Alarming Rise in Violence Against Women in Sindh

News Desk

Islamabad: As many as 771 cases of violence against women in Sindh while 142 cases of violence against children were reported during the first four months of 2023, according to a report released by Sustainable Social Development Organisation (SSDO), a non-profit organization based in Islamabad.

According to the research, the Sindh police registered an alarmingly high number of First Information Reports (FIRs) for cases of violence against women and children.

Considering social taboos in Pakistan, where people are very unlikely to report such cases to the police, SSDO believes that the actual frequency of unreported cases may be even higher.

Looking at specific types of crimes, a staggeringly high number of 529 women were kidnapped in Sindh during these four months which meant that on average, multiple women were kidnapped daily. These numbers paint a very discouraging picture of women’s safety in the province.

The next highest numbers were seen in cases of domestic violence (119), demonstrating that women were at increased risk of violence in both the public and private spheres. In addition, 56 cases of rape and 37 cases of honour killing were also reported across Sindh in this time period.

In all of this, the districts of Karachi Central, Hyderabad and Keamari emerged as hotspot districts for violent crimes against women, as out of a total of 771 cases, 63, 58, and 54 cases, respectively, were reported from only these three districts.

In terms of violence against children, it was horrifying to observe that sexual violence was the most prevalent, with a total of 67 cases. Furthermore, 41 children were also kidnapped in this short time span. As many as 16 cases of child marriage and 14 cases of child labour were also reported to the Sindh police.

Out of 142 total cases of violence against children, 21 were reported in Karachi South, 16 in Keamari, and 13 in Karachi West. These regions emerged as hotspot districts with the highest frequencies of crimes against children.

SSDO Executive Director Syed Kausar Abbas stated, “The aim of publishing this data is to bring attention to the rapid increase in violence against women and children. During just the first four months of this year, over 900 different cases of this nature occurred.”

“We hope that with increased media attention and reporting, the government, police, and judiciary will devote their attention to speedy processing, resolution, and punishment of offenders to ensure the safety of all citizens, particularly women and children,” Kausar Abbas added.

This data was collected through a ‘Right to Information’ request to the Sindh police under Article 19-A of the Constitution of Pakistan.