Cruel Numbers 2020 PDF

Har Bacha Mehfooz
Har Bacha Mehfooz
Cruel Numbers 2020
Har Bacha Mehfooz
A Compilation of Statistics
On
Child Sexual Abuse Cases
In Pakistan
Har Bacha Mehfooz
Cruel Numbers 2020

Editor:
Manizeh Bano
Report by:
Sohail Ahmed
Waqas Hameed
Maryam Khalid
Data Compilation:
Sohail Ahmed
Maryam Khalid
Waqas Hameed
Data Collection:
Sohail Ahmed
Waqas Hameed
Maryam Khalid
Regional Office Lahore
Regional Office Abbottabad
Regional Office Sukkur
Regional Office Jaffarabad
Title Cover Design

Muhammad Rehan
Note: Any reference taken from this report should

be credited to Sahil.
Designing & Printing by: Al-Saif Printers Islamabad. 0301-5439699

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Contents
Acronyms i
Message from the Editor ii
Report Highlights 01
Data Collection 04
Limitations of the Report 06
Findings of Cruel Numbers 2020 07

Reported Cases Data 07
Gender Divide 08
Age of Victims 08
Crime Category 09
Child Sexual Abuse and Pornography 10
Definitions of Abuser Categories 11
Abuser Identification 11
Places of Abuse 13
Closed Places: 13
Open Places: 13
Period of Abuse 14
Geographical Area of Crime 14
Rural-Urban Divide 15
Case Registration Status 15
Districts-wise Distribution of Data 16
Ten Most Vulnerable Districts 16
Analysis of Child Sexual Abuse Cases Only 17

Data of Only CSA 17
Gender Divide 17
Crime Categories of Child Sexual Abuse 18
Rape/Sodomy 18
Gang Rape/Sodomy 19
Attempt of Rape/Sodomy 19
Murder after Sexual Abuse 20
Age of Victims of Only CSA Cases 21
Analysis of Age Group 0-5 Years 21

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Age Group 0-5 Years 22

Crime Categories of Age Group 0-5 Years 22
Abuser Category of Age Group 0-5 Years 22
Crime Category of Age Group 6-10 Years 23
Age Group Not Mentioned 26
Place of Abuse of Only CSA Cases 26
Rural-Urban Divide of Only CSA Cases 27
Case Registration Status of Only CSA Cases 27
Geographical Data of Only CSA Cases 28
Ten Most Vulnerable Districts of Only CSA Cases 28
Five Most Vulnerable Districts from each Geographical Area of Only CSA Cases 29
Data Analysis of Abduction Cases 30

Total Cases of Abduction 30
Gender Divide of Abduction Cases 31
Age of Victims of Abduction Cases 31
Abuser Category of Abduction Cases 32
Places of Abduction Cases 32
Geographical Divide of Abduction Cases 33
Ten Most Vulnerable Districts 33
Rural-Urban Divide of Abduction Cases 34
Abduction Case Registration Status 34
Data Analysis of Abduction Cases Only 35

Gender Divide of Abduction Cases Only 35
Geographical Area of Abduction Cases Only 35
Data Analysis of Cases of Sexual Abuse after Abduction 36
Gender Divide of Sexual Abuse after Abduction Cases 36
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Crime Categories of Sexual Abuse after Abduction 37

Rape/Sodomy after Abduction 37
Gang Rape/Sodomy after Abduction 38
Rape/Sodomy Murder after Abduction 38
Pornography after Abduction and CSA 39
Data Analysis of Missing Children 40
Total Case Comparison of Missing Children 40
Gender Divide of Missing Children 40
Age of Victims of Missing Children 41
Geographical Area of Missing Children 41
Rural-Urban Divide of Missing Children 42
Missing Children Case Registration Status 42
District Divide of Missing Children Cases 43
Ten Most Vulnerable Districts of Abduction Cases 43
Data Analysis of Child Marriages 44
Cases of Child Marriages 44
Gender Divide of Child Marriages 44
Age of Victims of Child Marriages 45
Crime Categories in Child Marriages 45
Provincial Divide of Child Marriage Cases 46
Rural-Urban Divide of Child Marriages 46
Child Marriages Case Registration Status 47
Child Abuse Reported by SSDO 48
Recommendations 49
The Juvenile Justice System Act, 2018 50
Child Rights Related Laws in Pakistan 51
Annexure # 1 District Divide For Reported Cases 52
Annexure # 2 District Divide for CSA Cases Only 53
Annexure # 3 District Divide for Child Abduction and CSA Cases 54
Annexure # 4 District Divide for Missing Children Cases 55
Annexure # 5 District Divide for Child Marriage Cases 56
Annexure # 6 District and Tehsil wise Reported Cases of Murder after CSA in 2020 57
Annexure # 7 Court Convictions in Monitored Newspapers 58
Annexure # 8 Court Convictions of Sahil Legal Aid 59
Annexure # 9 Daily Monitored Newspapers List 60
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Acronyms
AJK Azad Jammu and Kashmir
CSA Child Sexual Abuse
FIR First Information Report
GB Gilgit Baltistan
ICT Islamabad Capital Territory
JJSO Juvenile Justice System Ordinance
KP Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
SA Sexual Abuse
UN United Nations
UNCRC United Nation's Convention on the Rights of the Child
WHO World Health Organization
i Cruel Number 2020

