On Monday, UN experts reported an alarm on the rising abductions, forced marriages and conversions of underage young women and girls in Pakistan and called out for action to put a stop to the practices and bring justice to victims.
UN experts said, “We are deeply troubled to hear that girl as young as 13 are being kidnapped from their families, trafficked to locations far from their homes, made to marry men sometimes twice their age, and coerced to convert to Islam, all in violation of international human rights law.”
“We are very concerned that such marriages and conversions take place under threat of violence to these girls and women or their families”, they added.
The Special Procedures of the Human Rights Council include Special Rapporteurs and other independent experts.
As per the UN Human Rights Council statement, the experts disagreed that there are insufficient means of justice for victims and their families while highlighting Pakistan’s past efforts to pass legislation to prohibit forced conversions and to protect religious minorities. They also noted the participation of religious authorities and the implications of the security forces and the justice system in these reported marriages and conversions.
The experts said, “Family members say that victims’ complaints are rarely taken seriously by the police, either refusing to register these reports or arguing that no crime has been committed by labelling these abductions as ‘love marriages’”.
“Abductors force their victims to sign documents which falsely attest to their being of legal age for marriage as well as marrying and converting of free will. These documents are cited by the police as evidence that no crime has occurred.”
