Peer-reviewed article
Violence Against Children in Pakistan: Prevalence, Prevention, and Legal Responses
Muhammad Shafiq, Wafa Khan, Dr. Imtiaz Ahmad, Bushra Jamil ·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view · claude-haiku-4-5-20251001This study examines violence against children in Pakistan, including its prevalence, forms, and causes across different social classes. The research documents that abuse—including physical, sexual, psychological harm, and neglect—is common in poor communities where legal enforcement is weak and harmful cultural practices persist. The study recommends community-based prevention, legal reforms, and health education campaigns to address gaps in current protection approaches.
Key points
- Violence against children in Pakistan includes physical, sexual, psychological abuse, and neglect
- Abuse is most prevalent in poor communities with weak legal structures and cultural acceptance of harmful practices
- Existing child protection laws are rarely enforced despite government commitments
- Reporting abuse is often viewed negatively within communities, creating barriers to disclosure
- Recommended solutions include community-based primary prevention, legal changes, and health education campaigns
Limitations
The document provides no specific prevalence figures, demographic breakdown of affected children, or comparative data on abuse rates. It does not detail which legal responses currently exist or how effective prevention strategies have been implemented elsewhere.
Abstract
There is no denying the fact that violence against children is one of the issues that needs to be addressed, as it is directly related to the well-being of children in Pakistan. Therefore, this study assumes the extent of various forms of violence against children in Pakistan, how these may be dealt with, and the legal remedies for these issues. Children from other classes of society in Pakistan are exposed to this social ill of child abuse. The pattern of child abuses in Pakistan, its causes, prevalence, protection strategies, and legal responses are all called out in this study. A mixed qualitative and quantitative research approach which included the use of surveys focus group discussions and secondary data was used. Facts and figures collected show that the nature of abuse includes physical, sexual, psychological, neglect, etc which is common in most given communities where the majority of people are poor, there is a soft legal structure, and cultural practices of abuse are rather common. Laws on child protection are rarely enforced where such laws exist despite commitments and even within societies reporting such abuse is often viewed negatively. The study seeks to deploy better community-based primary prevention approaches, changes in the law, and health education campaigns. Policymakers should be alerted to the present research as it seeks to address deficiencies in preventative approaches and legislation that exist in Pakistan.