A state failing its children

EDITORIAL: That 1, 914 cases of violence and abuse against children were reported across Pakistan in just the first six months of 2026 should provoke considerably more than another round of concern and condemnation. The figure cited by Senator Sherry Rehman points to a child protection crisis that has been allowed to linger for far too long despite repeated evidence of its scale. Nearly four cases were reported every day during the period. For a state that claims the protection of its citizens as one of its most fundamental responsibilities, continued failure to protect its most vulnerable citizens is indefensible. The details make the picture even more disturbing. According to the figures cited, 43 percent of the accused were known to their victims and nearly 45 percent of incidents occurred inside children’s homes. Punjab accounted for 80 percent of reported cases, while 57 percent came from urban areas and 43 percent from rural areas. Abuse therefore crosses the boundaries that governments sometimes find convenient when compartmentalising social problems. And when the alleged abuser is known to the child or the abuse takes place at home, conventional assumptions about where protection begins become dangerously inadequate. There has been no shortage of outrage whenever particularly horrific cases have entered the national consciousness. Governments promise action, politicians condemn the perpetrators, committees are formed and attention eventually moves elsewhere. The persistence of the problem suggests that episodic outrage has failed spectacularly as child protection policy. Pakistan requires functioning systems that identify vulnerable children, make reporting safe, investigate allegations professionally, protect victims throughout the process and prosecute offenders effectively. Those systems must work every day, including when television cameras have moved on. The reported registration of 89 percent of cases with police is encouraging only as a starting point. The real measure is what happens afterwards. How many complaints produce competent investigations? How quickly do cases reach trial? How many prosecutions result in convictions where evidence establishes guilt? How effectively are victims protected from intimidation and further trauma? And what support is available to a child required to navigate police stations, medical examinations and court proceedings after already suffering abuse? Without answers to these questions, an FIR can become little more than official confirmation that something terrible happened. Responsibility consequently runs through the entire state apparatus. Provincial governments must ensure that child protection institutions possess adequate staff, funding and reach. Police require specialised training for handling child victims and preserving evidence. Prosecutors must be equipped to pursue these cases effectively, while courts must prevent proceedings from dragging on until victims and their families are exhausted by the process. Schools, healthcare institutions and social welfare departments also need credible reporting and referral mechanisms. Where institutions fail through negligence, that failure must carry consequences as well. Families and communities have an equally important role, especially because so many alleged perpetrators are known to victims. Yet appeals for greater parental vigilance cannot become an excuse for weak state protection. Children frequently lack the ability, confidence or opportunity to report abuse, particularly when the perpetrator exercises authority over them. Protection mechanisms must therefore be designed around the reality of a frightened and vulnerable child rather than the convenience of the institutions receiving the complaint. Pakistan has discussed child abuse for years. The vocabulary of shock, concern and zero tolerance is by now very well rehearsed. What remains conspicuously less impressive is the record of prevention, prosecution, protection and justice. The country needs measurable results: fewer children abused, more victims protected, faster investigations, effective prosecutions and punishment where guilt is established. Anything less leaves “child protection” as another solemn promise the state remembers whenever the latest statistics become impossible to ignore. Copyright Business Recorder, 2026

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