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Message from the Editor

There has been a growing awareness of sexual violence in Pakistan over the last few years.
Public outcry against sexual violence cases have been highlighted especially on Social
Media platforms.
In the last year, government introduced Zainab Alert, the Response and Recovery Agency
(ZARRA) for missing and abducted children, and approved Anti-Rape (Investigation and
Trial) Ordinance, 2020 and the Criminal Law (Amendment) Ordinance, 2020 to ensure
speedy trial of rape & sexual assault cases.
Sahil has been playing a vital role in raising awareness among communities, parents,
children and other groups of the society on child protection particularly child sexual abuse
for the last two decades. Previously a taboo subject, child sexual abuse is now not only
being openly discussed, but communities are raising their voice against this crime.
Sahil believes that research work is playing a key role and it's necessary for the
improvement of any social issues faced in any society. Sahil, this year, publishes its annual
report Cruel Number based on data provided by 84 national, regional, and online
newspapers from the four provinces as well as ICT, Azad Jammu & Kashmir, and Gilgit
Baltistan.
In this Cruel Number Report, another category that has been incorporated within this
report is that of CSA in conjunction with pornography.
Cruel Number 2020 ii

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Report Highlights
This year, Sahil's flagship publication of 'Cruel Numbers 2020' has been compiled by the
monitoring of 84 national and regional newspapers, daily.
The objectives of this report are:
· To present the data of the situation regarding violence against children (up to 18 years) in
cases of sexual abuse, abduction/kidnapping, missing children, and child marriages.
· This data is relevant for researchers, academics, media houses, and legislators to work on
strategies for the prevention of abuse against children.
· To contribute towards spreading awareness and information about different forms of

Child Sexual Abuse (CSA) to all segments of the society.
This year the data of child abuse cases shows that a total number of 2960 cases have been reported
in newspapers. These cases were reported from all four provinces including Islamabad Capital
Territory (ICT), Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), and Gilgit Baltistan (GB).
In the year 2020, a slight increase can be seen in child abuse cases. These cases have increased 4%
as compared to the last year's data of 2019.
The data shows that in a day more than 8 children have been abused during the year 2020.
This year's data shows that in the reported cases of child abuse, 51% of victims were girls and 49%
were boys.
The research shows that children are most vulnerable to abuse in the age group 6-15 years. More
boys than girl victims were reported. Moreover, children as young as 0-5 years are also sexually
abused.
Analysis of the data reveals that in the year 2020, out of the total reported cases, 985 cases were
reported of Sodomy, 787 cases were rape, 89 cases were pornography and CSA, and 80 cases were
reported of murder after CSA, whereas 834 cases were reported of abduction. Cases of missing
children and child marriages were 345 and 119 respectively.
The Cruel Numbers data of the year 2020 reveals that acquaintances are on top of the list involved
in 1780 cases of child abuse, 109 cases were service providers like {molvi, teacher, shopkeeper,
driver, doctor, police}. A total of 91 cases were family members and relatives, and in 92 cases
neighbors were involved. In 468 cases, strangers were involved in abusing children.
The report found that in the geographical areas, 58% of cases were reported from Punjab province,
29% cases took place from Sindh, 7% cases from the KP, 3% cases from the Islamabad Capital
territory, whereas 53 cases were reported from the Balochistan, 18 cases from Azad Jammu &
Kashmir (AJK), and 4 cases were reported from Gilgit Baltistan (GB) as well.
01 Cruel Number 2020

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In the year 2020, out of the total 2960 reported cases, 1915 (65%) cases are reported from rural
areas and 1045 (35%) cases are reported from urban areas.
In the year 2020, reported cases of child abuse 87% of cases were registered with the police.
This year, a total of 834 cases of abduction have been reported from newspapers. Out of these
cases, 74% of cases were of girls, and 26% cases were of boys.
In the year 2020, a total reported cases of abduction, 494 (59%) cases occurred in rural areas and
340 (41%) in urban areas.
The analysis of the data shows that this year a total of 345 cases of missing children were reported,
out of these cases 86% of cases were boys, and 14% cases were girls.
In the year 2020, a total of 119 cases of child marriages were reported. Out of the total 119 reported
cases, 95% cases were of girls, and 5% cases were of boys.
Cruel Number 2020 02

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Data Collection
Sahil every year collects data on child sexual abuse (CSA), abduction, missing children,
and early marriages cases from newspapers, and cases directly reported to Sahil.
For this purpose, Sahil monitored a total of 84 national, regional, and local newspapers in
the year 2020.
These are Urdu, English, and Sindhi newspapers from all four provinces including ICT,
AJK, and GB.
Detail of 84 daily monitored newspapers:
· 29 monitored at Sahil Head office Islamabad (including 6 online newspapers)

· 22 monitored at Lahore Regional Office
· 12 monitored at Abbottabad Regional Office
· 12 monitored at Sukkur Regional Office
· 08 monitored at Jaffarabad Regional Office
· 01 monitored in Multan by Sahil Volunteer
Table: 1

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The recorded cases are of victims of child sexual abuse, abduction, and child marriages of
children below 18 years of age. This age limit is chosen in accordance with the age defined
for a child by the United Nation's Convention on the Rights of the Child.
A comprehensive format is used for the data collection which records gender, age of the
victim, abuser's categories, place of abuse, period of abuse, and identification of the
geographical areas with urban- rural divide and status of case registration with the police.
The information is recorded directly from newspaper clippings.
All Cases once recorded are cross-checked to avoid duplication, as the same child sexual
abuse case may be reported in different newspapers. Cases received from other sources are
also scrutinized strictly to avoid repetition.

