys where ever they are. \n","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 01:14"},{"nm":"AL Neri","rs":"0","ms":"I just finished watching the Dancing Boys of Afghanistan & I am very sad & disturbed about what is happening with our children in this world.  This is not only happening in Afghanistan but in other countries too.  Are we to debase ourselves for the mere pleasures of sex & material things in life that we treat our very own children as objects of desires & treat them as part of material things.  How sick could that be.\nMy heart goes out to these children & it breaks my heart when I see them suffer.\nI hope that we, as we call ourselves human beings, should learn to love these children because they are the future of this world we live in.\nI hope that God will teach us how to love these children.\n","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 01:14"},{"nm":"francine schwartz","rs":"0","ms":"I had heard of this practice from reading \'The Kite Runner,\' but I believed it to be an isolated case--something created for the story. . . When I received the email previewing tonight\'s episode, I knew I had to watch it. I could barely what I was seeing--husbands, fathers who themselves engage in  this practice! Frontline is again to be congratulated for its ever-stellar journalism. Bringing to forefront one of Afghanistan\'s dirty little secrets--although not so secret in the country where it takes place. Maybe this will be a giant step forward towards ridding the country of such a practice. Where money and power can usurp a childhood--this is not something we can shield our eyes from. What in the culture says this is ok? What does it say about the power or lack thereof of the women, of children, of civilized behavior? ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 01:12"},{"nm":"HEIDI","rs":"0","ms":"I also was flipping through channels when I came across this program.  What has this world come to..... Such a sad story, it breaks my heart that these poor children are in such danger from even the police of their own country.   What can we as concerned human beings do against such atrocities?  I know I will certainly pray for these poor children put in harms way by their own parents.  I truly wish there was more that we as just fellow human beings can do to not only these children but children in Dafur and other countries.. It seems that the saying EVIL MEN PROSPER BECAUSE GOOD MEN DO NOTHING is true although I applaud Frontline for their heroic work on this story and by putting it on the air for people to see.   Again, I will pray that something positive will be forthcoming because of Frontlines story.   Sincerely , Heidi","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 01:10"},{"nm":"Aracely Lozano","rs":"0","ms":"First of all I would like to thank Frontline for continuing to create awareness on issues such as these even with the budget problems pbs is encountering. The documentary is very heartbreaking, and it pains me to see how the youth of this country is abused. A quote from the documentary &quot;Power is power&quot; sadly money and power is what drives the world today, and those who are not priviledged are those who are abused. Now why bother having a Declaration of Human Rights if the U.N. won\'t bother in actually enforcing it. Also, the U.S. goal in the Middle East is profit based, the mercenary business has just boomed since we invaded Iraq, and I truly feel that these war in the Middle East have just made things worse because their governments are still the same. ELECTIONS DON\'T MEAN DEMOCRACY! The Afghan Boy\'s will truly be in my prayers tonight. Sometimes I feel like simply giving up and leaving the world as is, but for some reason I know that we can achievea world where we actually enforce what is written in the Declaration! Frontline, please don\'t go anywhere!","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 01:09"},{"nm":"Kyle Garrett","rs":"0","ms":"What a truly sad story this was.  I had not heard about this issue until today.  Your associate in Afghanistan is truly brave for doing this story in such a dangerous place. I\'m so grateful that PBS is one of the few media outlets still doing investigative journalism of this caliber.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 01:08"},{"nm":"david galindo","rs":"0","ms":"This video begins to reveal the sad truth regarding the false teaching of islam, in how there is no seperation in chuch and state! That is one of the main problem here.If you want to go even further look at the relationship of the growth of opium, sense we entered afganstan! If you think america is there for fighting terrorism, you are sadily mistaken! We are there for an oil gas pipe line, and to assist in importing opium into america! We have no right to tell another nation how to discipline, or instruct there people, especially when you see what is going on in our nation! Look at the gays and lesbians in america, in our tv programs, talk shows. Just look at the break down of our own morals in our society! Americans have been manupulated by media, our own government officials, the supposed war on terrorism! I think frontline is one of the best programs I have ever seen on pbs tv. I feel sorry for those boys, and I believe if we has a christian nation would be in one accord, and pray for those boys, God our Father in Heaven would intervene! Also America needs to look at the mirror, and realize we need to get our crooked government officials out of office that promote gay life styles, remove gay and lesbian teaching from our text books, remove tv programs that promote this demonic type of life style! Put prayer back into our school system. And read our bibles, live our lives, as, do onto others as you would have them do onto you! There is a s\cripture that comes to mind, You reap what you sow, this goes for our nation as well as theres! Frontline keep up the outstanding work you are doing. Note: when are you guys going to reveal the nano thermate that brought buildings 1,2,7? Or that a missile hit the pentagon? Truth is truth! And science cannot be faked! Especially when it comes to a crime scene as 911!","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 01:07"},{"nm":"Matthew Lubic","rs":"0","ms":"Afganistan is a country and a culture not worth saving and not worth the life of one single \nAmerican, much less the thousands of dead and injured  it has already cost.  President Karzai is a coward, as are most of those in power, whether in government or out.  Corruption is rampant not just among these sexual deviants but in the so called &quot;police&quot; and child protection agencies.  Shame on them all.  And shame on us for continuing to support them.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 01:07"},{"nm":"Leanne Twidwell","rs":"0","ms":"The idea that we could ever introduce democracy to this society is absurd. They don\'t respect the rights of each other! And it has been that way for centuries. Why do we think we can change them?  I am completely opposed to having our soldiers die over there. Bring our military home asap!","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 01:04"},{"nm":"Dianne Murphy","rs":"0","ms":"I watched this documentary in disbelief.  Thank you for bringing this horrific abuse to the awareness of many.  Being the mother of two men and soon to be the grandmother of two grandsons I find it so incredibly sad and nausiating.  I want to help the cause in the name of every innocent child in the world.     ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 01:04"},{"nm":"Rosemary Graham-Gardner","rs":"0","ms":"This practice is nothing new and has also been used south of our border here in California..\nYoung boys would be found murdered in alleys and upon close investigation it was found that these boys were being used by powerful American men..Even there was speculation that a member of the Nixon administration had been implicated in such practice...\nI learned about the same practice in Egypt when I took a trip there and there it was very powerful Saudi women who would engage young poor and uneducated boys for sex and then have them murdered to they would not speak because that could mean the death penalty for the Saudi women..\nThis practice is still going on nowadays.