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Cases of forced conversion and marriage in Pakistan raise concern at the UN

75% of the victims are Hindu girls and 25% are Christian girls

New York (USA): The United Nations has again raised serious concerns about alleged abduction and forced religious conversion of women and girls from the minorities in Pakistan.

In 2025, nearly 75% of women and girls affected by forced conversion for marriage were Hindu and rest were Christian. Sindh remained the hardest-hit province, accounting for almost 80% of incidents, according to a statement by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) that cited UN experts.

It underlined that girls aged between 14 and 18 were the primary targets, with some victims even younger. Women from economically weaker backgrounds faced higher risk of physical and mental abuse.

“These women and girls endure a continuous sense of terror, face coercion, and are deprived of their freedom of religion or belief and autonomy under patriarchal and political pressures. This must stop,” the experts said, highlighting “systematic discrimination” against non-Muslim women and girls, where they are compelled to convert to Islam to marry Muslim men.

The experts also raised concerns about law enforcement authorities in Pakistan for “dismissing complaints” lodged by the family of victims. Due to the persistent neglect, the agencies failed to investigate such incidents promptly, they said.

The UN experts further urged Islamabad to take urgent action to increase the marriageable age for girls to 18 in all provinces, criminalise forced conversion as a distinct offence and provide additional support to victims, such as safe shelters, legal aid and reintegration programmes.

According to a UNICEF report, Pakistan ranks sixth in levels of child marriage in South Asia, accounting for approximately 19 million child brides, with 18% of girls married before age 18 and nearly 4% before age 15.

In April 2024 too, UN experts had expressed dismay at the systematic lack of protection for young women and girls belonging to minority communities in Pakistan.

“Christian and Hindu girls remain particularly vulnerable to forced religious conversion, abduction, trafficking, child, early, and forced marriage, domestic servitude, and sexual violence. The exposure of young women and girls belonging to religious minority communities to such heinous human rights violations and the impunity of such crimes can no longer be tolerated or justified,” they stated.

Similarly, in January 2023, UN experts urged the government in Islamabad to address the reported increase in abductions, forced marriages and conversions of underage girls and young women from religious minorities.

Editorial Perspective

  • Pakistan is unlikely to care about such “concerns” expressed by the United Nations. It does not understand such language. The entire world must now boycott it.
  • Why doesn’t the Indian Government say what the United Nations is saying ? And why doesn’t it take action to protect these Hindus ?

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