Central and South Asia

Kawk fighting in Kabul

By Michael Rass ⋅ July 3, 2009 ⋅ Post a comment

With all the military and militant activity in Afghanistan, it’s easy to forget that the country is still – well – a country. As much as possible, people go about their business as they’ve always done. Here’s an example. Weekends in the capital, Kabul, begin on Fridays. That’s when people attend the mosque and spend time with their families. But there’s another favorite pastime of Kabulis – kawk fighting. The World’s Aaron Schachter took a closer look:

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Schachter: The sport of kawk fighting starts here, at Kabul’s bird market. It’s a narrow alley packed with cages, feed stores and all sorts of birds: chicks, pigeons, colorful parrots and kawks. A man named Mirwas pulls a kawk from under his jacket. And a wad of hundred dollar bills he says he’ll bet anyone foolish enough to challenge his bird.

“Some of these birds are strong like Hulk Hogan. They could fight anyone.”

Schachter: These birds seem more Pee Wee Herman than Hulk Hogan. Yet even in this desperately poor country, some pay up to $5,000 for “fierce” kawk fighters.

Schachter: Hundreds of men gather each Friday in Shari Now Park and form a large circle for the fighting kawks. Bookies wander around taking bets. Two referees carry cages, which they occasionally drop on the birds to separate them; two other guys sprinkle THE BIRDS with water, two others fan them with small rugs. It’s like sending boxers to their corners.

Schachter: Now at this point, you probably want to know what kind of bird a kawk is. Here’s a hint.

Song: On the second day of Christmas my true love gave to me…

Schachter: You got it.

Song: …and a partridge in a pear tree.

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Schachter: Yup, a kawk is a partridge. I’d never actually seen one before, but they’re not what you’d call big, muscular birds. And so the fights are more ballet than battle. The birds peck at each other and they twine their necks as if trying to hold a small, delicate egg between them: there’s no clawing, no biting off the other guy’s ear, if I had one.

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Schachter: That’s the end?
Man: When one tries to run away and goes to another cage that means he’s lost.
Schachter: But can you tell when one wins and one loses?
Man: Whichever stops fighting, that means he’s lost.
Schachter: It doesn’t seem like much of a fight.
Man: Other fight, maybe you’ll understand which one runs away and which one is a winner.
Schachter: Other fights are more exciting.
Man: Yeah, yeah, yeah…

Schachter: And sure enough the next fight is… just as sedate. Though it was quicker and it was easier to figure out which bird ran away. Now, I’m not advocating bloodletting – let’s get that straight – but you’d think a sport that people spend so much money on might be, well, more exciting. But Afghans tell me that kawk fighting is just the tip of the iceberg. People here will bet on – any two animals they can: rooster and dog fighting are the most popular. But on this warm, lazy Friday afternoon, it’s the kawks that draw people out.

For The World, I’m Aaron Schachter, Kabul.

More kawk fighting pictures from Kabul

Discussion

3 comments for “Kawk fighting in Kabul”

  • David Dyer

    Now here is an animal sport that would seem to be something the PETA people could almost condone.

  • Kevin Flynn

    I continue to be disappointed at the way the media portrays these stories about animal abuse. PRI has treated it as a quaint cultural curiosity, and does not even consider mounting an analysis of the ethics of this practice. If this were a story about forced marriage, or other abuses against women or some other minority, surely they would present opposing opinions that question or challenge the morality of this practice of forcing animals to fight each other, and for profit. But by NOT doing so, I guess we can assume that PRI finds nothing morally objectionable about it. Tells me as much about the culture of PRI as it does the culture of Afghanistan, and it ain’t good.

  • http://ingulfed.com/ A

    I’ve seen this firsthand — it never looked like the kawk were in much danger of harming each other.  But, as was mentioned, this is a but a small piece of the animal combat circles. Still, every fighting animal is someone’s prized possession — there is at least some motivation to keep them safe.