\nPoverty caused by overpopulation is the main culprit for this practice.\nOnce we have population control child slavery under all forms will disappear.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 01:00"},{"nm":"Darryl Louis Stephenson","rs":"0","ms":"As a Fashion Designer, I\'ve been looking for a cause to promote.  I most firmly believe that I have found\nsuch a casue in the &quot;Bacha Bazi&quot;. I was instantely, repulsed, horrified, and enraged that more is not being done for those children.  Slavery, Child Abuse, and the like need to be stamped out, but until the world focus is on that matter nothing will change.  I would love to be apart of said change...I offer my services without charge, any monies generated from fashion shows, or auctions for the sale of my garments I\'d gladly donate to this cause.  Please let me know of what help I can lend.  I can be reached at: Darryllouiss@aol.com  together we can help these children","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 01:00"},{"nm":"John","rs":"0","ms":" Tribalism, go figure.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 00:59"},{"nm":"Walter","rs":"0","ms":"This perverted practice cannot be allowed to stand.  It is apparent that men of power, including ranking officials in the police force, are involved.  The only way to disband this den of snakes is to expose and shame them.  Capture them on video, by whatever means possible, and use the evidence to bring them to justice.  At the same time, an escape route must be afforded for these poor powerless children, such as the 11 year old boy featured in the piece.  The afghani journalist was heroic, as was the former warlord, for their efforts to save the boy. The international community must be as merciless as these pedophiles are in ridding Afghanistan of this depraved ritual.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 00:59"},{"nm":"Zubair","rs":"0","ms":"I was shocked when on the movie, dastageer explained that he explained to their families what would he do to the kids. It is totally wrong. i don\'t even believe that they actually pay their families.\n\nI mean no mom or dad would sell their kids for money.\n\nwhat is more shocking that they paid money government and got away with all those crimes. I m afraid they they will kill shafiq one day.\n\nand Yes we afghans can prevent this situation from happening again but we are all scared from dying.\n\nand the whole government is corrupted. so very impossible to get rid of \'Bacha Bazi\' tradition.\n\nThey have money and it gives them power. I pray for those kids to be free one day from this world of Bacha Bazi.\n\nThanks for this Documentary","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 00:58"},{"nm":"Zoe","rs":"0","ms":"Sickening!!!! Religions that deny equality to women must take responsibility for the abuse of children.  Catholics need to make the connection.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 00:57"},{"nm":"Farrokh Azad","rs":"0","ms":"From Vatican to Afghanistan to almost all other corners of our world; as long as natural sexual instincts & behavior are put under (uunnecessary & excessive) regulations (mainly in order to squeeze and control masses), abuse of children (and MANY other tragedies) will continue.\nOpen & healthy discussions, education, gradual annihilation of laws (religious & otherwise) disguised as necessities for good morals (for the good of people) but in reality established in order to control, etc; . .   These are the steps we need to take in order to create a better world for every one.  (Uunnecessary) Sexual inhibitions and fears and limitations are the major creators/causes of not only child abuse and sexual perversion but also wars, mental disorders, hatred, and many other tragedies.  History is full of many mad leaders (passed & present) who have been the products of such unnecessary fears & inhibitions.\nI was painting a beautiful nude woman in England when I had news that my cousin, a bright handsome young man, had been killed in the war between Iraq & Iran.  Deeply sad with the news, I finished the painting and at the bottom of it wrote; &quot;While they were killing each other, I was painting a beautiful naked woman&quot;.  I used the word &quot;naked&quot; on purpose in order to be loud and clear and controversial.  This was some 30+ years ago.  I blame that war, the creation of a Saddam & Khomeini, the power thirsty of East & West and their madness - and much more - MAINLY (if not completely) on that unhealthy attitude towards sex.  Mainly in religions . . \nFrom covering (and humiliating) women in Afghanistan, S. Arabia, etc.; to the (poor) priests in Catholic churches; to the sexual abstinent in Buddhist or Hindu traditions; and so on . ..  the root of much of our miseries are in unnecessary sexual rules and inhibitions and fears - again, mostly there not for the good of mankind but for control of masses by a few.  In West, we also misuse the instinct to sell our cars and TVs and wars and so on . .\nCall me crazy if you must.  That is what I believe.  I\'ve lived and experienced both ends (East & West).","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 00:51"},{"nm":"jake nelson","rs":"0","ms":"How about all priests, government elected officials, money managers, bankers should be psychologically screened,and a complete security background check? Could we, like Lot in Sodom find ten honest men?","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 00:50"},{"nm":"SeanKH","rs":"0","ms":"The irony in this story is almost laughable: to think that the Taliban was one of the groups fighting to end this practice. Amazing. God help us all, we really need help.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 00:49"},{"nm":"L..Hudson","rs":"0","ms":"Just who do the producers at Frontline think would care to watch this program? For what purpose? To what end? Was this meant to be helpful to anyone in any way? With all that is going on in the region, are we to rise up and wage a campaign called Free the Dancing Boys in Afghanistan at this time? We already have our dancing boy right here at home. It\'s name is Frontline. ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 00:49"},{"nm":"Jay","rs":"0","ms":"It is very disturbing to know these kind of sad acts happens in the world. I know it happens in United States too because I see it on the News all the time, pimps exploiting teenage prostitution. Couple of days ago on the News they were saying that a more severe penalties against defendants, like life in prison. Corruption is bad, it comes in many forms, and it happens everywhere to countries, states, cities, and towns... and people get hurt.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 00:45"},{"nm":"Rahim Mirzai","rs":"0","ms":"It depends totally on the government of Afghanistan to act swiftly concerning this horrible acts being done on those innocent children almost across Afghanistan, beside this is the outcome of poverty in this country that some families are persuaded and forced to sell out their loved Childs in a bid to support the rest of family for some time , i really hope that Afghan government feels the pains of those families whose kids are abused sexually by those warlords in the country the presence of more than 10000 multinational troops in Afghanistan is to root out the Taliban and they can\'t intervene to act against this chaos which is being imposed on children this is the responsibility of the Afghan government to stop this violent acts Rahim Mirzai","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 00:43"},{"nm":"Joe P Clark","rs":"0","ms":"Savages, that is they are called where I\'m from.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 00:42"},{"nm":"Tim","rs":"0","ms":"I agree w/ emma.  I was thinking also of ancient Greek influence due to the legacy of Alexander\'s conquests.  Truly a primative cultural manifestation, and very disturbing.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 00:40"},{"nm":"F. Wingate","rs":"0","ms":"  The fact that we are squandering the lives of our soldiers to support the corrupt regime that allows such pratices to flourish is disgusting. Our concepts of civil society are not relevant in this country, nor can such concepts ever be imposed by force.