Pakistan: Rights body reveals rise in violence against religious minorities over past year

Islamabad: The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) in its latest report has revealed a disturbing rise in violence against religious minorities over the past year, local media reported on Thursday.

In its latest report, ‘Streets of Fear: Freedom of Religion or Belief in 2024/25’, the HRCP highlighted incidents of targetted killings, the demolition of places of worship, the forced conversion and marriage of underage Hindu and Christian girls and a rise in hate speech. The report warned that the trends pose serious threats to religious freedom in Pakistan, The Express Tribune reported.

The report sounded alarm over two cases of extrajudicial killings by police, terming them “deeply chilling”. In two cases, law enforcement officers shot the two individuals who were accused of blasphemy and had requested protection from violent mobs. The rights body stated that such incidents demonstrate the need for police reforms and stronger accountability mechanisms.

Earlier in July, the HRCP raised serious concerns over the continued persecution of religious minorities in Pakistan. The rights body highlighted that a Christian man in Sargodha district of Pakistan’s Punjab province was lynched by a violent mob, following accusations of blasphemy, while the Ahmadiyya community withdrew from the electoral process entirely in the region, citing systemic discrimination and lack of safety.

Additionally, the HRCP mentioned that Punjab continued to account for the highest number of child abuse cases in the country.

“Between January and June 2024 alone, the province reported 78 per cent of the 1,630 cases nationwide, alongside 2,506 incidents of sexual abuse, 2,189 kidnappings, 457 cases of child trafficking, and 455 instances of physical abuse. The death of 11-year-old Ayesha, a domestic worker in Faisalabad, and similar incidents in Sargodha and Lahore exposed the violence faced by underage working children in private homes,” it stated.

The human rights organisation in its State of Human Rights in 2024 report detailed a surge in sexual violence against women, including those with mental disabilities, domestic abuse resulting in fatalities, involving pregnant women, and honour killings, which continued throughout the year in Punjab.

In a case involving an alleged rape at a private college in Lahore, the HRCP noted a failure by the authorities to gather conclusive evidence that the incident had occurred.

Highlighting the challenges faced by women in politics, the HRCP stated that “women Members of the Provincial Assembly (MPA) staged a walkout over inappropriate gestures” in the Punjab Assembly, while the allocation of reserved seats for women and minorities faced legal setbacks.

IANS