In 2022 a total 4,253 cases of child abuse were reported, half of them were sexual abuse.[13][24] In 2023, the total number of abuse victims was 2,227, more than half among them, about 54%, were girls.[13][24][25] About 164 cases of sexual abuse, 984 abductions, 201 missing children and 14 child marriage cases were reported in the same year.[26]
In a report named cruel numbers compiled by Sahil an NGO working in Pakistan on child protection and special focus on sexual abuse,[23][26] a total number of 53 pornographic cases[26] were reported in an investigation by the Federal Investigation Agency, which was tracking activities on the dark web.[13][27][23]
In Sindh, the highest (483) number of cases of child abuse were reported,[13] the second highest number of cases (233) were reported in Punjab.[13][24][25]Poverty and inflation is a big factor in people sending their children to work, or selling them to people who use them as labor, sex slaves. A major obstacle is that child abuse has become common in Pakistan.[28]
As of 2023, at least over 18 per cent of girls and 4 per cent of boys in Pakistan were found to be married before the age of 18 and prevention of such marriages is complicated by a "dual legal regime" and by societal trends of forced conversions of girls from religious minorities.[32][33]
In 2020, several cases of sexual abuse in madrassas were documented, including the case of 8-year-old Yaous in Mansehra, who was assaulted for two days straight by the cleric Qari Shamsuddin until he fell sick and was hospitalized. The cleric was later sentenced to 16.5 years imprisonment. But despite the arrest, fellow clerics and worshippers at the Madrassah-e-Taleem-ul-Quran Mosque, where the assault and abuse took place, continued to dispute the charges.[32][38]
The hold of religious superstition in the society has also received blame for widespread abuse. Important social issues like pedophilia are still not widely criticized by prominent Muslim comparative theologians who find a wide following in Pakistan like Dr. Zakir Naik, who is currently living in Malaysia. One notable incident happened in early October 2024 when Dr. Zakir, while addressing a crowd in an event in Karachi, criticized a Pashtun girl and refused to address her question on widespread pedophilia in conservative communities like the one in Lakki Marwat where she hailed from and why the Ullema refused to address the problem. He later doubled down and even sought an apology from the girl and maintained that her question was contradictory.[39][40]
Sexual abuse cases
In August 2023, Fatima Phuriro,[41] a minor girl was allegedly brutally tortured, raped in a Haweli of Pir's of Ranipur.[42][43][44][45][46][47][48][49][50][41] Postmortem report confirmed the torture and rape.[51] According to a statement by the lawyer of Fatima Phuriro, Pir Asad Shah Jilani was allegedly selling the video of the sexually abuse on the Dark web.[13] Additionally, 7 captives, including women and girls, trapped in Asad Shah's mansion, were recovered by the Police.[52][48]
Asad shah wife, Hina Shah, has also been nominated as co-accused in the FIR lodged by Fatima’s mother.[53]
On January 9, 2018, minor girl Zainab Ansari was raped and murdered in her hometown Kasur, Pakistan.[54][55] In 2019, Nine-year-old Faizan Muhammad was raped and murdered in Kasur, Pakistan.[56]
