The Pakistani Federal Constitutional Court is due to hear a review petition on the case of Maria Shahbaz, a Christian girl allegedly kidnapped and subject to forced conversion and marriage.
Shahbaz’s parents say she was just 12 when she was kidnapped and forced to marry her abductor, 30-year-old Shehryar Ahmad.
In March the Federal Constitutional Court rejected a petition filed by Shahbaz’s father, leading to protests across Pakistan by Christians and human rights organisations.
Subsequently, the Pakistani government formed a 37-member national consultative committee. The committee is charged with reviewing the case and proposing measures that would put a stop to forced conversions and marriages.
Legal advocacy group ADF International says Pakistani authorities have failed to uphold their own laws. The courts have so far failed to verify Shahbaz’s age, as is required, and have ignored laws that state minors cannot consent to conversion or marriage.
Tehmina Arora, ADF’s Director of Advocacy for Asia, said, “This case is a crucial moment in the movement to protect young girls from the crisis of forced marriage in Pakistan.
"We hope that Pakistan’s highest court will soon agree to review Maria’s case and re-examine the evidence that was previously relied upon by the lower courts.
"Maria must be freed and safely returned to her family, where she will be safe from harm and able to practice her Christian faith.”
The abduction of minority girls has been an ongoing problem in Pakistan for years. Christians and Hindus, typically at the bottom of society, are often seen as fair game and find little to no support from the courts.
In many cases courts have effectively rubber stamped the actions of abductors by recognising the forced marriages as legitimate.
It is not known how many Christian and Hindu girls are abducted in this way every year, but it is believed to be in the hundreds and possibly over a thousand.
