The Rising Crisis of Forced Conversions in Pakistan’s Minority Communities

Amid escalating cases of forced conversions among minority girls, predominantly in the Punjab and Sindh provinces, the delay in passing legislation to combat this crisis continues to adversely affect non-Muslim communities in Pakistan. Last year, the Parliamentary Committee on Forced Conversions in Pakistan dismissed the proposed bill aimed at addressing this issue, citing the need for thorough review and labeling it as “non-Islamic” according to the Ministry of Religious Affairs and Inter-faith Harmony.

The frequency of incidents where Christian and Hindu girls are kidnapped and later discovered to be married to Muslim men, allegedly after converting to Islam, has significantly increased. These incidents primarily afflict Punjab and Sindh, with the victims often belonging to impoverished Christian and Hindu families, making their situations even more desperate.

Senator Liaqat Khan Tarakai, the head of the Parliamentary Committee on Forced Conversions, instructed the Ministry of Religious Affairs and Inter-faith Harmony to conduct a detailed examination of the bill. It was to be reconsidered by the committee before any further actions were taken. Yet, months have elapsed with no advancement on this issue, leaving the culprits free to commit these grave human rights abuses without consequence.

It is believed that approximately 1,000 minority girls are forcibly converted to Islam annually in Pakistan, with the victims typically aged between 12 and 25. These young girls are abducted, coerced into conversion, and married off to their kidnappers. Police often refrain from intervening, accepting claims that the conversions and marriages were consensual, thereby hindering any efforts for the girls’ recovery.

This “human-rights catastrophe” demands immediate governmental intervention and legislative action to halt this widespread problem and protect the rights and freedoms of minority communities in Pakistan.