\n\n   Our soldiers will be out of this quagmire, this graveyard of empires, next year. (I\'m from Canada.) How long do you think yours will be there, spilling their blood and burning your treasure? Wake up, America! Please!!","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 00:40"},{"nm":"Larry","rs":"0","ms":"Afghanistan, seems to be an amoral country.  I am disgusted by the trading and rape, that\'s what it is, of the poor young men.  Is this the culture our taxes and young men are fighting for?  This practice should be denounced without equivocation by our government and all others who have committed men and wealth to Afghanistan.  If it is not rooted out, we have no business in the hell hole that Afghanistan appears to be.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 00:27"},{"nm":"JFranke","rs":"0","ms":"In addition to the repellent exploitation of economically disadvantaged children that the  &quot;cultural&quot; practice of bacha bazi represents, the film highlights one more reason why our presence in that country is absurd and pointless. Afghanistan is a loose confederation of powerful warlords, religious fanatics and tribal powerbrokers where corruption is accepted as the norm and in which no change ever has or over will be exerted by outsiders. If change that benefits the poor and disadvantaged ever comes to that benighted country, it will be because Afghanis with real guts and intelligence such as Najibullah Quraishi make it happen. We have absolutely no business being there. ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 00:25"},{"nm":"Karen","rs":"0","ms":"Amazing and upsetting storie.... Well done, Frontline!  Could it be that a culture that significantly suppresses its women almost necessarily turns to abusing its sons?  Is it possible to measure how many Taliban soldiers were once &quot;dancing boys&quot;?","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 00:23"},{"nm":"tabor","rs":"0","ms":"As an American and a military veteran my first reaction to this video was to kill these pedophiles in Afghanistan. However, these particular men are the military leaders with political connections in the country. I think our President should make an open address of this particular problem since there are so many Afghan officials involved in this pedophilia bussiness. If this is ignored then we will have lost all moral ground. How can we wage war against other nations but not wage war against the sexual abuse and emotional damage being done to these children?","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 00:18"},{"nm":"Laila","rs":"0","ms":"Thank you for the amazing program. Being form Afghanistan myself, I had known about this kind of practice and wished that the US efforts would be directed more towards problems like these in the region, including dog fighting etc (which is also a prominant and widespread practice.)","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 00:16"},{"nm":"Gina","rs":"0","ms":"dear Frontline,\nI am so distraught after watching this program, i could barely get through it. How is it that the lives of precious children are so worthless in parts of the world and sick men like these are allowed to roam the streets gratifying their truly selfish and inhuman desires at the expense of these little ones! Watching this really made me wish the Taliban were back, as the program noted, they managed to bring these brutal abusive practices to a stop. God help the children of Afghanistan. Are there any organizations working to stop this? How much awareness/pressure is there in Afghanistan to stop this?","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 00:13"},{"nm":"Emily","rs":"0","ms":"This is mindblowing. For this to come out of a region where women cannot show their hair, but their boys are parading around in this way, is a reminder that all societies and civilizations have had this historic tradition for same sex attraction. From the first Olympics to the deserts and mountains of Afghanistan, same sex attraction is everywhere. And strangely enough, they have no rights. And are considered a sub class. As for the fact that these are young boys cavorting with men much older, and the western culture looks down upon relations between anyone under the age of 18 with another of that age or above, I fully support that taboo. The young men of Afghanistan should not be taken advantage of, they are not products of visual and sexual pleasure for another, but are human beings.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 00:08"},{"nm":"Bathilde Diouf","rs":"0","ms":"They were drooling wolves fantasizing about the inoffensive, innocent zombie who like a toupee kept on turning around as if he was looking for where to escape. These boys had the dead look of a zombie, in their female ornaments. And this is supposed to be a people of believer! Castration would even be too sweet for these beasts with no sense of humanity and even hellfire would reject such abject creatures!","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 00:07"},{"nm":"Anna Fu","rs":"0","ms":"Thank you PBS for producing another profound documentary. This is a sad reality that showcases how the human condition is perverted when undulated quest for power, social status, greed, domination, and control remain unchecked. It\'s heartbreaking how even in 2010, in the current age of civilized and sophisticated societies, that can send people to the moon, can still have some inhabitants with spiritually corrupt practices that destroy innocent lives, warp families and denegrate society at lage. Hopefully by raising awareness to these issues, real humanistic values can be revived again, and I applaud the team\'s efforts in follow up, because truly is education of the youth the key to uplift the human soul from these dark practices. ","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 00:06"},{"nm":"Taran","rs":"0","ms":"i was very devastated when i saw the commercial and decided to watch the program. it broke my heart to watch what these little boys go through everyday. Those sick men just enjoying it for their fun. Its a crime that people should have awareness about.","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 00:05"},{"nm":"anon.","rs":"0","ms":"Thank you so much for revealing this little-known practice, which was touched on in The Kite Runner.  It broke my heart, and my hope, insha\'Allah, is that this practice can be done away with, if enough of an international presence and influence can begin.  Let\'s work together sending money and support for the good of these and all child sexual slaves.\n","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 00:04"},{"nm":"Aisha","rs":"0","ms":"RAPE!!! Call it what it is!!!","pt":"Apr 21, 2010 00:00"},{"nm":"mh","rs":"0","ms":"Despite the fact that we, in the developed world, also have many cities where prostitution, practiced by teen boys (and girls) as young as 11 or 12 is alive and well, seeing the children taken from their families, paid for with money and then exploited, raped and even killed, is the ultimate betrayal. The sex trade involving children on the streets in our cities for the most part is done by them mostly voluntarily, but being an unsuspecting child victim who gets sold away by their own family must feel this to be like the ultimate desertion and destroy any spirit the children may have left.