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Limitations of the Report

Sahil makes every possible effort to collect, verify and report statistics on the prevalence
of child sexual abuse; however there are various limitations to the report as most of the
child abuse cases go undisclosed and undeclared.
As there is no mandatory reporting of Sexual abuse cases, a large number of other forms of
sexual abuse cases are under reported / non-reported such as verbal abuse, sexual
comments, voyeurism, exhibitionism, or oral sex.
For reported cases, in newspapers, the limitations could be due to a number of factors. In
many remote areas of Pakistan because of cultural norms, less awareness, limited access
to the justice system and due to weak communication system, fewer cases are reported.
Child sexual abuse cases are directly affected by delayed reporting. A probe into the
mechanism of reported cases reveals that these cases actually go through different stages
which involve the disclosure of sexual abuse. It requires the victim to tell the parents;
parent's capacity to reach the police; police willingness to launch an FIR. Then a medico-
legal examination which is required is often another hurdle to the procedure. These
mechanisms can prevent the reporting of these cases.
Court procedures are a difficult process which takes up substantial time and monetary
resources. Many victim families hesitate to register cases and prefer to solve them out of
courts. Often they may go in for a compromise even after initiating the legal case.

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Findings of Cruel Numbers 2020

Reported Cases Data
The prevalence of child sexual abuse (CSA) is difficult to determine because it is often not
reported.
It is an unrevealed but alarming issue in every civilized society.
Experts agree that the incidence is far greater than what is reported to authorities. CSA is also not
uniformly defined, so statistics may vary.
This year's data on child abuse indicates that a total number of 2960 cases have been reported in
newspapers.
This data includes cases of child sexual abuse (CSA), abduction, missing children, and child
marriages.
These cases were reported in 84 national and regional newspapers from all four provinces
including Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT), Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), and Gilgit
Baltistan (GB).
Graph:1 Total Case Comparison 2019-2020
2960
2846 2846
Year 2019 Year 2020

In the year 2020, a slight increase can be seen in child abuse cases. These cases have increased 4%
as compared to the last year's data of 2019. The data shows that in a day more than 8 children have
been abused during the year 2020.
Child abuse occurs at every socioeconomic level, across ethnic and cultural lines, within all
religions, and at all levels of education. However, abuse can be reduced through awareness
especially in educational settings.
2960 2020
2020 2019
04

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Gender Divide
A common misperception about child sexual abuse (CSA) is that it is an event perpetrated
against girls, not boys, and mostly by strangers. Infect boys' cases have continued to
increase over the years.
The below graph indicates that both genders girls and boys are victims.
Out of the total 2960 cases of child abuse, 51% of victims were girls and 49% were boys.
Graph: 2
Gender Divide
2846
1322 1524
Boys Girls Total
This year's data shows that there is an increase in the difference between last year's reports
of boys which were 46% in comparison to the girls.
Age of Victims
Child sexual abuse (CSA) victims are children of all ages.
Graph: 3 Age of Victims
1510
1450
Boys Girls
561 459 451

378 300 307
97 86 107 214
0-5 Years 6-10 Years 11-15 Years 16-18 Years Age Not Total
Mentioned
The research shows that like previous years, this year also children in the age bracket of 6
to 15 years were the most vulnerable. In the age bracket below 5 years, and from 6 to 15
years, boys are more vulnerable to abuse than girls. In comparison to last year's data, this
year cases of boys in the age bracket below 5 years has increased by 97 cases as compared
to the 77 cases in the year 2019.

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Crime Category
This year reported cases of child abuse are categorized under the 45 sub-categories.
The below table illustrates in detail these 45 sub-categories.
Graph: 4 Crime Categories
Analysis of the data reveals that in the year 2020, out of the total reported cases, 985 cases
were reported of Sodomy, 787 cases were rape, 89 cases were pornography and CSA, and
80 cases were reported of murder after CSA, whereas 834 cases were reported of
abduction. Cases of missing children, and child marriages were 345 and 119, respectively.

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Child Sexual Abuse and Pornography

Definition of Pornography (Section 292-B. in Pakistan Pena Code)
“…..any photograph, film, video, picture or representation, portrait, or computer-
generated image or picture, whether made or produced by electronic, mechanical, or
other means, of obscene or sexually explicit conduct……”
Graph: 5
This year a total of 89 cases were reported of child sexual abuse and pornography out of
the total reported cases. A significant increase can be seen this year, as compared to 2019
data 0f 70 cases. The genders in the data reveal that 66 victims were boys, and 23 of
victims were girls.

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Definitions of Abuser Categories

Abuser
“An abuser can be anyone from a close blood relative to a stranger”.
Acquaintance
“Acquaintances are those persons who are known by the family members or the child”.
Strangers
“Strangers are those whose names are unknown for victims and victim's family or
identified as unknown”.
Abusers within the Family (Incest)

“These are close blood relatives or guardians, living in the victim's home, which includes
brothers, parents, older siblings, aunt, uncles, and grandparents”.
Relative
“A relative is a blood relation who is not living with the victim's family”.
Abettor
“An abettor is anyone who facilitates the abuser”.
Abuser Identification
Like in previous years, this year also most of the perpetrators of child sexual abuse are
acquaintances, service providers, or family members.
Usually, these perpetrators have easy access to the victim; the child trusts the perpetrator
and maybe in a loving relationship with the person.
Perpetrators may create time and space to groom children sexually, to gain access to the
children, to prevent disclosure, and to prevent caregivers from believing the children if
they disclose sexual abuse. This group of perpetrators may control the children with gifts,
secrecy, bribery, or threats, and not only force.
The below graph illustrates the detailed list of abusers they are involved in abusing
children in the year 2020.

