Sex Trade Thrives In Afghanistan

Chinese Prostitutes Trafficked To Afghanistan To Cater To Foreigners

(AP)  A string of lights spells out the name of the bar in the back of the basement in capital letters, PARADISE. A dozen Chinese women in skintight miniskirts and halter tops flit around clusters of beefy Western men and flirt in broken English.

Now and then, a man and woman climb the stairs to the upper reaches of the house, where Paradise does its real business.

Paradise is a brothel in an unmarked residential compound in an upscale Kabul neighborhood where prostitutes from China cater to Western men. Since the U.S.-led invasion in 2001, thousands of Westerners working for security firms, companies and aid groups have poured into Afghanistan. Not long after came Chinese prostitutes, in some cases trafficked into the country.

The International Organization for Migration helped 96 Chinese women who were deported in 2006. They told IOM they were deceived by a travel agency in China and promised employment in a restaurant for US$300 a month. But when they arrived, they said, the Chinese restaurant owner denied them salary and forced them to provide sexual services by night.

An IOM staffer said one Chinese woman thought she was going to work in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and had no idea she had instead landed in Kabul.

Afghan officials deny these claims.

"They come here of their own will. They want to do business here. Police caught them red-handed," said Gen. Ali Shah Paktiawal, head of Kabul's criminal investigations.

In recent years, Afghan authorities have carried out a campaign against moral corruption, raiding brothels fronting as restaurants and deporting the Chinese prostitutes in front of TV cameras. Last year in Kabul, 180 female prostitutes were arrested - 154 "foreigners" and 26 Afghans, Paktiawal said. He would not give the nationalities of the foreign prostitutes, but many raids in recent years have been at Chinese restaurants.

Many Afghans blame prostitution on immoral Chinese women and Western men and say it is un-Islamic. The highly publicized crackdown on Chinese prostitutes has led to rampant harassment of women of East Asian origin. Police often single out Asian women in spot checks on Kabul's streets.

In Paradise, the women speak Chinese among themselves. One says she is from a town outside Beijing.

The brothel has two identical doors in the back of the building. One leads down to the well-stocked basement bar where the women mingle with potential clients. The other leads up to the main part of the house, where every nook and cranny that can be closed off has a spartan twin bed mattress with no sheets.

A Pussycat Dolls pop song pumps on the speakers, "Don't cha wish your girlfriend was hot like me?" One man rubs the belly of a girl in a gauzy pink miniskirt.

A frequent customer at the bar says it costs US$70 to take a woman upstairs and US$150 to have her company for the night.

[dobbershome]

I think Afgan women are really beautiful.

[minnick8-2009]

The reason prostitution is illegal in America is because marriage rates would drop. So then there would be a bunch of unhappy women unable to corner some man into marriage because he could get what he wants elsewhere.

Posted by cornbiker

Cornbiker, you sound bitter. I remember when a very popular phrase was, "Why buy the cow when the milk is free." Here is another I like even better, "Why buy the whole pig just to get a little sausage?"

[dobbershome]

Got to get some no matter where you are. There just providing a much needed service.

[petro49l]

United States Congress should legally recognize prostitution. Morality is an opinion. Whatever happened to separation of Church and State? American Celibates do not have the right to dictate the law. Their way of life is a choice. Monasticism has its virtues, but it is not for everyone.

[patriot12436]

Be fair now. Laura realizes her time as first lady is about up. She has to be looking for new employment prospects. Afterall even she realizes georgie won''t be around to support her much longer.

[watcher269-2009]

Ahh, so that''s why Laura Bush spent some time in Afghanistan recently.

[patriot12436]

oneworldUSA
Sadly they really do not have any other choices. Life in China is very poor for the majority. I have always said i would do whaever it takes to feed my family but have not been put in that situation. Unfortunately a lot of these young ladies have been.

[oneworldusa]

Posted by patriot12436 at 10:37 PM : Jun 15, 2008

-I understand where you''re coming from. It''s something that probably exists to some extent nearly everywhere. The restaurant, I got that from the article. Still, many times what seems to be too good to be true is usually is just that, and we have to teach our kids that among many other life lessons.

[patriot12436]

oneworldusa
This sort of thing happens to American women also. They are promised singing engagements in clubs in Asia, when they arrive they take their passports from them so they cannot leave and force them into prostitution. You say they leave for a job in a resturant. Many do, because it is the best job they can hope for. When they come from a poor family they do not get a lot of education and earning a living in their country is very hard. Their govt doesn''t have social welfare programs to help them if they have no food. It can be a very hard life with these jobs looking like a once in a life time opportunity to them to help feed their families.

