Rampant increase in child abduction cases

Karachi alone reported 2.582 cases of child abduction.


Express January 01, 2011

The cases of abduction of children have been reported from all parts of the country, with Karachi alone reporting 2,582 such cases in 2010, said a press release issued by the Child Rights Legal Centre (CRLC) in Islamabad today.

Pakistan is among the top five most dangerous countries in the world for kidnap and ransom, with incidents in the mid to high hundred each year according to the estimate from global security firm Red 24.

Expressing concern over the rising numbers of child abduction in the country, Executive Director of CRLC Qindeel Shujaat said, “Recently there has been a spate of child kidnapping for ransom resulting in the death of some children. Children are also being kidnapped by terrorists to augment their financial resources and to add children to the growing army of suicide bombers.”

The CRLC has been monitoring child rights violations as reported in the newspapers for 2010. Besides the cases of corporal punishments, child sexual abuse, murder, rape, sodomy, child abductions stood out the most.

Rapid assessments and studies carried out by NGOs revealed that child abduction was on the rise in Karachi, Peshawar, and Sukkur. According to the CRLC, the average age of abducted children ranged from 3 to 14 year. Some infants have also been kidnapped from the premises of hospitals.

Abduction or kidnapping of a child is a traumatic experience both for the parents and the child victim, the press release said. There have been incidents of relatives and friends who have kidnapped children and school mates to make easy money. Abduction is a criminal offence in Pakistan.

The torture is aggravated when there is no support and help from law enforcing agencies, especially in cases of abduction and demands of ransom. The press release stated, “There is no denying that police is responsible for the safety and security of the people, but has failed in doing so. In most cases the culprits are not caught even after ransom was paid resulting in the murder of the kidnapped victim.”

“The kidnapping of a female student from a premier missionary school in July of this year exposed the poor security arrangements and the lack of monitoring in school and colleges especially in the wake of terrorism threats “, said Safia Khan, research officer at the CRLC.

CRLC urged the government to immediately look into the matter and take appropriate measures to control abduction rate.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 1st, 2011.

COMMENTS (1)

Anmol Shah | 13 years ago | Reply Is there any good thing happening in Pakistan? All parents must take notice of it.
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