Shukria. "It would be great if this were abolished. It would be good for us poor and miserable women." The problem is figuring out how. Inside Kandahar's homes, there is no one to stop the attacks. "Violence is tolerated or condoned within the family and community, within traditional and religious leadership circles as well as the formal and informal justice systems," said a report written by the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights earlier this year. Sakina, an 18-year-old mother of two from the rural district west of Kandahar city, was forced into marriage five years ago. The high bride price that her in-laws paid for her - more than $10,000 - seems to have given them licence to abuse her. "My mother cries for me. My father doesn't care. If he cared, why would he have given me to them?" Asked what her options are, Sakina answered, with malaise: "I haven't thought about what to do or what not to do." Despite Ms. Hamidi's concerns, officials with the Department of Women's Affairs in Kandahar have been trying to forge progress on the shelter issue. Earlier this year, they approached Canadian aid workers in Kandahar for help with their plans, said Karen Christie, a senior development officer for the Canadian International Development Agency who recently ended a year-long posting in Kandahar. "There is no question that there is a need," Ms. Christie said, adding that she struggled with her own concerns about the problem. If women flocked to a