[oneworldusa]

If they choose to allow this in their own countries, so be it. Anyone willing to travel to another country for a ''restaurant'' job with someone they don''t know, is asking for trouble of some kind. It may not be moral, but this is not news.

[feelfree4u]

U.S.-based war profiteers and mercenaries like Dyncorp are reported to have a long history of *** worker trafficking, in the various parts of the world where they are/have been active.

The freedom to become a prostitute, in an effort to feed your impoverished, war-wracked family, is one of the many freedoms that our efforts in Afghanistan and Iraq have delivered to the women in those countries.

[rushlimpdrug]

"Afghanistan is one of the world''s most conservative countries, yet its *** trade appears to be thriving."

Well, I don''t beleive it.

I will have to go and do my own investigating.

[frankbowers]

I see some are slaming McCain I hate to say it but i am a democrat tht will be voting mostly likely for McCain. As for barack he denies it but he is a muslim and they will turn the country into another Iraq or Iran or possible Afghanistan. I have been in Iraq when I was a military person Iwas about 19 at the time and the year was ''58 and I realized then that the muslims were never to be trusted and so i do not trust the muslim barack and therefore I will be voting for McCain our of fear of what the other frigginniger might do to us an at 70 I do not have much time left but I do not wnat to go down the muslim road or islamic one, that thought just scares the heck out of me.
Frank Bowers.

[patriot12436]

toldyouso12
Your right, a lot of the girls in the orient are sold into *** slavery by their own fathers. I do not think it is right but it does happen. I first saw it in the Philippines. The families were poor so the fathers would sell the daughters and take the money and the girls would send money home every month to help support the families. I understand their reasoning. If they didn''t the whole family would starve to death. These are poor uneducated people. What i didn''t like was the girl was never accepted in the family again for dishonoring the family by being a prostitute. I think that concept was hypocritical of the father, maybe of the culture.

[patriot12436]

toldyouso12
Just finished reading your posts. My hat is off to you and i have a new respect for you. I have four children all grown. My oldest was hurt on duty with army rangers and is 100% dsabled vet. He finished law school second in his class, my oldest daughter (afopted lives in Bishkek, Krgyzstan. She is married and i have twoo beautiful grandchildren from her. She graduated college in the states with honors and is an executive with world bank. She travels a lot for them. My youngest daughter enlisted in the army and just was medically evaced fron Iraq. She expects top be medically discharged later this year. She is currently taking online courses towards her degree. My youngest son is preparing to join army rangers against my advice since i do not believe in war as a rule and do not support the war in Iraq. I do support our troops always. I am a 100% disabled Vietnam vet myself. I also graduated college with a 3.8 gpa. I could have had a 4.0 but thought attending gym classes was a waste of time for a degre so only went enough to obtain a c in those required classes. I agree with what you are saying about candy, but giving a child a candy bar a couple of times a month i don''t think will do much damage. My intention was to show the local people that not all Americans are bad. I now know my neighbors, i listen and talk to them ad respect their culture. I believe i am respected in my neighborhood.

[trbundro1277]

TBrunno,
Are you the one from last night that is moving to Taiwan? Are you there now? I hope you have already left
Posted by Minnick8 at 04:42 PM : Jun 15, 2008
Its TR Bundro,
You shouldn''t try to make fun of my name. I want to move to Indonesia. I can''t leave because I have to sell my house first and pay of debt! If idiot mccain is elected, i''ll never have enough money to move. Mccain wants to let over 12 million illegals get amnesty! How can you idiots vote for that clown?

[patriot12436]

toldyouso and mimmick8
Would like to add a comment. I am in Thailand and it is known for *** tours for children. The police here have really been cracking down, arresting child miolestors, going after porn on the internet. I have to say they are doing an impressive job. Also about prostitution in Nevad. I have done some research about it since it is legal in parts of the state. It is well regulated by the state and the girls have never caught a disease or been attacked while working under state supervision. Not mention they make a lot of money and the state collects a lot of revenue from it. As for the ladies not invesing their money properly , well i think that is on them. I researched the business with he idea of opening a brothel . The ladies make a lot and so do the owners of the brothel.

[watcher269-2009]

Why do you think that Bushit and Cheney make so many secret trips there? DUH!!!

[minnick8-2009]

TBrunno,

Are you the one from last night that is moving to Taiwan? Are you there now? I hope you have already left.

[minnick8-2009]

the ol'''' inner ***** is never too far from the surface!! LMAO

Posted by toldyouso12

Hahaha, I''ve been out for awhile finishing a dress for one of my grand daughters. I just came back in and noticed your, "B * t c h," remark. I have to agree. I''ve been called that on more than one occasion, and I always say, "Thank you! That is the nicest thing anyone has said all day."