According to a new research by the Sustainable Social Development Organization (SSDO), violence against children has horribly increased in Pakistan, with 7,608 occurrences documented nationwide so far in 2024, or an average of 21 incidents per day.
With conviction rates for the majority of abuse categories still around 1%, the research reveals serious flaws in the judicial system and draws attention to a pervasive child safety dilemma.
These concerning results are based on data collected from provincial police departments under Right to Information (RTI) laws and are included in SSDO’s most recent book, Mapping Study on Violence Against Children in Pakistan 2024.
The documented examples cover a wide spectrum of violence, such as child labor, child trafficking, child marriage, physical and sexual assault, and kidnapping.
In all, 2,954 cases of sexual assault, 2,437 cases of kidnapping, 895 cases of child labor, 683 cases of physical abuse, 586 cases of child trafficking, and 53 cases of child marriage were documented.
The conviction rates for the vast majority of cases, such as child marriage, sexual abuse, and kidnapping, were negligible or nonexistent, with child trafficking and child labor cases having comparatively higher conviction rates of 45% and 37%, respectively. Child marriage cases, on the other hand, had zero convictions nationwide.
According to the article, the conviction must be confirmed because child trafficking carries a penalty of Rs1 million in fines and 10 years in jail under the Prevention of Trafficking in Persons Act of 2018.
However, the judiciary typically chooses to release the guilty after imposing minor fines of a few thousand rupees rather than enforcing the penalties specified in the PTPA.
With 6,083 events, including 2,506 cases of sexual abuse and 2,189 cases of kidnapping, Punjab recorded the most child abuse cases; nevertheless, just 28 and 4 convictions were obtained in these cases, respectively. In addition, the province documented 455 instances of physical abuse, but only 7 people were found guilty.
450 incidents of child labor resulted in 66 convictions, while 457 cases of child trafficking resulted in 267 convictions. Nevertheless, no convictions resulted from any of the 26 child marriage cases that were reported in Punjab.
Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa came next with 1,102 cases, including 366 cases of sexual assault and 208 cases of physical abuse, although none of them led to convictions.
The province recorded 426 child labor instances, 93 kidnapping cases, 6 child trafficking cases, 3 child marriage cases, and 267 convictions in the child labor category alone.
A total of 354 cases were reported in Sindh, including 24 cases of child marriage, 121 cases of trafficking, 152 cases of kidnapping, and 19 cases of both physical and sexual abuse. Not a single conviction was obtained in any of these cases.
43 kidnappings, 63 occurrences of sexual assault, and one case of physical abuse were among the 69 cases reported in Balochistan. Only two convictions each for sexual abuse and kidnapping were recorded by the province; no convictions were found for the other categories.
According to SSDO Executive Director Syed Kausar Abbas, the information was gathered from the police agencies using the province-specific Right of Access to Information laws.
He emphasized that many cases go unreported and that the recorded statistics are just the visible tip of a much bigger issue.
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Q1: What does the latest SSDO research say about violence against minors in Pakistan?
According to the Sustainable Social Development Organization (SSDO), violence against minors has horribly surged in 2024, with 7,608 cases reported across Pakistan—averaging 21 incidents per day.
Q2: What types of violence are being reported?
The study documents a wide range of abuses, including:
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Sexual assault: 2,954 cases
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Kidnapping: 2,437 cases
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Child labor: 895 cases
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Physical abuse: 683 cases
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Child trafficking: 586 cases
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Child marriage: 53 cases
Q3: How reliable is this data?
The data was collected from provincial police departments using Right to Information (RTI) laws and is published in SSDO’s new report: Mapping Study on Violence Against Children in Pakistan 2024.
Q4: What are the conviction rates for these crimes?
Shockingly low.
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Child marriage: 0% conviction
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Sexual abuse & kidnapping: negligible
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Child labor: 37%
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Child trafficking: 45%
Q5: Why are conviction rates so low?
Despite strict laws like the Prevention of Trafficking in Persons Act 2018—which mandates 10 years’ imprisonment and Rs1 million fines—judges often impose minor penalties or release offenders without adequate punishment.
Q6: Which provinces are most affected?
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Punjab: 6,083 cases (highest in the country)
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Khyber Pakhtunkhwa: 1,102 cases
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Sindh: 354 cases
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Balochistan: 69 cases
