6,754 women abducted in the first half of 2021 [Punjab, Pakistan]

[Reported as seen]

Pakistan is infamous for the crimes against its native minorities, especially, those belonging to the Hindu community. The Muslim community has this poisonous will to make their community stronger with Hindu women. Hence, they are abducted, forcefully converted, threatened and later their rapists marry them and give them Islamic names, wiping their existence from the pages of history. The methods that these Jihadists use are diverse but the nature of it remains the same across the globe: conversion and murder.

Ashiknaz Khokhar, a human rights activist has noted that the kidnapping of minor girls from religious minorities is a common occurrence in Pakistan. She has said that over 1,000 girls minorities are forcefully converted to Islam every year in Pakistan.

She also said that the government of Pakistan is not taking the menace seriously. According to media reports, Khokhar said, “The (Pakistan) government is not taking this issue seriously and parliament recently refused to pass the bill on forced conversion”. Saying that over 1,000 minority girls are abducted every year, she said that there was a dire need for a specific law to protect minority girls in Pakistan.

The latest report has stated that around 6,754 women were kidnapped in the country’s Punjab province in the first half of 2021. Out of those, 1,890 women were raped, 3,721 were tortured and 752 children were raped. The fresh report came on 30 August after the board of Trustees of Transparency International Pakistan (TIP) flagged its concerns over the increasing attacks on women in the country.

These perpetrators enjoy court sanctions, support from the influential and affluent section of the society, and patronage from political leaders.

The Commission in the 2019 report found that the districts of Ghotki and Daharki were among the most affected by the scourge of rampant conversions because they were business-oriented towns and were, therefore, accessible to trade routes and networks of madrassas. As a consequence, there was considerable political influence in these districts, which the victims said played a part in normalizing and legitimizing the unceasing incidents of abductions and conversions of Hindu girls in the region.

The Hindus are their target and they maintain the audacity due to political support due to the state’s economic interest in the local areas. The businesses of Hindus are also targeted if they went against Muslim residents for the kidnapping and conversion of their daughters into Islam.