PRIDE AND PREJUDICE

Car owners and sales people in Afghanistan are struggling to come to terms with the changing whims of personal taste in this conservative country. Car sales are growing fast, however customers are now averse to buying vehicles with the number 39 in the licence plate. The number has been linked to a notorious figure in iran's criminal underworld, known for his expensive car and which bears the number 39. The man is now nicknamed number 39 and as his notoriety has grown, so drivers in afghanistan's capital Ka
March 1, 2012 Read time: 1 min
Car owners and sales people in Afghanistan are struggling to come to terms with the changing whims of personal taste in this conservative country. Car sales are growing fast, however customers are now averse to buying vehicles with the number 39 in the licence plate. The number has been linked to a notorious figure in iran's criminal underworld, known for his expensive car and which bears the number 39. The man is now nicknamed number 39 and as his notoriety has grown, so drivers in afghanistan's capital Kabul have been rushing to divest themselves of any vehicle bearing the same number. Car salesmen have been unable to sell vehicles bearing the number 39, despite dropping the price. Officials are able to sell new replacement licence plates to owners of vehicles bearing the offending number 39.

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