\nSadly, this is also practiced in India with very young girls, as young as 7 years old, who have been sold into prostitution and end up locked up in brothels in cities like Mumbay, where the estimated number of sex slaves under 18 number in the hundred thousands. Many contract HIV and die from AIDS before they are 20 years old. It is almost unbearable to think that this goes on in the 21st century and where we have left our humanity.","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 23:57"},{"nm":"jeanne","rs":"0","ms":"It is time to bring to justice these men, who are pedophiles. If our military are still there, then we must round up the perpetrators and Let Islamic law deal with them harshly, in other Islamic countries this is not allowed, heck they stone people for less. This cycle of violence will continue into future generations, these children need a future and hopes and dreams like anyone else.We have blocked aid to other countries, Burma, for example for political demogogery why not blockaid and censure afghanistan and any other country where such degrading slavery occurs, and if we are a military force in the country, then we shall deal with it under their laws, the children must be protected.This abomination must be stopped,these evil men should have to face their own laws, thank you for showing this. the movie the Kite Runner made some light on this evil.Please protect the boys","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 23:55"},{"nm":"Eric","rs":"0","ms":"Sexual slavery has occurred in all cultures throughout history. Had the subject of the film been the victimization of young women it would have been no less tragic but not altogether surprising. What was shocking about this film was the suggestion that homosexual pedophilia in Afghanistan is relatively commonplace and even culturally accepted. I had always believed this deviance occurred in only a small fraction of the population and was not influenced by culture. I’d heard of the ancient Greeks but did not believe it until now. ","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 23:54"},{"nm":"Scott Lee","rs":"0","ms":"I can\'t help but see a correlation between this deplorable practice of bacha bazi and other social structures that are repressive to the homosexual natures of their people.  Suppress a peoples sexuality in one place it comes out in the most repulsive ways.  I found this Frontline report very difficult to watch but important to see.  Not only was it eye opening about yet another horror that humans put children though but gave some insight into some of our problems in the west.","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 23:51"},{"nm":"Zohra","rs":"0","ms":"This is really sad it made me cry. I feel bad for the little inocent kids who face these situations and are targeted to those so-called powerful people. There should be something done seriously to save the lives of the children in Afghanistan. I cannot imagine how a family can let their son go away from them just to bring money?? This is really disgusting. We need to raise awareness among the afghans first.","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 23:50"},{"nm":"YR Kamal","rs":"0","ms":"Thank you very much, Najibullah and Frontline, for exposing the sadistic and animalistic practice of “bacha Bazi” in Afghanistan.  This is an excellent example of &quot;investigative journalism&quot; and, indeed, television at its best.  Exposing the wrong doings of heartless, cruel, and despicable acts of seemingly humans is--and should be—one of the key social responsibilities of mass media.  Furthermore, our taxes should be used toward educating, informing, and elevating the lives of people rather than waging endless wars. Education is the key!\n\nKamal","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 23:47"},{"nm":"Nancy","rs":"0","ms":"I, too, was disturbed by this documentary and the subject matter. It always disturbs me, partly because it\'s such a horrible act, and partly because I can not for the life of me figure out why it happens. But, it happens all over the world. Businessmen &quot;vacation&quot; in Asia in order to have sex with children. Young toddlers, even. I know the thought of parents selling their children is sickening, but I feel sorry for them because they would probably starve if not for the money. I don\'t know. I wish there was an easy answer. I wish we could stop this once and for all. ","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 23:47"},{"nm":"Abdullah","rs":"0","ms":"I watched this program and I have a 18 month old daughter and it made me cry. I my heart gose out to those poor boys. We should be greatful to journalist, like Najibulah who took the time and risk of reporting these criminal acts of these monsters. Keep up the good work.","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 23:33"},{"nm":"A Different POV","rs":"0","ms":"Say what you wish, but after watching this I could feel nothing but deep envy for those boys. At least someone wanted them. Even though I appall the concept of older people exploiting and brainwashing younger people for their own needs (is this any different than any christian church? They even baptise them before they are able to talk!) I knew I was gay before the age of 8. Nobody wanted me around then, and here I am, 55 years old, and nobody wants me around now. I\'d give anything if someone would want me as much as one of those boys, for whatever reason. I grew up in poverty far below what you saw depicted on your screens in Afghanistan, right here in the good ol\' U.S. of A. If anyone today would wish I was born, for any reason, maybe it would have given me a reason for wanting to live. NONE of you have a clue.\n\n\n","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 23:30"},{"nm":"Terry","rs":"0","ms":"While this is terrible, it has been happening to women and girls all over the world for much, much longer. Practices of female rape, murder and child prostitution are especially heinous and widespread in the Middle East, Africa, Southeast Asia. Please do a story, PBS, on why half of the world\'s human population is STILL being treated like expendable garbage. Expose it to stop it. It is a shame that people turn their heads to it when the children are girls, and are shocked when it happens to boys. ","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 23:25"},{"nm":"GerriM","rs":"0","ms":"Someone wrote that this was OK in ancient Greece.  Please, this was never OK to rape and abuse children.","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 23:23"},{"nm":"sarah abdul","rs":"0","ms":"the U N shout step up and protect all poor young boys from abuse. I so sad and discasted by the war lourds that abuse the kids. bye the day they call them selfs good muslim where islam in htis Islam well never alow this. theis are sick minded men.","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 23:23"},{"nm":"constance","rs":"0","ms":"Heartbreaking story but I\'ve read about this before. Didn\'t anyone read or see the movie &quot;The Kite&quot; by Afghanistan writer and all the press about uproar in Afghanistan. If I remember correctly the producers had to relocate the young boy who played the abused boy. ","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 23:22"},{"nm":"R. Mott","rs":"0","ms":"Thank you FRONTLINE for your investigative reporting about the issue of the boys from Afghanistan. There is so much cruelty against children in this world. What disturbed me however, are some of the comments I read here; why are some viewer surprised & shocked over the ugliness and brutality towards children in this world. It happens every day. And sometimes right here in our country. There is a great need for education (I am not talking about academics). \nFRONTLINE is doing an excellent job!\n","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 23:22"},{"nm":"Klee","rs":"0","ms":"First thank you to all Producers and staff to do this story.  It\'s a wild wild world in Afghanistan.  Money and power can buy anything you can think of.  This should be stopped and the Kariz government like the other previous governments don\'t care.  When they put these criminals in jail - they will be released as soon as they pay the cash.  This is beyond sickness and I personally think this is a very serious disease people like Dastager has.  The Afghan government needs REAL security and policy in place.  If anyone should try &quot;Bach Bazi&quot; they should be hanged and other criminals will learn from it.  This is the only way it will be reduced in Afghanistan.  Any other method will be just a waste of time.  Trust me on this one.","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 23:20"},{"nm":"Gerri Michalska","rs":"0","ms":"This is so much more than saving one boy!  Please, everybody.  Frontline must do a lot more with this evidence. It is morally incumbent on them to pursue this with Afghan officials. They may need a witness protection program to arrest all of these corrupt officials.","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 23:19"},{"nm":"Tish","rs":"0","ms":"I turned on the tv and stumbled on this program.  As a mother of a small boy this is beyond disheartening to watch.  As sad as this is I am glad it aired so that hopefully something an be done.  