PAKISTAN
Forbes
March 1, 2020
By Ewelina U. Ochab
What qualifies a girl to be ready to marry? According to the High Court of Sindh in Karachi, Pakistan, a girl is ready to marry after she has had her first period. The ruling, which appears to rely entirely on the Court’s restrictive interpretation of Shari’a law, was released on February 3, 2020. The case involved the alleged abduction, forced conversion, forced marriage, enslavement, and ongoing rape and sexual abuse of a Catholic girl, Huma Younus.
It was alleged that Huma Younus was abducted from her parents’ home in Karachi on October 10, 2019, by a man named Abdul Jabbar of Dera Ghazi Khan, Punjab Province. Younus, born on May 22, 2005, was 14 years of age at the time of the alleged abduction. A text message was allegedly sent to Younus parents stating that she had converted to Islam and had married Jabbar “of her free will.” (Even if true, it is also questionable whether her marriage was conducted in compliance with Islam. Marriage contract in Islam requires (1) a clear proposal, (2) clear acceptance or consent (although silence is just as acceptable), (3) at least two competent witnesses and (4) a marriage gift, little or more, by the bridegroom to the bride.)
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