Islamabad, Over 1,900 cases of violence and abuse against children were reported in Pakistan in the first six months of the year, a senior politician has said.
She added that the data showed that child abuse was not limited to a class or locality, but it was a societal problem. Giving an exact figure, she said that 1,914 cases of violence and abuse against children had been reported between January and June 2026. Rehman, a member of the Senate the upper house of Parliament said 80 per cent of the reported cases were from Punjab province, raising questions about the effectiveness of existing child protection mechanisms. Highlighting a disturbing aspect, she said that 43 per cent of the accused were known to the victims, while nearly 45 per cent of incidents reportedly took place inside children’s own homes. 57 per cent of cases were reported from urban areas and 43 per cent from rural areas, according to the data cited by Rehman.
“The scale of these cases is deeply disturbing,” Pakistan Peoples Party Vice President Senator Sherry Rehman said in a statement on X on Friday, expressing deep concern over the reported cases. “There can be no impunity for those who prey on children,” she said. “These figures must prompt a closer examination of whether children are able to report abuse safely, whether protection institutions are adequately equipped, and whether perpetrators are being effectively brought to justice,” she said.
