Source: www.worldea.org
Date: August 14, 2020
On 28th April 2020, 14-year-old Maria Shahbaz was abducted at gunpoint in Madina Town, near Faisalabad, Pakistan. According to reports, her abductors fired gunshots into the air as they fled the scene.
In the days following her abduction, Maria was forcibly married and converted to Islam. Maria’s parents challenged the validity of the marriage and provided her birth certificate to the Faisalabad District and Sessions Court to prove that she was underaged. In response, her abductor, Mohammad Naqash submitted a falsified marriage certificate that claimed she was 19-years-old and that they had married in October 2019. However, the Muslim cleric named in the certificate provided by Naqash denied involvement in the marriage. Subsequently, the court ordered that Maria be removed from Naqash’s custody and placed in a women’s shelter, pending further investigation.
On 4th August 2020, the Lahore High Court ruled in favour of Naqash and ordered that Maria return to her abductor while ruling that she had willingly converted to Islam and entered into marriage and hence should continue her life in his custody and be a “good wife”.
Human rights agencies state that at least 1000 girls belonging to Christian and Hindu communities are forced into marriage every year. According to statistics, 21 percent of girls in Pakistan marry before the age of 18, and 3 percent before the age of 15.
Prayer points:
- Pray that the Court's decision would be overturned and that Maria could return to her parents
- Pray for God's protection over children forced into marriage
- Pray that the authorities would enforce the law more strictly and put an end to child marriage in the country
- Pray for the safety and well-being of girls susceptible of being forced into marriage in Pakistan