Over four thousand incidences of child abuse were reported in Pakistan in 2022, according to a report named “Cruel Number” compiled by Sahil, an NGO fighting child sexual abuse in the country.
The data indicates that the total of 4,253 cases includes reported cases of child sexual abuse, abduction, missing children and child marriages. Based on the statistics, the number of abused children in Pakistan is estimated to be more than 12 per day.
All four of Pakistan’s provinces, including Gilgit Baltistan (GB), Azad Jammu and Kashmir, and Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT), have recorded incidences of child sexual assault.
The geographical distribution of the data shows that out of the total 4,253 cases, the majority were reported in Punjab. However, all other provinces have also recorded cases of child abuse.
Of the total, 2,271 cases (53%) were reported in urban areas while 1,982 cases (47%) were in rural areas. According to the report, 89% of the total reported cases had been registered with the police.
A total of 546 children were abused in their own homes, 833 at the home of the abuser, 24 children in a haveli, 55 children in a madrasa, 29 children at workplaces and 713 children in open places including fields, streets, graveyards, canals and jungles.
The gender divide shows that out of the total reported cases of child abuse, 2,325 victims were girls (55%) and 1,928 (45%) were boys.
Further, the report indicates that the cases of child sexual abuse have increased by more than 33% as compared to the year 2021.
The reported cases of sexual abuse this year can be divided into four main categories: gang rape (75 children), sodomy (537 children), and abduction (1,656 children) (156 children).
Both genders were equally harmed in a total of 2,123 cases of child sexual abuse. In addition, 81 cases in total reported homicide occurring after sexual abuse.
Moreover, 1,834 of the cases reported were of abduction, out of which 178 cases reported sexual abuse after the abduction.
Of the numerous incidents, there was a case in which 5 boys and 5 girls were murdered after gang sodomy and rape. Further, 39 boys and 29 girls were murdered after being sexually abused in the reported cases in 2022.
According to the data, male victims of child sexual abuse outnumbered female victims when they were between the ages of 6 and 15 years old. In addition, young children between the ages of 0 and 5 experienced sexual abuse. There were 1,405 incidents where the victim’s age was not provided.
