Finalist
Paula Bronstein
Freelance for Getty Images
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"Between Life and War: The Struggles of Afghan Women"
KABUL, AFGHANISTAN -SEPTEMBER 19 : Gulpari, 12, a heroin addict is dazed after smoking heroin along with her brother, Zaher September 19 , 2007 in Kabul, Afghanistan. Her mother, Sabera, a widow, has been smoking for 4 years since she lost her husband. Gulpari and Zaher, 14, began 2 years ago after watching their mother. The average daily cost is around $3.00 US or 150 Afghan currency. With around 35,000 NATO troops in Afghanistan the drug trade has increased. Opium cultivation has reached record levels for the second straight year, according to the United Nations report relased on Monday. In additon, Afghanistan is still producing 93 percent of the world's opium, up from 92 perfent last year. According to the U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) the opium production in 2006 increased 57 percent from 2005 with an additional 17% jump in 2007. The increase is despite a $600 million counternarcotics effort by the USA. In the Taliban-held areas of the south farmers are encouraged to grow opium.
(Photo Paula Bronstein/Getty Images)
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