8 children sexually abused every day in Pakistan in first half of 2020: report

KARACHI: More than eight children were subjected to sexual abuse on average every day in the first six months of 2020 in Pakistan, according to child protection NGO Sahil.

In its six-month "Cruel Number" report released Thursday, Sahil reported that as of June this year, 497 children were sexually abused.

The NGO said most of the cases were in Punjab — at 57%. Of the rest, 32% were reported in Sindh and 6% in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

It further noted that more than 35 cases were reported in Islamabad, 22 in Balochistan, 10 in Azad Jammu and Kashmir, and one in Gilgit-Baltistan.

Out of the total reported cases, 62% were from rural areas and 38% reported from urban areas

At least 173 children were gang-raped, whereas there were 227 reports of attempted sexual assault.  Moreover, 38 children were killed after they were sexually abused.

Of the total children who were subjected to sexual abuse, 53% were girls and 47% boys.

Sahil also highlighted that 51 cases of underage marriage were reported.

The conclusions were drawn from January-June 2020 data from 84 newspapers and covers incidents from all four provinces, as well as Islamabad Capital Territory, Azad Jammu and Kashmir, and Gilgit-Baltistan, it added.