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Graph: 6
This year also like previous years, acquaintances are on top of the list involved in 1780
cases of child abuse, 109 cases were service providers like {molvi, teacher, shopkeeper,
driver, doctor, police}. A total of 91 cases were family members and relatives, and in 92
cases neighbors were involved. In 468 cases, strangers were involved in abusing children.
It is alarming that father, brother, uncle, relatives of children, and service providers are
involved in this heinous crime of child abuse.
The analysis of the data also reveals that mostly the abusers are known to the victims or
victim's family.
Parents and Guardians can keep children safe.
· Talk to your children

· Build an interactive relationship
· Encourage them to share their daily activities
· No one should make them uncomfortable and unhappy in any way
· They have a right to say No
· Respect does not mean allowing others to harm you

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Places of Abuse
“Places of abuse are defined as the vicinity where children were exploited.”
Closed Places: “Closed places are those that are enclosed.”

Child sexual abuse can occur in a variety of settings, including Acquaintance's place,
victim's home, school, madrasas, shop, or workplace.
Graph: 7
As in previous years, the acquaintance's place continues to be on the top of the list, and the victim's
place comes in second. As can be seen, 11 other closed places are identified.
Open Places: “Open places are those places which are not surrounded by four walls.”
The data reveals that 8 places are commonly identified with maximum occurrences in streets
(gullies) followed by fields. More than 16% of cases of the total number of 2843 cases have
occurred in open places.
Graph: 8
Out of the total 466 cases that took place in open spaces, 55% cases occurred in streets, 30% in
fields, 11% in the jungle, 10 cases took place in graveyards. It can be seen that no place is safe for
children.
Out of the total 2843 reported cases, the places of abuse were not mentioned in 1164 (41%) cases.

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Period of Abuse
“Period of abuse shows the duration of the crime committed against the victim.”
The recording of the period of abuse is important because it shows that the abuser may go without
detection due to his power over the victims. Table: 2
This table shows that out of the total 2960 cases,

48% girls, and 46% boys were abused once.
Whereas 37 cases girls and 31 boys' cases were
abused more than one time.
Geographical Area of Crime

The number of cases in the provincial divide is dependent on several factors, such as lack of
communication outreach, accessibility to media, police stations, and locally taken decisions.
Graph: 9
The report found that in the geographical areas, continuous to follow previous years pattern with
the highest number of cases were reported from Punjab province with more than 58%. It is
followed by Sindh where 29% cases took place, 7% cases from the KP, 3% cases from the
Islamabad Capital territory, whereas 53 cases were reported from the Balochistan, 18 cases from
Azad Jammu & Kashmir (AJK), and 4 cases were reported from Gilgit Baltistan (GB) as well.
In comparison to last year's data, cases from ICT, Balochistan, AJK, and GB have decreased in the
year 2020 however cases from Punjab province have increased.

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Rural-Urban Divide
According to Population and Housing Census 2017, 64% of the population lives in rural areas, and
36% of the population living in urban areas.
Graph: 10
In the year 2020, out of the total 2960 reported cases, 1915 cases are reported from rural areas and
1045 cases are reported from urban areas. Similar trends of reporting urban-rural have been
recorded earlier.
Case Registration Status

The case registration status determines the process of effective action taken by the police.
Graph: 11
In the year 2020, the reported cases reveal that out of the total, 87% of cases were registered with
the police. In 19 cases police refused to register the cases. In comparison to last year, this year more
cases were registered with police which is a positive sign of active policing.

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Districts-wise Distribution of Data Table: 3

In the year 2020, a total of 105 districts were
identified from all provinces including ICT, Geographical Area
AJK, and GB where child abuse cases have
been reported.
See annexure number 1 for a detailed list of
districts.
Ten Most Vulnerable Districts Table: 4

The table shows that out of the total number
of 2960 cases more than 44% of cases were
reported from these 10 districts. Out of these
10 districts, 8 districts were from Punjab,
and 2 districts are reported from Sindh
Province.
Like in previous years, this year also

Rawalpindi was on the top with 295 cases.
Kasur district is in second position while
Islamabad falls to the sixth position from
second position last year.
For districts details please go to annexure number 1

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Analysis of Child Sexual Abuse Cases Only

This chapter of the report provides a detailed analysis of child sexual abuse (CSA) cases only,
excluding cases of abduction, missing children, and cases of child marriages.
Data of Only CSA

In the year 2020, a total of 1823 (62%) cases of only CSA were reported out of the total 2960
reported cases of child abuse.
Graph: 12
The analysis of the data indicates that this year cases of only CSA have increased by 17% as
compared to last year's data.
Gender Divide
Every year, millions of girls and boys around the world face sexual abuse and exploitation.
The below graph indicates that the gender divide of only CSA cases reported in 2020. There are
more boys' victims.
Graph: 13

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This year out of the total 1823 reported cases, 55% of cases were boys and 45% were girls. In
comparison to last year's data in the year 2020 more boys than girls are victims of sexual abuse.
The ratio in 2019 was 51% boys: 49% girls.
This data portrays how boys are becoming an increased victim to abuse.
Crime Categories of Child Sexual Abuse

All forms of child sexual abuse can have a long-term impact on emotional, social, and educational
development and is linked to the development of mental health issues in later life.
Rape/Sodomy
Definition of Rape: “Rape is a type of sexual assault that may involve sexual intercourse, which is
initiated against a female without her consent.”
Definition of Sodomy: “Sodomy is forced sexual intercourse between two male persons.”
Graph: 14
As compared to last year's data, cases of sodomy have rapidly increased from 348 cases in the year
2019 to (32%) 459 cases reported in the year 2020. While in rape cases a slight increase can be seen
from 279 cases in 2019 to (9%) 305 cases reported in 2020.

