In the quiet courtyards of rural Pakistan, a 13-year-old girl is pulled from her school desk and handed a bridal dress. Her childhood ends not with celebration, but with chores, early pregnancy, and a silence enforced by custom. This is not a regional anomaly; it is a national emergency.

According to one UNICEF report, based on the Pakistan Demographic and Health Survey (PDHS) 2017-18, one in six women aged 20–24 in Pakistan was married before the age of 18, translating into 18.9 million child brides. Pakistan currently ranks sixth in the world in child marriage prevalence, according to another report, Gender Strategy Unicef Pakistan 2024-2027, published last year.

Despite legislative efforts, child marriage persists due to a corrosive combination of poverty, patriarchal customs and misinterpreted religious doctrine. In economically marginalised communities, daughters are perceived as liabilities. Cultural practices such as watta satta (reciprocal bride exchange) and vani (girls given to settle disputes) continue to commodify young girls, denying them autonomy and exposing them to lifelong vulnerability.

Legal contradictions deepen this crisis. The Majority Act sets adulthood at 18, yet Section 375(v) of the Pakistan Penal Code permits sexual consent at 16. This inconsistency enables exploitation and weakens legal protection for minors. Enforcement, meanwhile, remains sporadic, often bowing to social pressure and local customs.

One in six Pakistani girls is married off before the age of 18, which means almost 19 million child brides. Behind this statistic are classrooms emptied of girls and hospital wards filled with child mothers

Efforts at reform are complicated by divergent religious interpretations. While Islamic jurisprudence, when applied holistically, emphasises maturity,

mutual consent and public welfare, some clerics still endorse child marriage based on physical signs of puberty alone.

In May 2025, the Council of Islamic Ideology (CII) controversially labelled the statutory marriage age of 18 as “un-Islamic”, following the passage of the Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) Child Marriage Restraint Bill.

The bill, now law within Islamabad, criminalises underage marriage for all genders, with penalties of up to seven years’ imprisonment. “This legislation realigns Pakistan with its international obligations under the CRC [Convention of the Rights of the Child] and CEDAW [Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women],” said parliamentarian Sharmila Faruqui, who introduced the bill.

Sindh passed a similar law in 2014, but Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan continue to rely on outdated or vague legal frameworks, leaving child protection patchy and province-dependent.

CAUGHT IN A VICIOUS CYCLE

The impact of early marriage is profound. The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) reports adolescent childbirth as a major contributor to maternal mortality in Pakistan. Girls under 18 are far more likely to suffer obstetric complications, stillbirths and chronic reproductive health problems.

Mental health effects — from anxiety and depression to suicidal thoughts — are widespread. Only 13 percent of child brides complete secondary school, cementing a cycle of illiteracy and dependence.

Ameena, a 14-year-old from Ghotki, was married off during the 2022 floods to a cousin twice her age. A year later, she suffered complications from a high-risk pregnancy and remains out of school. Her case, tragically, is not unique.

The ICT law represents progress, but its effectiveness depends on broader harmonisation and enforcement. Laws alone cannot stem the tide if implementation falters. Police officers, prosecutors and marriage registrars must be trained and held accountable.

Digital registries for marriages that are linked to the National Database Regulatory Authority (Nadra) should be made mandatory to prevent forgery. A federal task force on child marriage could ensure coordinated efforts across all provinces.

Economic insecurity is often the driving force. During the 2022 floods, child marriages spiked as families sought financial stability. UNFPA has consistently warned that unless economic vulnerability is addressed, legislative change will remain insufficient. Conditional cash transfers, vocational training and school stipends can offer realistic alternatives for struggling families.

STAKEHOLDERS THAT MATTER

In KP and South Punjab, non-governmental organisations (NGOs) have launched successful re-enrolment drives, and engaged local clerics and educators. Several respected Islamic scholars have come forward in support of raising the marriage age, citing maslahah (public interest) as a valid principle of Islamic jurisprudence.

The Legal Aid Society (LAS) offers a compelling model. Through community paralegal networks, training for marriage registrars and local referral systems, LAS integrates legal awareness with grassroots action. “Our programme has prevented dozens of illegal marriages and helped several girls return to education,” says Zahid Ali Messo, a programme officer at LAS.

Media plays a vital role in challenging harmful norms. Targeted digital campaigns, educational television and survivor-led storytelling can reshape public opinion. Public-private coalitions should prioritise outreach in high-risk districts and amplify credible voices — teachers, clerics and social workers.

Ameena and thousands of girls like her continue to be married off in silence. The ICT law offers a ray of hope that, one day, those shadows will be lifted and the quiet suffering of child brides will no longer go unseen. But legislation alone cannot erase these injustices. Real change will require political will, religious leadership and a nationwide reckoning. We must ask ourselves: why did we ever tolerate the theft of childhood?

Each annulled child marriage, each girl rescued from being traded, is a step towards a future where girls become women before they become brides. Ameena deserved better. Pakistan’s children deserve better. Let our daughters’ tears come from playground stumbles, not wedding nights in unfamiliar beds. Let their laughter echo in classrooms, not be buried in silence. Let them grow, learn and thrive — not become wives while they are still daughters.

Only then will Pakistan begin to honour the promise embedded in both its Constitution and its faith: to cherish, protect and uphold the dignity of every child.

The writer is an advocate of the Sindh High Court. He can be contacted at dasoomro@gmail.com

Published in Dawn, EOS, June 6th, 2025