Thank you PBS for shedding light this horrible abuse. ","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 23:18"},{"nm":"Donald Luke","rs":"0","ms":"A very cruel example of how totally corrupt and backward is the country of Afghanistan. These wealthy men are prohibited, by their religion, from using young girls and so young boys are used. This practice of using young boys is as old as the ancient Greeks. It nearly always involves wealthy men and the children of the poor. Afghanistan is so backward and doesn\'t seem interested in changing. I am so proud of the correspondent who filmed and narrated this report. This report absolutely needed to be aired\nin the West. This practice needs to be abolished and these powerful offending men put in prison.  Thank you Frontline for airing this report. ","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 23:18"},{"nm":"Ella Lee","rs":"0","ms":"Watching this program broke my heart. It was painful to watch and although there was a happy ending for Shafiq, the same cannot be said for the thousands of other boys who remain as slaves or have been murdered by these horrific men. Some viewers have commented on why we have troops there, this program should make us more supportive of our troops to save these boys. These men are hippocrites for calling themselves Muslims, beating and killing their wives and daughters in the name of \'honor\' yet taking part in such inhumane treatment of children. I believe child exploitation occurs anywhere where there is widespread poverty, conflict and lawlessness. The Afghan government should stop worrying about its prayer times and crackdown on this horrendous practice, how can they claim an Islamic state when this is going..this is against all of the teachings of Islam. Yet they murder women for showing their ankles. My heart goes out to the women and children of Afghanistan.","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 23:16"},{"nm":"John","rs":"0","ms":"Your documentary is sad and disturbing, and I feel bad for the boys that are subjected to this horror. However, 2 questions puzzle me: 1) Why does this only happen to boys and not girls? 2) If this is bad, I ask myself what happens to the 146 million children in the World that do not even have parents? I just wonder if those who believe in no abortion in any case ever even consider this last question?","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 23:15"},{"nm":"GerriM","rs":"0","ms":"Let\'s all of us get past being shocked and bothered and do something about it.\nWe ALL should contact the State Dept.(202-647 4000) and the Afghan Embassy (202.483.6410)to express outrage and that THIS MUST BE STOPPED!","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 23:12"},{"nm":"joyfulinoklahoma","rs":"0","ms":"Frantline,\n  I deeply appreciate your thorough investigative reporting each week especially when it brings into the glaring light of truth the corruption, inhumanity, and power-mad actions of people all over the world. Tonight was especially tragic to see such a commonly accepted and &quot;overlooked&quot; practice of sexual slavery in which perpetraters are not help responsible.  Add that to the wretched life and slavery of women who are unfortunate enough to live in Afghanistan.  While I am a part of a group of people who reguarly contribute to feeding, clothing and building schools for the poor people there, this kind of program is most discouraging. Poverty and Islam are always given as the underlying mistreatment of people, but I wonder if anything we are doing will truly CHANGE the heart of these people.  No one seems to care about the state of their own country--except the woman you interviewed at the last.  What a pity she is not the president of this beknighted country!  Perhaps justice could roll then.  How can we help people who do not seem to want to help themselves?  I\'m thankful for the wonderful military people and brave outspoike Afghan women who continue to try.  Thanks again for the excellent job you are doing--such as making this tragic practice known to the world.  (Name withheld)","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 23:11"},{"nm":"Rashida","rs":"0","ms":"My G-d!  Is human life so worthless that we sell children..our very own children for the sexual gratification of pedophiles?  And yes..it does happenin the US.  Just not on such a wide scale as this.  I will pray for the safety of those children, for the enlightenment of the parents minds, and for the perpetrators retribution.\nThank-you PBS for reminding me of the blessings our children in the US have and for reopening my mind to the horrors of children in general.  I hope to assist in the endeavor of protecting these little ones.\nBlessings to you and yours.","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 23:10"},{"nm":"marva bacon","rs":"0","ms":"pray pray pray that is why the world is blowing and creaking at the seams GOD is not please with the world and the MEN who rule","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 23:08"},{"nm":"Steve","rs":"0","ms":"Thgis is slavery even in name. These boys belong to these powerful men. The English, Canadians, Americans and any other civilized peoples have no business trying to help this country. Bring our troups home. Let the muslim countries surrounding Afganistan take care of these beasts. DO NOT BRING THIS TO THE USA ala Japan, Germany, Korea, Viet Nam, Bosnia or any of the other countries we have occupied.","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 23:07"},{"nm":"Ghazala","rs":"0","ms":"I was so deeply disturbed by this program, but more so by the fact that I can\'t tell myself &quot;It\'s just TV.&quot;  This actually takes place, and for the life of me I don\'t understand how those men would rather abuse the young boys of their friends and neighbors while hiding their women away.  How can they rationalize what they do?  Sick.","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 23:04"},{"nm":"jessie","rs":"0","ms":"it is almost unimaginable but if a country does not value the rights of women, they will not regard the innocent children.","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 23:04"},{"nm":"Bobby DeLeon and Family","rs":"0","ms":"On behalf of myself and my family, I want to convey my very sincere feelings of disgust and outrage for this practice. The thoughts of these men hurting other children, make me go insane with rage!! This is one of the few times in my life that I am at a loss for words, this is beyond comprehension and all forms of decency. What hypocracy that comes from the animals that prctice this, good Muslims by day, child predators by night. These guys have to go!!!","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 23:04"},{"nm":"afghan boy","rs":"0","ms":"i saw the program and went through the comments. some comments ask why afghans don\'t do anything about it. there is not a lot that we can do. at least that\'s the case for me. i\'m a teacher in Kabul, the capital. if anyone has a plan i would like to help. ","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 23:03"},{"nm":"JeanSC","rs":"0","ms":"The men who use boys in this Bacha Bazi practice are grotesque, homosexual perverts. I understand some people have different orientations, but the crime is that this is not between consenting adults. I also think that misogyny is basically homosexual. Well, we see that here, the misogyny doesn\'t exist as a stand-alone problem. What\'s going on here ecologically that there can be such a disgustingly perverted culture? And I wonder why our soldiers are fighting and dying for this place. I no longer understand how it\'s going to prevent another 9/11. My gut just wants to shoot these Bacha Bazi men on the spot and leave.","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 23:03"},{"nm":"PATRICE PRICE","rs":"0","ms":"I THOUGHT THE PROGRAM WAS INSIGHTFUL. MILITARY AND LAW ENFORCEMENT PREY UPON POOR YOUNG BOYS IN WAR TORN AREAS, WHERE ISLAMIC LAW FORBIDS CONTACT WITH WOMEN. FAMILIES ARE NOW AWARE OF STRANGERS WHO WISH TO PURCHASE OR TRAIN THEIR YOUNG BOYS IN EXCHANGE FOR A SMALL SUMS OF MONEY EACH MONTH. I HOPE THAT MORE PARENTS ARE AWARE OF WHAT COULD BE DONE TO THEIR CHILDREN SHOULD THEY ACCEPT OFFERS FROM STRANGERS LIKE THIS. THE MOST HEART WRENCHING PART IS WHEN THE FATHER OF THE SMALL BOY SAYS THAT &quot; HE IS ONLY A SMALL BOY AND HIS FEELINGS OF WHATS HAPPENING WILL PASS&quot;. THE EMOTIONAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL DAMAGE WILL PERSIST, HOWEVER, AS THESE BOYS BECOME ABUSERS THEMSELVES.","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 23:00"},{"nm":"Rebecca","rs":"0","ms":"This was incredibly moving and sad... and, as the interview with Hafiz\'s mother makes so clear, societies in which anyone who is not a wealthy male has no power... no rights... everyone suffers. When women have no power, the children suffer. Of course, not all men let the suffering of children go unnoticed, but when women are oppressed the abuse of children often follows.  