By Tahir Qadiry
MAZAR-I-SHARIF, Afghanistan (Reuters) - When 19-year-oldFatima returned to her home in northern Afghanistan after yearsas a refugee in Iran, she struggled desperately to earn aliving.
She briefly found work with an NGO, before being let go,and then spent two months learning how to weave carpets, beforethe factory shut down and she was again out on the streets ofMazar-i-Sharif.
Determined to support her mother, two sisters and youngbrother, she turned to a profession that has long beenpractised the world over but remains deeply suppressed inconservative Afghanistan -- prostitution.
"I had no other way but prostitution," says the prettyteenager, dressed in tight blue jeans with a black veil pulledloosely over her head.
"I get up early in the morning and wander around the city,"she said, at first reluctant to discuss her work. "My customersstop me and give me a lift and then we talk about the price,"she explains, her face coated in make-up.
Sometimes charging $50 a time, her work is illegal andwould bring shame on her family if discovered, but it providesa lifeline she otherwise could not have imagined.
And there is anecdotal evidence, supported by doctorsconcerned about the potential for the spread of HIV and AIDS,that more and more young women across northern regions ofAfghanistan are turning to sex work to escape grinding poverty.
Mohammad Khalid, a doctor who runs an AIDS awareness clinicin Mazar-i-Sharif, says he has seen a rise in infections,although from a very low base, and fears that women working inprostitution are reluctant to come forward to be tested.
"Unfortunately the public is not aware of the risk of HIVinfection," he says. "It is very dangerous and theseprostitutes will be a major factor in spreading it."
FEW OPTIONS
Nasrin, a stylish 24-year-old dressed in a white burqa butwearing fashionable jeans underneath, works as a prostitute inKunduz, to the east of Mazar-i-Sharif.
She says she was urged by her mother to take up the work asthere was no other way for the family to earn a living.
"My father died in the civil war, my mum was a widow and Idid not know what she did for work," Nasrin explained. "Later Iunderstood she was a prostitute. One day she encouraged me tohave sex with a man who came to our house."
Nasrin said she was ashamed, but felt she had no choice. "Ireally wanted to be a good lady and live with my husband, butnow everyone sees me as a prostitute," she said. "My life isspoiled," she sobbed.
Others are more satisfied with their work, even if theyacknowledge it means a normal life is out of the question.
"I am happy with what I am doing," says Nazanin, 23, along-time prostitute in Mazar-i-Sharif who charges $15 (7.7pounds) a time.
"On the other hand, I have had enough of this. I reallywant to live like the others do. But who will marry me?" sheasked. While Afghanistan's strict Islamic law forbidsprostitution, there are signs the work is taking formal root,with brothels operating in some cities and pimps managingprostitutes. Bribes take care of unwanted police attention.
"I have had my brothel for at least five years," explaineda pimp in one northern provincial city, speaking on conditionof anonymity. "I have 10 girls here and my customers aretrustworthy."
Asked how he operates under Islamic law, he replied: "Mybrothel is not in the open. It is something only my customersknow about. Once police took notice of what I was doing but Ipaid them a bribe."
SEX BEFORE MARRIAGE
For clients, paying for sex gives them easy access to womenthat they otherwise would not be able to meet or could onlyhave contact with if they were married -- a costly exercise initself.
"I have sex at least once a week with one of theseprostitutes," said Zilgy, a 25-year-old visiting a brothel inMazar-i-Sharif. "I am their regular customer now. I have theirtelephone numbers and invite them to many places."
Ahmad Jamshid, aged 27, says he has sex with prostitutesbecause he cannot afford a wife.
"I am a shopkeeper. If I want to marry a girl, I must haveat least $20,000 to marry her. Having sex with a prostitute isthe only way that can I meet my expectations," he said.
Women's rights workers are concerned about what they see asa rising tide in sex work but believe it will inevitablycontinue unless the government does something to tacklepoverty.
Malalai Usmani, head of Balkh, a women's rightsorganization, says more awareness in the public is needed.
"Because of poverty, women are doing this," she said. "Itis all because of poverty. The government and otherorganizations should launch awareness programmes to let thesewomen know about the harm caused by prostitution."
Security chiefs and religious leaders are also keen to showthat they are clamping down on the world's oldest profession,but they lay the blame squarely on the sex worker, not thecustomers.
"Prostitution is completely illegal in Islam," said QariAziz, a prayer leader in Mazar-i-Sharif. "Those practicing itmust be punished very harshly so that they will never do itagain."
(Editing by Megan Goldin)
