Zubair Qureshi
Kidnapping of women, physical assault, rape and domestic violence against women were the most reported incidents in the mainstream media during the month of June 2022. This was revealed in a research report by the Sustainable Social Development Organization (SSDO) and the Centre for Research, Development and Communication (CRDC).
According to the report, a total of 157 of cases—108 only from the province of Punjab and 17 from Islamabad—were reported during the last month. The report further narrates that Sindh reported 22 cases, followed by 6 in KP and 4 in Balochistan.
Besides the kidnapping, 112 cases of physical assault against women were reported in the media all over Pakistan. The highest number of cases i.e. 66 were reported in Punjab, 27 in Sindh, 11 in KP, 8 in Islamabad, whereas no case was reported in Balochistan.
There is a significant increase in cases of domestic violence were reported in June and 100 such incidents were reported in the month of June of which 68 were reported from Punjab which is the highest among all provinces while 17 cases were reported from Sindh, 13 in KP and two in Islamabad reported . However, Balochistan is the only province where no case of domestic violence was reported.
Rape of women also saw increased in numbers, overall 91 reported in the media. The Punjab again reported the highest number of cases of rape i.e. 53 followed by Sindh, 14 cases, 16 from KP, 6 from Islamabad and only 2 from Balochistan.
The lowest prevalence in media reporting was of workplace harassment and honor killing, 7, 7 cases were reported in the country for the both indicators.
Amongst all indicators of violence against children, the highest prevalence was of Child Abuse, where a total of 93 cases were reported across the country, with Punjab leading with 36 cases reported, followed by 28 in KP and 18 in Sindh. The lowest number of cases was reported in Islamabad i.e. 6 and Balochistan i.e. 5 cases respectively.As many as 64 children were kidnapped and 37 were physically assaulted across Pakistan. In the previous month there were no of Child Labour and Child Marriage reported but in June, there were 5 and 7 cases respectively.
According to the Executive Director, SSDO Syed Kausar Abbas, the aim of regularly publishing the data is to bring attention to the rapid increase in violence against women and children.
The number of cases increased in this month as compared to the previous month. We hope that with increased media attention and reporting, the government, police and judiciary dedicate their attention to speedy processing, resolution and punishment.
SSDO and CRDC conducted daily tracking of several mainstream newspapers against nine indicators of violence against women and children. The selection criteria of the newspapers was based on being the most famous, accessible and most-read newspapers in Pakistan. This data is published every month on SSDO’s official website, while both organizations also publish a consolidated report annually.