I was struck by the number of times that Mr. Quraishi asked the men involved what theirs wives thought and said about ownership of these boys as sex slaves, and the way they acknowledged that whatever objections these women would (and probably) have are irrelevant. I was glad to see the efforts of Ms. Coomaraswamy, and hope that she can put a stop to this practice. ","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 23:00"},{"nm":"Vivian T.","rs":"0","ms":"My stomach turned and heart raced as I watched this documentary.  I feel sick to my stomach and want to only cry.  Feeling so helpless makes me hurt more.  All I want to know is WHAT CAN I DO TO HELP, WHAT CAN I DO TO STOP THIS, WHAT CAN I DO TO SAVE A CHILD.  Please tell me and I will do it.  I cannot turn a cheek and do nothing.  I WANT TO HELP.","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 22:59"},{"nm":"shehlla","rs":"0","ms":"I\'m still in tears.\nThank you FRONTLINE ..keep up the good work. ","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 22:59"},{"nm":"M","rs":"0","ms":"This practice alone justifies why we should be in Afghanistan and get them bastard Taliban.  Unbelievable! Their president Hamid Karzai needs to be held directly responsible for all this.  is he one of them sick men that do this as well?  WTF!!!!   ","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 22:58"},{"nm":"Shekaiba Bennett","rs":"0","ms":"As an Afghan-American and a mother of two boys, I am in tears that the people of my birth country who used to have pride and family value are now so poor and desperate that they sell their children to survive. Truly heartbreaking and scary for all children of Afghanistan. Please make a donation to Frontline. BRAVO to Najibullah Quraishi and Jamie Doran!!!!!","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 22:56"},{"nm":"Shebnem","rs":"0","ms":"Wow.  I was also flipping through channels and watched this program - OMG.  It breaks my heart to know that this is happening out there.  I hope you can stay connected with Shafique, is there a way we can help him too to be sure his family doesn\'t try to sell him again??","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 22:55"},{"nm":"om","rs":"0","ms":"I am speachless.","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 22:55"},{"nm":"Sue","rs":"0","ms":"This show was very interesting, but so very sad.  Rafique had no idea what he was in for.  I\'m sure the others did not know either.  They need advocates who will firmly commit to protecting them from such horrendous fates.  Thank you Frontline for showing us what goes on behind the scenes.","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 22:55"},{"nm":"John","rs":"0","ms":"I had a friend who served in the U.S. military in Afghanistan in 2006, and he told me of a story where a young boy was offered to soldiers as a &quot;thank you&quot; for helping a warlord.  The soldiers were disgusted and had to be restrained from physically hurting the man.  This was the first I heard of this abuse, and I was both shocked and saddened. Hopefully this story will help end this terrible abuse.  I can only assume that the reason there has been no government response is due to our government\'s hands-off policy towards criticizing any Muslim country.         ","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 22:54"},{"nm":"RIchard","rs":"0","ms":"I\'m hugging my son and reminding Him of the terrors that some wish to impose on youths.\nThis was an eye opening exposure of those who exploit children. I hope that the WORLD comes to their rescue.","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 22:44"},{"nm":"Brad Tronchetti","rs":"0","ms":"If we worked with those warlords to defeat the taliban, do we, as americans support institutionalized sodomy?  Were the taliban sodomites themselves, or true holy warriors?  If we give U.S. tax dollars to a foreign government that does not oppose this, are we just as culpable as they?  I have never supported deploying the U.S. military in Asia as a response to the 911 attacks.  When is this madness going to stop?  I don\'t want to go over there and be the one to tell them they have to stop having sex with boys.  However, as long as we are there I would support our troops ruthlessly stamping out the practice.  ","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 22:37"},{"nm":"Tia","rs":"0","ms":"That was an unbelievable program.  I hope your highlighting of this horrible practice will help to stop it.","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 22:37"},{"nm":"Emma","rs":"0","ms":"Thank you for sharing this information with the rest of the world. According to research, the concept of &quot;Bacha Bazi&quot; was left in the region by the ancient Greeks, who had a free culture of homesxual life style. But the concept does not work in today\'s world. So this act ought to be stopped by the international community, if not by the Afghan goverment.","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 22:34"},{"nm":"Al Gorrin","rs":"0","ms":"Before his death, Saddam Hussein said he did what needed to be done. To keep order he said. Given its a different country, how can democracy stand to prevail among the savagery of ideological ignorance. ","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 22:33"},{"nm":"Jeremy","rs":"0","ms":"You did a very good job in going into a dangerous situation in filming this, and I am glad for it. I think it is disgusting. I became aware of this practice when watching a independent foreign movie called &quot;The Kite Runner&quot; Excellent movie. Anyway, I am always disgusted in any country that allows this to happen, and/or the people that are part of this disgusting act of taking children away with no free will choice of their own. \n\nI would also love you guys to run a story about slavery and prostitution in America, specially the victims being children. If we can not abolish this from our own country of America, how can we help others when we are doing the same crime as them? I think so many people are very unaware, for it is so secret in our country, and it needs to have a big documentary, or even movie on this kind of thing. \n\nI have always wanted to be a film maker, in any aspect of it, and pretty much have my own equipment and do home movies and weddings and such. I use a small HD Canon Video camera, and use a iMac computer to edit and burn. Thanks","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 22:31"},{"nm":"Nick Barreto","rs":"0","ms":"A rivetting look into Afghanistan\'s sex-slave underworld which florishes under Islam law and is practiced by pedophile muslim men.  Such debauchery kills innocent boys and Afghan\'s future.  It was mentioned by the Dastager that in his opinion, basha bazi was &quot;re-born&quot; in Pakistan - Islam\'s radical and extremist safe haven.  If Allah were to once again clean our world of such perversive evil, He would surley start in Pakistan.","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 22:30"},{"nm":"Michael Roberto","rs":"0","ms":"I watched this show with my jaw wide open. I was in total shock that this practice is happening in these modern times. Why has the US and western governments not taken action to stop this. I would find it hard to believe that the US, UK, Canada, et al are not aware that this form of slavery is still taking place. The western world complained about the Talaban treating women and girls as property so why is this not getting the attention it should from our elected leaders since we are in this part of the world to bring &quot;freedom&quot; and &quot;democracy&quot;. Also, how worldwide is this problem? What other countries are aware of this situation in their own borders and do nothing to stop it? ","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 22:29"},{"nm":"Khobi","rs":"0","ms":"Thank you for this wonderfuly made and meanwhile extremely disguisting topic. It made me cry. \n\nI really appreciate your hard work, and I forwarded the link to my country\'s national TV and radio. Let\'s voice this problem and save these innocent children from the hands of these monsters. \n\nEverybody please spread this info, and let\'s pressure the corrupted government to act.