![\"Muazzam](\"https:\/\/morningstarnews.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/Muazzam-Mazhar-kidnapped-Roshni-Shaqeel-on-March-13-20-in-Basti-Khaliq-Pura-Pakistan-the-girls-parents-say.-Christian-Daily-International-Morning-Star-News.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\nMuazzam Mazhar kidnapped Roshni Shaqeel on March 13, 2024 in Basti Khaliq Pura, Pakistan, the girl\u2019s parents say. (Christian Daily International-Morning Star News)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
LAHORE<\/strong>, Pakistan<\/strong>\u00a0(Christian Daily International<\/a>\u2013<\/em>Morning Star News<\/a>) \u2013 A high court in Pakistan on Monday (March 25) rejected a Christian woman\u2019s attempt to recover her 13-year-old daughter, instead allowing the child to go with a Muslim who abducted, forcibly converted her to Islam and married her, sources said.<\/p>\n Shakeel Masih\u2019s daughter, Roshni Shakeel, was taken from her home<\/a> in Basti Khaliq Pura in Multan District, Punjab Province, on March 13 by a 28-year-old Muslim, Muazzam Mazhar, when Masih and his wife were out of the house for work.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Masih\u2019s wife, Nazia Shakeel, on March 18 filed a habeas corpus<\/em> petition in the Lahore High Court (LHC) for the recovery of their daughter after the family was unable to find her.<\/p>\n On Monday (March 25), Sital Mari police presented Roshni and Mazhar in the court of Justice Ali Zia Bajwa of the Multan Bench of the LHC.<\/p>\n \u201cMy wife and I were hoping that the judge would consider it a clear case of child marriage and order action against the accused, but we were utterly disappointed when he completely ignored our pleas for justice,\u201d Masih told Christian Daily International-Morning Star News.<\/p>\n Masih said the judge set aside case documents without even looking at them and posed only one question to Roshni: Had she married Muazzam with her own free will?<\/p>\n \u201cWhen Roshni said that she had done so willingly and wanted to go with Muazzam, the judge congratulated her on the marriage and said she was free to live with her husband,\u201d Masih said. \u201cMy wife and I pleaded the judge to at least consider her age and the fact that the child was under the influence of the accused for over two weeks, and she could have been easily coerced into giving that statement. Instead of listening to us and our lawyer, the judge hushed us with a hand gesture and announced his decision.\u201d<\/p>\n The impoverished Christian, a cleaner at a local restaurant, has sold household items, including mobile phones and his brother\u2019s motorcycle, to fund efforts to recover his daughter and in a desperate quest for justice.<\/p>\n \u201cAll my efforts have gone in vain, because the court did not even bother to inspect her official birth document and other evidence,\u201d Masih said. \u201cOur lawyer argued that Roshni was visibly underage and the matter should be dealt as a child marriage, but the judge did not listen to him as well.\u201d<\/p>\n Authorities did not give Masih or his wife a chance to meet with Roshni and ask her about her wellbeing, he said.<\/p>\n \u201cIn fact, the police and family members of the accused blocked her view during the entire time she was in the courtroom. They then took her away in front of our eyes, and there was nothing I could do to stop them,\u201d Masih said as grief and frustration overtook his voice.<\/p>\n Despite the setback, Masih said he was determined to make every possible legal effort to bring his daughter home.<\/p>\n \u201cRoshni is just a child, how can I let that criminal exploit her and then God forbid, sell her into slavery? I will not stop till I rescue my daughter,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n His Muslim attorney, Muhammad Umar Ashraf, said he was confident that the court would notice the physical condition of Roshni and treat it as a case of child marriage without question.<\/p>\n \u201cHowever, I too was dismayed when the judge flatly refused to admit my arguments and inspect the documents,\u201d Ashraf told Christian Daily International-Morning Star News. \u201cIt looked as if he was in no mood to rule in our favor.\u201d<\/p>\n The attorney said that when he pointed out the child\u2019s age before the judge, he told him to take the matter to the family court or file an intra-court appeal against his decision.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m ready to move both forums in light of a recent decision by Justice Anwar Ul Haq Pannun of the LHC Multan Bench, wherein the court has ordered the government to strictly implement the anti-child marriage laws,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n In a landmark interim order issued by Justice Pannun on Feb. 28, the court ordered authorities to implement the anti-child marriage laws in letter and spirit. The court was hearing a petition filed by a Muslim woman, Ramzana Bibi, seeking the custody of a niece who had fallen victim to child marriage.<\/p>\n The court also established a high-level committee headed by Prosecutor General of Punjab Syed Farhad Ali Shah to ensure effective implementation of child marriage restraint laws. It also ordered chairmen of union councils to promptly annul any underage marriages, with the court mandating strict legal actions against such unions.<\/p>\n Pannun\u2019s order also instructed the assistant director of local government to conduct monthly reviews of union council records at the local tehsil<\/em> level, emphasizing the critical role of local government in the complex challenge.<\/p>\n Expressing disappointment over the court\u2019s order, Netherlands-based rights activist Joseph Janssen said that he will support the Masih family in their struggle for justice.<\/p>\n \u201cI find it very absurd that courts in Pakistan continue to endorse child marriages, especially when the girls belong to the minority communities,\u201d Janssen said. \u201cIn such cases, the courts readily admit the girl\u2019s statement regarding her age without even thinking that the child could have been forced to lie under pressure.\u201d<\/p>\n Kidnapped girls in Pakistan are routinely pressured to make statements in favor of their abductors with threats of severe harm to their family or themselves, rights advocates say.<\/p>\n Janssen added that Pakistan needed to consider child marriages as a national issue.<\/p>\n \u201cIncreasing the minimum marriageable age to 18 years in Punjab to bring it at par with the other three provinces can also be an effective deterrent against forced conversions and forced marriages of minority girls,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Bishop Leo Roderick Paul of the Multan Diocese of the Church of Pakistan supported the idea of increasing the minimum marriageable age in Punjab Province.<\/p>\n \u201cChild marriages are rampant in Punjab,\u201d Paul said. \u201cSeveral cases involving Christian girls often go unreported due to the weak family backgrounds of the victims. I believe that raising the minimum age for marriage can help in bringing some safeguard against this crime.\u201d<\/p>\n He also stressed the need for rigorous awareness campaigns in the Christian community to educate the members, especially minor girls.<\/p>\n \u201cIt is very important to build a strong spiritual foundation in our children so that they are not easily enticed by the perpetrators,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Pakistan ranked seventh on Open Doors\u2019 2024 World Watch List of the most difficult places to be a Christian, as it was the previous year.<\/p>\n If you would like to help persecuted Christians, visit\u00a0<\/em>https:\/\/morningstarnews.org\/resources\/aid-agencies\/<\/em><\/a>\u00a0for a list of organizations that can orient you on how to get involved. \u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n If you or your organization would like to help enable Morning Star News to continue raising awareness of persecuted Christians worldwide with original-content reporting, please consider collaborating at\u00a0<\/em>https:\/\/morningstarnews.org\/donate\/<\/em><\/a>?<\/em><\/p>\n ###<\/p>\n \u00a9 2024 Christian Daily International-Morning Star News. 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