section_path: Celebration and status worldwide/Asia/Afghanistan
section_name: Afghanistan
paragraph_text: Afghanistan
  
  In pre- Taliban years, Koch-e-Gul-Faroushi ('Flower Street') in downtown Kabul used to be adorned with innovative flower arrangements, to attract the Valentine's Day-celebrating youth. In the Afghan tradition, love is often expressed through poetry. A new generation of budding poets such as Ramin Mazhar and Mahtab Sahel express themselves through poetry, using Valentine's Day as a theme to voice concerns about the erosion of freedoms. In their political commentary, they defy fear by saying "I kiss you amid the Taliban".
  
  In pre- Taliban years, Koch-e-Gul-Faroushi ('Flower Street') in downtown Kabul used to be adorned with innovative flower arrangements, to attract the Valentine's Day-celebrating youth. In the Afghan tradition, love is often expressed through poetry. A new generation of budding poets such as Ramin Mazhar and Mahtab Sahel express themselves through poetry, using Valentine's Day as a theme to voice concerns about the erosion of freedoms. In their political commentary, they defy fear by saying "I kiss you amid the Taliban".