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Gang Rape/Sodomy
Definition of Gang Rape/Sodomy: “Gang Rape/Sodomy occurs when a group of people abuses
a victim.”
Graph: 15
It is noted that this year, a decrease in cases of gang sodomy, and gang rape have been recorded. In
2019 there were 205 cases of gang Sodomy, and 115 cases of gang rape.
The attempt of gang rape and attempt of gang sodomy cases have decreased in the year 2020.
Attempt of Rape/Sodomy
Definition of Attempt of Rape/Sodomy: “Attempt of rape/sodomy is when there is an assault
with intent to rape but no sexual penetration takes place”
Graph: 16

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This year's data shows that out of the total 1823 reported of only CSA cases, 25% cases were
attempt of child sexual abuse.
Last year's data showed 210 cases of attempt of rape and 106 cases of attempt of sodomize.
Murder after Sexual Abuse

Definition of Murder after Sexual Abuse: “An act when the victim is murdered after an
attempt or sexual abuse.”
Graph: 17
This year's data shows that out of the total reported cases 80 children were murdered after
sexual abuse. In comparison to last year's data, a significant increase can be seen in the cases of
abduction and sodomy murder from 7 cases to 13 cases.
The reason for abusers to kill the victims could be to make the case more difficult as the child
will not be a witness to the crime, and cannot expose their identity.

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Age of Victims of Only CSA Cases

Children from birth onwards may be subjected to sexual abuse.
Graph: 18
The most vulnerable age group of CSA victims is 6 to 15 years. The same age that is recorded
for all cases.
In 2019 only 49 boys in below 5 years were recorded. Whereas, in the age group 11 to 15
years, are increase from 28% in 2019 to 32% in 2020 is recorded.
Last year out of the total reported cases, the age of victims was not mentioned in 27% of cases,
while in the year 2020, 23% of cases the age of victims was not mentioned.
Analysis of Age Group 0-5 Years

Age Group 0-5 Years
It is believed that child sexual abuse mainly Table: 5
happens to adolescents or older children. The
cruel Numbers data shows that children of all
age brackets are victims of sexual abuse.
The table shows that out of the total of 1823

reported cases, 7% of victims were in this age
group.

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Crime Categories of Age Group 0-5 Years

Table: 6
The table reveals that in this age
group boys are more sexually
abused than girls as compared to
last year's data. Whereas, in the
category of the attempt of sexual
abuse cases girls are more than
cases of boys. While in the total
of 9 cases of murder after sexual
abuse, 7 cases have occurred
with boys, and 2 cases occurred
with girls.
Abuser Category of Age Group 0-5 Years
Table: 7
The table shows that out of the
total reported cases of this age
group, 75% of perpetrators were
acquaintances.
Neighbor
Further analysis reveals that in
18% of cases the perpetrators
were familiar to the child.
Step Father

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Crime Category of Age Group 6-10 Years
Table: 8
The table indicates
that, same as the
previous age group
of below 5 years, also
in this age bracket
boys more than girls
w er e vi ct i m i ze d.
While in the attempt
of sexual abuse cases
girls are higher than
the boys.
It is also noted that

more boys than girls
were victimized by
gangs. It is extremely sad that in the age bracket 6-10 years, 11 girls were sexually abused
by their close blood relatives/immediate family members.
In the age bracket, Table: 9

6-10 years a total
of 27 children
were murdered
after being
sexually abused.
There has been a

slight decrease in
these cases as compared to last year's data from 32 cases in 2019 to 27 cases in 2020.

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Table: 10
In this age bracket, 69% of cases are acquaintances. Whereas only 34 cases strangers were
involved in victimizing the children.
A total of 679 perpetrators were involved in abusing the children in 523 cases. Whereas 37
cases the number of abusers was not mentioned in newspapers.

Table: 11
Like in the previous age bracket, it was

seen that sodomy cases are higher than rape
cases also in this age bracket.
In this age bracket, 12 incest cases have

been reported and all the incest cases
occurred with the girl child.
Unlike the last two age groups, in this age

group in cases of CSA after abduction, girls
are more victims than boys.
Table: 12
The table reveals that in the age bracket
11-15 Years, a total of 29 cases were
reported of murder after sexual abuse. In
comparison to last year's data, these cases
have increased from 20 cases in 2019 to 29
cases in 2020.

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Table: 13
The table shows that in the age bracket 11-15 years in 73% of cases the abusers were
acquaintances. Analysis of the data reveals that a total of 909 abusers were involved in the
victimization of 532 children in this age group. Whereas, in 55 reported cases the number of
abusers was not mentioned in newspapers.

Table: 14
The table shows that in this age bracket more boys
are victims than girls. Whereas, last year in this
age group more girls were victims than boys.
In this age bracket, 8 cases were reported of

pornography. Whereas in 6 cases children were
murdered after sexual abuse.
Likewise, in other age groups, 5 cases of incest

were identified in this age bracket, with children
abused by their family members/close blood
relatives.

