Unequal gender relations, poverty, lack of education and employment opportunities, as well as the increased foreign demand by men for sexual services of girls encourage women and girl trafficking for the sex trade. The global HIV/AIDS crisis has also generated an increased demand for young girls, who being virgin are perceived to be free of the virus.

Women and girls are trafficked to Pakistan from Bangladesh and Central Asian countries for forced commercial sexual exploitation and bonded labour. Girls and women from rural areas are trafficked to Pakistan’s urban centres to share the same fate and women trafficked from East Asian countries and Bangladesh to the Middle East often transit through Pakistan.

“Girls under the age of 18 are forced into marriages for debt release and to settle disputes, often under the mantle of Walvar, a primitive custom of 'selling' brides for a price. We are told that in some areas of the North West Frontier Province (NWFP), the custom is gradually encroaching upon mainstream settled districts,” said World Vision Country Director Sigurd Hanson.

Girls under the age of 18 are forced into marriages for debt release and to settle disputes

Practices such as these are reflected in Pakistan’s ranking in the UNDP's gender-related development index in the 2004 Human Development Report, which places the country at a rank of 120 on a scale of 177, below India, and even Bangladesh.

A law passed in 2002, “Prevention and Control of Human Trafficking Ordinance”, criminalises all aspects of trafficking, however rape or forced prostitution cases prosecuted under the Islamic Hudood ordinances require a woman’s testimony, which is tantamount to an admission of adultery if she lacks proof or the testimonies of four adult Muslim men who witnessed the assault.

Government-sponsored shelters and training programmes provide medical treatment, limited legal representation and vocational training, but without the support of a humanitarian agency, victims are often treated as criminals and may be detained for long periods, with no opportunity to make their cases heard.

Therefore, underreporting, the inability of women to access the judicial system and insecurity remain prime obstacles to counter trafficking in the country.

...Underreporting, the inability of women to access the judicial system and insecurity remain prime obstacles to counter trafficking in the country

World Vision, as a member of the Pakistan Thematic Group on Human Trafficking, led by the International Organisation for Migration (IOM), is appealing for funds to raise awareness on human trafficking, particularly of women and girls and to build the government’s capacity to prevent trafficking and prosecute offenders.

World Vision will conduct rapid assessments in the NWFP and Punjab provinces, as well as in Afghan refugee camps near the border. Research findings will enable World Vision and its partners to conduct comparative analyses and design a comprehensive, long-term anti-trafficking programme.

Key to developing a programme is information exchange and cooperation with local and international partners, including the IOM, United Nations agencies, the Ministry of Women’s Development, the Human Rights University of Peshawar and local NGOs DELTA and SACH.

Advertisements, talk shows, seminars, school activities and workshops for parliamentarians, district level administrators and NGOs will raise awareness and strengthen advocacy efforts.

Training will be conducted amongst low-level law enforcement and border control personnel, prosecutors and judges to recognise and appropriately respond to trafficked persons.

World Vision will also collaborate with partners to expand and strengthen victim and witness support and advise on re-drafting relevant legislation.

"This fight against trafficking has to be aggressive and sustainable. That is why we will explore ways of working with neighbouring World Vision country offices with an intent to increase awareness and build the capacity of staff to implement long-term cross border initiatives, in cooperation with national and international agencies", added Hanson.

-Ends-

World Vision is a member of the Pakistan Thematic Group on Human Trafficking, a consortium of like-minded National and International organisations, led by the International Organisation for Migration (IOM), for an analytical and strategic framework on anti-trafficking issues in Pakistan.