\n\nthanks\n\nK.  ","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 22:27"},{"nm":"saji","rs":"0","ms":"When i first heard about \'bacha baazi\', i was very disturned to know such an act was happening in a country like Afghanistan. A country known to be Islamic.My heart goes out to those boys and im glad there are people like najibullah willing to put themselves in such dangerous situation to make a difference.","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 22:26"},{"nm":"Mark","rs":"0","ms":"It almost presents a great opportunity for those of us who can make a difference, to actually do so, without raising an &quot;eyebrow&quot; about it.\n\nThen factor in; \nReligious Hatred,\nEthnic Hatred,\nClass Hatred,\nNational Hatred,\nPolitical Party Hatred,\nFree or Pay Television Hatred,\n\n\nI can go further with the list to exemplify biases. \n\nI only ask why this program was delayed? \n\nWas it so the pedophiles caught on video were allowed to escape in order to; &quot;Produce this show&quot;?\n\nShame on your &quot;Frontline&quot;.\n","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 22:25"},{"nm":"Janet","rs":"0","ms":"I can\'t believe that the need of money make fathers put their children into such situations.   Is hunger the key factor for a human being to respond in that way with their little kids?  An experience like that will destroy the child for the rest of his life.  I\'m crying and praying for all the children that are involved.  ","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 22:25"},{"nm":"rebecca adams","rs":"0","ms":"Goes to show that sexual predators are everywhere to take advantage of the poor and especially children.  You could see those men getting off with sexual desire by their eyes.  Made me sick to my stomach.  These people had wives and children at home and still didn\'t care how they treated these young boys.  It gives them great joy and pleasure in what they are doing.  I felt so bad when your camera crew left that country knowing that this practice will keep going on.  Ruining the lives of these young children.  Made me feel like strapping on a gun and blowing those sick bastards in pieces.  I\'m a grandmother here in the states and we have these people hiding in our own neighborhoods.  What in the world can anyone do to help these boys?  I know that the adults there get treated bad and threaten each day by money and government officals.  These men live for this lifestyle.  YOu could just feel those young boys lives being ruined.  Disgusting.  These boys will never recover from such trauma.  Send this film to the United Nations and get this practice stopped as soon as possible.  Sexual predators are the shum of the earth.","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 22:23"},{"nm":"Donna Orr","rs":"0","ms":"I had no idea that a practice such as this was going on in this day and age.  I support all steps to prevent the use of boys in the service of powerful men, and hope that boys and girls are safe.","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 22:22"},{"nm":"Blackheart ","rs":"0","ms":"These are some sick S.O.B.s And we are fighting in this country, why?  ","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 22:22"},{"nm":"Kevin Kundert","rs":"0","ms":"I\'ve always been a pacifist, but the attitude and actions of part (and a dominant part) of Afghan society portrayed in this report bring me to question whether full nuclear disarmament really is such a good idea.  I\'m disgusted that I find myself feeling this way, but was equally disgusted by the practices going on there.  Maybe the Republicans of GW and others weren\'t so far off base after all.","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 22:20"},{"nm":"Dan Grella","rs":"0","ms":"Thankfully, this boy is safe and w/b monitored to ensure his safety.  I would like to see a program documenting the lives of abandoned foster children in the United States.  From what I understand, they are released into society at the age of 18.  Their options are limited and many either enter the military or enter into a world of crime.  I may be wrong, but there are statistics showing that nearly 40% of incarcerated women and men were former foster children.\n\nI\'m not aware of any programs that exist sponsoring those coming into society from foster care, but I would be interested in becoming a donor of such programs.  Thanks.","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 22:15"},{"nm":"Barry Price","rs":"0","ms":"Frontline continues it\'s cutting edge investigative reporting. It\'s the best on television. The networks seem to have abandoned reporting of such high caliber. I had no idea that this issue existed. It makes me wonder why we are in Afghanistan. I wonder why we are trying to help a nation that would allow this barbaric practice. Is there no rule of law in that country? I guess I am merely naive. I suspect that there are abusers of children throughout the the world in both so-called civilized nations as well as third world countries. Poverty can open doors for abuse anywhere on the planet. Frontline has brought this to the attention of good people everywhere. I only hope that we can bring this abominable practice to an end. Awareness is the first step. Frontline has done it\'s job.","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 22:14"},{"nm":"W. Turner","rs":"0","ms":"\nIt seems that the men in this documentary were either military or businessmen or in government, or some combination of these.  I wonder if this degrading practice is restricted to the more powerful or is it also practiced among the poor. How did it come to be accepted among the Moslems?  One man said he did it only if his wife approved???  Maybe the women agree to anything to keep from getting pregnant.  I am amazed that the men let themselves be filmed!!  \n\nAnyway, your programs are always troubling and thought provoking.  I wouldn\'t miss them.\n","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 22:14"},{"nm":"Aisha","rs":"0","ms":"Being a victim of sexualabuse myself as a girl, I think bacha bazi is sick!!!! To think of grown men raping children especially little boy\'s makes me want to throw up!!!! And as for the parents who sell their own to people, they are just as sick!!!! Children are so innocent, they don\'t desevere to have that kind of pain inflicted on them!!! It hurt\'s!!!! And the emotional scars of child hood rape leaves behind is so terrible that it ruins lives! How dare someone say,&quot;It happened to me, so I\'ll do it to someone else&quot;. Stop, Look and Think,before you are in your after life In Helll!!!! ","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 22:12"},{"nm":"arlyne shapiro","rs":"0","ms":"The program left me with a sense of powerlessness: how to destroy such a practice when the people of power in the government are the ones who perpetrate it?  If I felt powerless, how must the Afghani people feel about this?  How must it feel to be reduced to sacrificing a child in the interest of saving the rest of the family?  \nThe definitive solution to this situation, in part, would be to increase the economic security of the family, so that such a practice would not be necessary.  And, of course, this practice must be made to seem alien to the culture, rather than clandestinely accepted. ","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 22:11"},{"nm":"Shah","rs":"0","ms":"I would like to extend my thanks and appreciate the great job which Frantline did\nabout this BACHA BAZI MOVIE, IT was a real and true movie which not far from the reality, \ni hope the govenment authority should see and wake up after this movie, if they are still in a deep sleep it mean they are doing a big fraud with people and Govenment of afghanistan...Poepl like Dastager and rafi must be prosecuted, sentenced to dead as soon as possible...","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 22:10"},{"nm":"Rita","rs":"0","ms":"I told myself I would not watch this, because the subject was too disturbing. I ended up watching most of it and could not stop watching it.  