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Table: 15
Age Group Not Mentioned Table: 16

In the year 2020, out of the total 1823 cases
of only child sexual abuse cases, the age of
420 victims was not mentioned
Place of Abuse of Only CSA Cases

This year out of the total 1823 cases, 58% of cases took place in closed places and 14% cases took
place in open places whereas, in 28% of cases places of abuse were not mentioned in newspapers.
Graph: 19
The graph reveals that 41% of cases took place at the acquaintance's place, 10% cases at the
victim's place, and 7% cases occurred in the field. Whereas 28% of cases the place of abuse was not
mentioned in the newspapers.

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Rural-Urban Divide of Only CSA Cases

Like in previous years this year also more cases still take place in rural areas.
Graph: 20
This year out of the total 1823 cases, 1285 cases were reported from rural areas and 538 cases were
reported from urban areas.
Case Registration Status of Only CSA Cases

Registration of cases determines the start of the process of apprehending and taking legal action
against the abuser. This also helps the state machinery intact for such purposes to implement the
laws.
Graph: 21

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The graph reveals that 93% of cases have been registered with the police. In comparison to last
year's data, the cases of unregistered with police on refusal to register have decreased. In the last
year 2019, in 20 cases police refusal was recorded while this year in 11 cases police refused to
register the case. In 2019, 22 cases were unregistered with police. While this year 2020, 16 cases
were unregistered with police. It is a positive sign that police refusal has decreased.
Geographical Data of Only CSA Cases

Graph: 22
This year out of the total 1823 of only CSA cases, 65% cases reported from Punjab, 24% cases
from Sindh, 7% cases from KP, 43 cases from ICT, 17 cases from Balochistan, 16 cases from AJK,
and 4 cases were reported from GB.
Ten Most Vulnerable Districts of Only CSA Cases

Table: 17
The table shows that out of the total
reported cases, 45% of cases were
reported in these 10 districts.
This year Rawalpindi once again was

on the top of the list. In the top 10
districts, Khairpur is the single one
which is in Sindh province while the
rest of the districts are in Punjab
province. This can be attributed to its
large population and media access
ensures the coverage of the case.

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Five Most Vulnerable Districts from each Geographical Area of

Only CSA Cases Table: 18
The table indicates the top 5 districts from each province from where cases of child sexual abuse
have been reported in all provinces including AJK, ICT, and GB.

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Data Analysis of Abduction Cases

Definition of Abduction: “Abduction is defined as taking away a person by persuasion, fraud,
force or violence. Child abduction is the offense of wrongly removing or wrongfully retaining,
detaining, or concealing a child.”
Total Cases of Abduction

This year, a total of 834 cases of abduction have been reported from newspapers. This data
includes abduction cases and all the crime categories of sexual abuse committed after abduction.
Graph: 23
The graph shows that in the year 2020, the cases of abduction have slightly decreased by 4% as
compared to last year's data.
The below graph illustrates all reported abduction cases in the year 2020.
Graph: 24

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Gender Divide of Abduction Cases

Out of the total 834 cases of abduction, 74% of cases were of girls, and 26% reported cases were of
boys.
Graph: 25
Like previously, number of cases involving female's victims is almost three times higher than that
of male victim's boy cases. Whereas out of 2960 reported cases, 1823 cases are of CSA only, girls
and boys are equally vulnerable. Abduction for ransom and abduction for family dispute-like
cases are not included in this analysis.
Age of Victims of Abduction Cases

The graph shown below reveals the age of victims in abduction cases:
Graph: 26
Like the last year, the data of this year also shows that abducted children mostly belong to the
11-15 years age group. The analysis of data from 2020 indicates that cases of 0-5 year's age group
have decreased as compared to 2019. While cases of abduction in all age groups have risen this
year.

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Abuser Category of Abduction Cases

This year trend of abduction cases was no different than the past year. Most of the abusers in
abduction cases are acquaintances
Graph: 27
The graph shows that out of the total 834 cases; Abuser in 43% cases was acquaintances and in
25% cases were strangers. While in 14% cases acquaintance with strangers were involved in
abducting children, in the year 2020. In 10% cases, no details of abusers were reported in the
newspapers.
Places of Abduction Cases
Graph: 28

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The graph demonstrates that the highest number of abduction cases took place in the streets (20%),
followed by victims' place (16%). While 11% cases took place at the acquaintance's place. In
almost half of the cases (49%) places of abduction were not mentioned in the newspapers.
Geographical Divide of Abduction Cases Table: 19

This year's data shows that cases of
abduction were reported from 71 districts of
Pakistan. Out of the total reported districts,
30 districts were from Sindh, 29 from
Punjab, 5 from KP and 3 each from
Balochistan and AJK.
Ten Most Vulnerable Districts Table: 20

Out of the total 834 reported cases of
abduction, 60% of cases were reported from
the 10 districts given in the following table.
As in 2019, Rawalpindi remains on the top

for the highest number of reported cases of
abduction. Out of these 10 districts, 7
districts were from Punjab, and 2 districts
were from Sindh.

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Rural-Urban Divide of Abduction Cases

In the year 2020 out of the total 834 reported cases, 494 cases occurred in rural areas and 340 in
urban areas.
Graph: 29
This year cases reported from urban areas have slightly increased from 38% in 2019 to 41% in
2020.
Abduction Case Registration Status

Almost 87% cases were registered with the police that clearly shows willingness of the society to
fight against this crime.
Graph: 30
According to the data, out of 834 only 8 cases were unregistered with police, police refused to
register the case in 5 incidents. The case status was not stated in 95 cases in news reports.

