In a country where the childhoods of girls are routinely stolen through forced marriages and religious conversions, Pakistan’s recent passage of the Islamabad Capital Territory Child Marriage Restraint Bill offers a rare glimmer of hope.
The legislation, approved by both houses of Parliament and sent to the President for assent on May 27, criminalises child marriage in the capital territory and introduces penalties of up to seven years in prison for those, whether clerics, family members, or registrars, who facilitate these unions.
Crucially, it also designates any sexual activity involving a minor spouse as statutory rape.
A Systemic Crisis
But beyond the capital, the situation remains bleak. In provinces like Punjab and Sindh, where the vast majority of cases occur, girls continue to be abducted, forcibly converted to Islam, and married to their captors, often with legal impunity. Sadly, Pakistan ranks among the top ten countries globally in terms of the absolute number of girls married before the age of 18. And the most vulnerable among them, Christian and Hindu girls, are doubly at risk, both as children and as members of religious minorities.
In 2023, the Centre for Social Justice (CSJ) documented 136 cases of minority girls being forcibly converted, most between the ages of 12 and 15. These were not isolated incidents but rather part of a systemic pattern.
Institutional Failures
Under current legal loopholes, a coerced conversion often shields perpetrators from prosecution. Girls, often still in their abductor’s custody, are brought before judges and forced to testify that they married and converted "willingly," often under threat or manipulation. Furthermore, the courts, far too often under pressure from religious hardliners, routinely accept these statements without further inquiry or verification of documents to determine the ages of the girls and their ability to consent to a marriage freely.
It is against this backdrop that the pending Punjab legislation becomes so critical. Introduced in April 2024 after sustained pressure from national activists and international bodies, the draft bill seeks to harmonise Pakistan’s laws by setting the minimum marriage age at 18 for both boys and girls and requiring official age verification through official documents.
The Lahore High Court, earlier in April 2024, had directed the provincial assembly to address the discriminatory and exploitative gaps in the existing law.
Yet progress remains fragile, and resistance from religious clerics and political factions threatens to derail even the most basic protections being offered to these girls.
When the Law Fails
And yet, legislation is but a first step. Pakistan’s record of enforcement is dismal. The police often discourage families from filing complaints, and the girls are rarely rescued from their abductors. In many cases, they are lost to their families forever. The few cases that reach the courts are marred by coercion, fear, and the failure of the judicial system to protect the innocent.
In 2023, the Supreme Court of Pakistan dismissed a petition filed by Nayab Gill’s father, seeking protection for minority girls. Although the court had earlier agreed to hear the case and sought the government's response on forced conversions and child marriages, it declared the petition infructuous after Nayab, a Christian girl, was able to escape her kidnapper and returned home. The court lost an opportunity to issue guidelines that could have protected all young girls from such horrors
Which is why international attention to this issue and pressure on the Pakistani government are critical.
International Pressure
In April 2024, United Nations human rights experts publicly condemned the ongoing abductions and conversions of minority girls, calling on Pakistan to take urgent remedial action. The European Parliament has gone further.
In its 2021 joint resolution (RC-B9-0254/2021), the Parliament decried forced conversions as a gross violation of human rights and called for an immediate review of Pakistan’s trade privileges under the Generalised Scheme of Preferences Plus (GSP+). In January 2025, EU Special Representative on Human Rights Olof Skoog reiterated that continued access to GSP+ benefits depends on Pakistan’s measurable progress on freedom of religion and protection of minorities.
The stakes are high for a country whose textile and manufacturing sectors rely heavily on exports to the European Union. International scrutiny is proving to be one of the few levers capable of breaking the political inertia surrounding these issues.
Girls’ Lives Are at Stake
The forced marriage and conversion of children is not simply a legal matter—it is a moral crisis. It strips girls of their agency, their safety, and their future. As Pakistan’s former Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari once admitted, forced conversions are a scourge that tarnishes both Islam and the Constitution of Pakistan.
Western policymakers, faith leaders, and human rights advocates have a critical role to play. Continued diplomatic pressure, trade conditionalities, and global media attention can help bring Pakistan’s leaders to act where domestic institutions falter.
The children of Pakistan, especially its most vulnerable girls, deserve the complete protection of the law. They deserve freedom, dignity, and the chance to grow up without fear. The global community must stand firm until they do.
Tehmina Arora
Lawyer | Director of Advocacy for Asia at ADF International