I wanted to know who was helping if anyone and how. Im glad to hear that this was just recrnt as  Jan. 2010 as an investigation. I hope the investigaton AND exposure of such a horrid social sysstem continures. \nThank You.","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 22:07"},{"nm":"Armene Margosian","rs":"0","ms":"This program was fascinating and very well made.  The issue of child sexual exploitation is of grave concern for everyone everywhere.  My heart goes out to these young victims.  There needs to be more outcry against the Bacha Bazi.  It was so courageous of the news journalist to follow this story within Afghanistan.  If there is anything I can do to help to stop child sexual abuse, please contact me.  I will do whatever I can to stop abuse anywhere in the world.  I was sexually abused as a child, and I know the long term effects.  We as human beings must stop the cycle of violence.","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 22:06"},{"nm":"Saad","rs":"0","ms":"Excellent work. We should do more to raise awareness about this problem and pressure afghan government to take action against the guilty.","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 22:03"},{"nm":"A. Skaggs","rs":"0","ms":"I\'m outraged, and sad after seeing this report, as well as confused, I still can\'t understand how a country who is predominatly Muslim, who base their laws according to the Quran, can justify and allow such horrific acts against boys, as well all the inequalities against females, and repeatdly turn a blind eye.  There are no excuses!","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 22:03"},{"nm":"Lisa D","rs":"0","ms":"What a sad story...i am very proud of those journalists for bringing this story out in the open. They deserve recognition. It is very discouraging to think that our soldiers are there, fighting to improve the quality of life of Afghans and to see that kind of mentality in action in 2010. I think Afghanistan will never change. Those people called themselves muslims... look at how they treat their own boys. Calling those men animals would be a disgrace to the animal kingdom. ","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 22:01"},{"nm":"Sandi Lusk","rs":"0","ms":"This is one of the most horrifying things I have seen. This is a country we are pouring troops and dollars into to protect? Who will protect them from themselves?","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 22:00"},{"nm":"Muslim","rs":"0","ms":"The Taliban were formed because Afghanistan was rife with warlord fighting against warlord. The Taliban, Arabic word meaning students, that\'s what they were students who became infuriated that the country was left the way it was. So they sought to establish Islamic law(When you hear rule of law, know that Islamic law is rule of law, Islamic law) in the nation. In order to do that, they had to fight warlords, some of whom were supporting the narcotics industry, and put them out of business. The report tonight was about a trade which the promotion claimed was banned by the Taliban, banned for a reason, it violated shari\'ah law. \n Now that there is democracy, the procedures of prosecution, incarceration, trial are more likely to generate beauracracy. If the Taliban system worked, it should be implemented, according to Shari\'ah law.  ","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 22:00"},{"nm":"Mary Eva","rs":"0","ms":"Afghanistan boggles my mind.  Sorry, but I grapple with a country where the value of human life is so low.  Women are no more than property.  Boys and girls, a commodity.  The reasoning always works out in favour of men who are not held accountable for their own actions in terms of sexuality, but might be slaughtered because they stole a chicken from their neighbour.   I don\'t know whether it\'s worth sacrificing the lives of so many Canadian, American etc. soldiers.  What are we fighting for?  I don\'t want to preserve much of what I see of Afghani culture.  Please explain!   Help me understand more.   Where do we start if the war ever ends?  ","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 21:58"},{"nm":"MT","rs":"0","ms":"Thanks Frontline for bringing this information to us. I had no idea such a practice was taking place. I believe the U.S. government has a duty to work with the government to put teeth into the laws and see to it that those responsible for making boys sex slaves that they be severely punished. These boys are citizens of the future Afghanistan.","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 21:57"},{"nm":"Ron Skinner","rs":"0","ms":"This report leaves me devastated, in tears.  These boys can no more recover their childhood than I can mine.  I am a 70 year old man and my heart breaks for these boys.  This program MUST be seen and shown as widely as it can be.","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 21:57"},{"nm":"Robin ","rs":"0","ms":"This was so disturbing. I am at a loss for words and simply can not understand this practice at all.  It is impossible for me not to judge this custom.  The women have been surpressed to the point that they don\'t even speak up for themselves or their children.  Why would men want to do this to their future leaders and kinsmen?  And what would happen if a wealthy businessman wanted one of Dagstar\'s (sp) sons.","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 21:57"},{"nm":"Whitney Stafford","rs":"0","ms":"Dear Frontline,\nI was flipping channels and landed on your program about the dancing boys of Afghanistan. How disheartening and terrible this story is, and although it is a great ending that Sherique came home, you have to wonder about the other boys who are being sold. What was most shocking to me was that the government knows this is going on but doesn\'t do much to stop it. Thank you for doing this story. Maybe with information there can be a change in Afghanistan to end this abominable practice.\nSincerely,\nWhitney","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 21:56"},{"nm":"mike george","rs":"0","ms":"what an incredible and disturbing story---one would think the old religous ones would be up in arms--very disturbing","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 21:55"},{"nm":"Eddie","rs":"0","ms":"I can not believe what I saw and how all these powerful people in the law inforcement are getting away with that. That\'s suppose to be a &quot;Muslim&quot; country where thing like this do not happen. It appears that Majority of those Muslims are wearing Masks. Please Have our U.S Government and President Obama see this and also notify Oprah Winfry. May God put a stop to this sickness. This is a Great reason to go to war with a county. ","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 21:55"},{"nm":"Thankful viewer","rs":"0","ms":"Thank you, Frontline, for bringing us this story. Such incredible work.","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 21:54"},{"nm":"Daniel Ojalvo","rs":"0","ms":"Hi,\n\nAs a survivor of sexual abuse, I want to thank you for exposing this practice. I was blessed because, even though I was abused, it was only for a short time and I had a loving, supportive family. I\'m able to graduate from college this year with a B.A. and a B.S. majoring in Political Science, Mathematics, and Computer Science and I hope to help others achieve that as well. Thank you so much for what you are doing. Sexual violence is not simply a women\'s issue. Survivors include men, women, and everyone else on the gender spectrum and it\'s important to allow their voices to be heard. I will be contributing to help Shafiq and I encourage everyone else to as well. I would also encourage everyone to advocate for not only punishing offenders, but for researching psychological treatment and providing services internationally for survivors of all genders.\n\nThank you,\n\nDaniel Ojalvo","pt":"Apr 20, 2010 20:24"}]}); });