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Data Analysis of Abduction Cases Only

In this section, cases of only abduction have been analyzed. Out of the total 834 cases 673 reported
cases were of abduction only i.e., the category of abduction without any affiliation with another
crime.
Gender Divide of Abduction Cases Only
This year's cruel numbers indicates that in the 673 reported cases, 77% girls and 23% boys were
being abducted.
Graph: 31
Boys Girls
The ratio of girls being abducted is greater than of boys unlike the cases of Sexual Abuse where
both girls and boys are equally vulnerable.
Geographical Area of Abduction Cases Only

This year cases of child abduction were reported from all provinces including AJK and ICT.
Graph: 32
This year out of the total reported cases, 67% of cases were reported from Punjab province, 22%
from Sindh, and 8% from ICT. From KPK, total of 14 cases, from Balochistan 4 cases and from
AJK 2 cases were reported.
This year has shown a significant decrease in cases of abduction in ICT. From 121 cases reported in
2019 the number has decreased to 56 in the year 2020.

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Data Analysis of Cases of Sexual Abuse after Abduction

This section of Cruel Numbers 2020 consists of a detailed analysis of the reported cases of child
sexual abuse after the abduction.
Gender Divide of Sexual Abuse after Abduction Cases

This graph shows that in a total of 151 cases of sexual abuse after abduction, 58% of girls and 42%
of boys were the victims.
Graph: 33
The further analysis of cruel numbers shows that in the cases of abduction, 74% victims were girls
and 26% were boys. While in the cases of sexual abuse after abduction, the difference reduced by a
great extent, almost one half of the victims (58%) were girls and other half (42%) cases were boys.
This shows that boys are more at risk of being subjected to sexual abuse after abduction as
compared to girls.

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Crime Categories of Sexual Abuse after Abduction

In comparison to last year's data shows that in the year 2020 the cases of child sexual abuse after
abduction have been increased by 91% from 2019.
Graph: 34
This is alarming that out of the total 151 reported cases, in 18 cases children were murdered after
being subjected to sexual abuse after the abduction. Whereas in 7 cases, the children were not only
abducted and abused but were also used for/involved in pornography.
Rape/Sodomy after Abduction

Graph: 35
A significant increase can be seen in the cases of rape and sodomy after abduction this year, from
14 cases in 2019 to 48 cases in 2020.

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Gang Rape/Sodomy after Abduction

In most of the sexual abuse crimes, especially against girls more than one abuser are involved. The
graph shows that gangs were involved in most of the cases of girl's child sexual abuse after the
abduction.
Graph: 36
In comparison to last year's data a significant increase has been recorded in the cases of abduction
and gang sodomy from 6 cases in 2019 to 18 cases in 2020.
Rape/Sodomy Murder after Abduction

In 2020, out of the total 834 cases, in 18 cases children were sexually abused & murdered after
abduction.
Graph: 37
In those 18 cases, 14 (78%) victims were boys, and 4 (22%) victims were girls. The percentage of
boys murdered by the perpetrators remained higher than girls even in 2020.

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Pornography after Abduction and CSA

Many offenders who sexually abuse children also involve child in pornography. In the year 2020, 7
such cases were being reported in the newspapers.
Graph: 38

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Data Analysis of Missing Children

“Missing children are those who are separately reported in newspapers under this category”
Total Case Comparison of Missing Children

Missing children are most likely to be victims of sexual abuse, commercial sexual exploitation,
trafficking, and beggary.
Graph: 39
The reports of missing children were 15% less, compared to the last year statistics.
Gender Divide of Missing Children

In the year 2020, 345 cases of missing children were reported. In 86% of the cases, boys and in
14% cases girls went missing.
Graph: 40
Girls Boys
In the reports of missing children, there were more boys in 2020, than girls. The same as the last
year.

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Age of Victims of Missing Children

As in abduction cases, the age group of 11-15 years continued to remain the most vulnerable group
in case of missing children
Graph: 41
Most number of missing boys are also from the 11-15 years age group. The reasons behind it could
be but is not confined to, mistreatment, abuse, or neglect at home; the onset of adolescence affects
on their emotions and self-esteem making them take rash decisions and risks.
Geographical Area of Missing Children

Out of the total 345 reported cases of missing children, more than half (56%) of the cases were
reported from Sindh province. In contrary to the other crime categories, where Punjab province
was on the top of the list.
Graph: 42
This year showed a significant increase in the number of reported cases of missing children from
KP province. In comparison to the last years' 35 cases, this year 70 such cases were reported.

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Rural-Urban Divide of Missing Children

Out of 345 cases, 193 cases were from rural areas, and 152 cases were reported from urban areas.
Graph: 43
Similar to other crime categories, missing children's cases were reported more from rural areas.
Missing Children Case Registration Status

Out of the total 345 reported cases, police registered 134 (61%) cases and refused to register only 2
cases. While in 39% of cases the status of registration was not mentioned in newspapers.
Graph: 44
The reason that missing children's cases may not be registered with police is that there is a
possibility of the child returning home within a day or so.

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District Divide of Missing Children Cases

The analysis of the data indicates that cases of missing children were reported from 64 districts
from all four provinces including Islamabad capital territory.
Ten Most Vulnerable Districts of Abduction Cases

More than the half (54%) cases were from Table: 21
these 10 districts.
Out of these 10 districts, 8 districts were

from Sindh province, and 1 each from
KPK and Balochistan.

