Female Afghan cops say fellow officers rape them

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Omar Sobhani / ReutersAfghan policewomen prepare to fire during a shooting exercise at a range at the Afghan National Police Academy in Kabul Dec. 9.

Follow @NBCNewsWorld  By Amie Ferris-Rotman, ReutersKABUL - Shortly after Friba joined the Afghan National Police, she gave herself the nickname "dragon" and vowed to bring law and order to her tormented homeland.

Five years later, she is tired of rebuffing the intercourseual advances of male colleagues, worries the budget for the female force will shrink and fears the government will abandon them.

Women in the police force were held up as a showcase for Afghan-Western efforts to promote rights in the new Afghanistan, born from the optimism that swept the country after the ouster of the Taliban in 2001.

Images of gun-wielding Afghan policewomen have been broadcast across the globe, even inspiring a television program popular with young Afghan women.

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