Christian girl, 12, forcibly converted/married in Pakistan

LAHORE, Pakistan (Christian Daily International–Morning Star News) – A Muslim in Pakistan has been abducted, forcibly converted and married to a 12-year-old Christian girl as police delayed efforts to rescue her, relatives said.

Parveen Shaukat, a Catholic widow and mother of eight, said Muhammad Asad abducted her youngest daughter, Fairy Shaukat, from Habibabad Mandi area in Pattoki Tehsil, Kasur district of Punjab province on August 9.

“Fairy had gone to a nearby shop in the afternoon to buy groceries but she did not return home,” Shaukat told Christian Daily International-Morning Star News. “My sons started searching for her but could not find her. We then filed a complaint with the police but their attitude was not welcoming. Instead of helping us, they delayed the registration of a First Information Report (FIR).”

She said a neighbor later told the family that he had seen Asad kidnap Fairy.

“We informed the police about the suspect but they still did not take any action. This gave Asad enough time to convert the minor child and enter into an Islamic marriage with her,” Shaukat said.

The impoverished mother said police finally registered a report on August 10, but it took a long time to find the child.

“On August 13th my sons received the Nikahnama (Islamic marriage certificate) of Fairy through WhatsApp from an unknown number,” she said. “We were shocked to see the document and urged the police to take action against this underage marriage. When the police finally raided the house of the accused, he was not there. It has been almost 20 days that I have not seen my child and we have no information about her safety.”

Shaukat said she did not believe her minor daughter could voluntarily go with the suspect.

“Fairy is only 12 years old. She had no access to a mobile phone and rarely left the house alone,” Shaukat said. “She was abducted by Asad, who we have heard is a good-for-nothing. He targeted my child for sexual exploitation and my heart sinks every time I think of how she is being treated in captivity.”

When no trace of their child was found, the family contacted Christian Advocate Sumera Shafique for legal assistance.

“I am filing a petition in the Lahore High Court for the restoration of the child,” Shafique told Christian Daily International-Morning Star News. “It is very unfortunate that the police are delaying action in cases involving minor girls from minority groups, which could cause the perpetrators to harm these children for life.”

Shafique said she also wants to charge the suspect with several crimes, including child marriage and rape, after he and the girl appear in court.

Officers have filed a case against Asad for kidnapping a person who was not in his legal custody, which carries a prison sentence of up to seven years under Section 363 of the Pakistan Penal Code.

“But this charge is not enough,” Shafique said. “The accused not only kidnapped the child, he converted her and entered into an Islamic marriage to save himself from persecution,” a common practice by kidnappers to sexually exploit underage girls from minority groups.

She called for strict enforcement of laws against child marriage and the criminalization of forced conversions of underage girls.

“The new anti-child marriage bill tabled in the Punjab Provincial Assembly is a good initiative but there is a need to ensure that it is implemented in letter and spirit,” she said. “This is a major weakness in our law enforcement and justice system that though relevant laws exist, they are not being implemented.”

New law

In a bid to criminalise underage marriages in Punjab province, the provincial government on April 25 introduced the Punjab Child Marriage Restraint Act, 2024, in the provincial Assembly, which would raise the legal marriage age for both men and women to 18. Previously, the legal marriage age for girls in the province was 16.

Under the bill, anyone who marries or arranges a marriage with a girl or boy under the age of 18 – including parents or guardians – faces two to three years in prison and a fine of between 100,000 Pakistani rupees ($360) and 200,000 rupees ($720).

At the time of marriage registration, the marriage officer, secretary of the union council and the marriage officer shall check the Computerized National Identity Card (CNIC) of the girl or boy, passport, educational certificate or other documents proving that both are at least 18 years of age. Certified copies of these documents must be attached with the application for the marriage certificate.

Rights activists say that while raising the legal marriage age to 18 for both boys and girls will help prevent child marriage, certain amendments are needed to ensure that girls from minorities also get the proper coverage of the law. Such amendments would nullify all “special” laws regarding the determination of a girl’s age of maturity, they say, including sharia (Islamic law), which considers girls who reach puberty as adults.

Pakistan ranks seventh on Open Doors’ 2024 World Watch List, a list of the toughest places to be a Christian, just like the year before.

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