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Data Analysis of Child Marriages

“Child marriage is defined as a formal or informal union before the age of 18 years for boys and
16 years for girls in Pakistan. However, in Sindh province, the legally accepted age for both boys
and girls is 18 years”.
Cases of Child Marriages

Child marriage is a global issue that cuts across countries, cultures, and religions. It can lead to a
lifetime of disadvantage and deprivation to the developing mind and body of a child. The
psychological, biological, and social impact of child marriages has a destructive effect on not only
the child him/herself but society at large.
Graph: 45
In the year 2020, a total of 119 cases of child marriages were reported. From the previous year, the
number of cases has increased by 14%.
Gender Divide of Child Marriages

In our culture and society, girls often have little or no say in their marriages, or their choice of
spouse.
Graph: 46
That is the main reason for girls being the biggest victim of this crime as compared to the boys.

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Age of Victims of Child Marriages

Like the previous years, this year also the cases of child marriages are mostly from the age bracket
of 11 - 15 years.
Graph: 47
The graph shows that, in almost all the age groups only girls are subjected to child marriages. This
shows that more girls are not only being married at a young age but also with the grooms older than
the girls and most of them are above 18 years old.
In all the age groups, cases of child marriages involving girls have increased while that of boys
have decreased in the year 2020.
Crime Categories in Child Marriages

Definition of Vanni/Sang Chatti and Swara
“Vanni, Sang Chatti, and Swara are traditional practices where girls or boys are given away for
marriage as a settlement for a dispute or as blood money in settlement of murder”.
Table: 22
This year total cases of
child marriages and its
different categories
show that there is an
increased in vanni by 5
cases, and 2 new
categories were
recorded as Sawara and
Wattasatta. A decreased
seen in abduction and child marriages by 3 cases, and sangchatti by 5 cases.

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Provincial Divide of Child Marriage Cases

As previously, Sindh province remained on the top of the list of child marriage cases as well as in
the cases of abduction, this year.
Graph: 48
The data reveals that out of the total 119 cases, 76 cases were from Sindh. While the cases in
Punjab have decreased from 18 to 16 cases in a spam of one year.
Rural-Urban Divide of Child Marriages

Graph: 49
Same as in other Crime categories of child abuse, more cases of child marriages were reported
from the rural than urban areas.

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Child Marriages Case Registration Status

Graph: 50
Out of the total 119 reported cases of child marriages, police registered 85% of the cases this year.

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Child Abuse Reported by SSDO

Sustainable Social Development Organization (SSDO) has published a report titled “Tracking
Numbers: State of Violence Against Women and Children in Pakistan”. For this report, nine
indicators were selected which are Child Abuse, Child Labor, Child Marriages, Domestic
Violence, Violence Against Women, Harassment at Workplace, Kidnapping and Murder.
As seen in the chart below, the data on Child Abuse includes the physical, emotional, or sexual
mistreatment of a child, or the neglect of a child, in the context of relationship of responsibility,
trust, or power, resulting in actual or potential harm to the child's physical and emotional health,
survival, and development.
The report includes data gathered on Child Abuse through print media (Media Tracking) as well
as official sources (official statistics) through the right to information laws.
Reference: https://www.ssdo.org.pk/storage/app/uploads/public/604/8ac/d3e/6048acd3e6830397203898.pdf

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Cruel Numbers 2020

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Cruel Numbers 2020

Title Cover Design

Note: Any reference taken from this report should

Designing & Printing by: Al-Saif Printers Islamabad. 0301-5439699

Findings of Cruel Numbers 2020 07

Analysis of Child Sexual Abuse Cases Only 17

Analysis of Age Group 0-5 Years 21

Age Group 0-5 Years 22

Data Analysis of Abduction Cases 30

Data Analysis of Abduction Cases Only 35

Crime Categories of Sexual Abuse after Abduction 37

FIR First Information Report

ICT Islamabad Capital Territory

JJSO Juvenile Justice System Ordinance

UNCRC United Nation's Convention on the Rights of the Child

WHO World Health Organization

i Cruel Number 2020

Message from the Editor

Cruel Number 2020 ii

The objectives of this report are:

· To contribute towards spreading awareness and information about diﬀerent forms of

01 Cruel Number 2020

Cruel Number 2020 02

03 Cruel Number 2020

Detail of 84 daily monitored newspapers:

· 29 monitored at Sahil Head oﬃce Islamabad (including 6 online newspapers)

Cruel Number 2020 04

05 Cruel Number 2020

Limitations of the Report

Cruel Number 2020 06

Findings of Cruel Numbers 2020

Year 2019 Year 2020

07 Cruel Number 2020

Boys Girls Total

561 459 451

Cruel Number 2020 08

Graph: 4 Crime Categories

09 Cruel Number 2020

Child Sexual Abuse and Pornography

Cruel Number 2020 10

Deﬁnitions of Abuser Categories

Abusers within the Family (Incest)

11 Cruel Number 2020

Parents and Guardians can keep children safe.

· Talk to your children

Cruel Number 2020 12

Closed Places: “Closed places are those that are enclosed.”

13 Cruel Number 2020

This table shows that out of the total 2960 cases,

Geographical Area of Crime

Cruel Number 2020 14

Case Registration Status

15 Cruel Number 2020

Districts-wise Distribution of Data Table: 3

Ten Most Vulnerable Districts Table: 4

Like in previous years, this year also

For districts details please go to annexure number 1

Cruel Number 2020 16

Analysis of Child Sexual Abuse Cases Only