Nairobi, Dec 1 (IANS) Sexual abuse in Pakistan’s madrassas forms part of a wider pattern of exploitation, with some institutions implicated in child trafficking — recruiting boys under the guise of religious education and pushing them into forced labour, militancy, or domestic servitude, a report said on Monday.

It added that the absence of oversight enables these networks to operate with alarming ease, and dismissing them as actions of a few “bad apples” ignores the structural reality that such abuse is the inevitable outcome of leaving millions of children in unregulated and unaccountable institutions.

“The recent arrests of madrassa teachers in Haripur and Muzaffargarh — accused of sexually assaulting children as young as five — are not isolated horrors. They reflect a deeper, systemic crisis Pakistan has long refused to confront: the intersection of poverty, clerical authority, and institutional silence that allows child abuse in madrassas to thrive in the shadows,” a report in Kenyan news outlet ‘Capital News’ detailed.

“For millions of impoverished families, madrassas are the only accessible form of education. They promise free learning, food, and religious grounding — a lifeline for parents with few alternatives. But this dependency has created one of the most unregulated child-serving sectors in the country. Where oversight collapses, abuse finds fertile ground,” it added.

According to the report, while madrassas occupy a central place in Pakistan’s social and religious fabric, this reverence frequently acts as a protective shield for predators.

“Clerics wield enormous influence, allowing them to silence victims, intimidate families, and sway local police. This is not mere conjecture but a pattern repeatedly documented by journalists, international media, and human rights organisations. Families frequently encounter bribery attempts, pressure from clerics, and in extreme cases, threats of blasphemy — a charge that can be fatal in Pakistan. In such an environment, poor families are rarely able to challenge a religious figure, even in defence of their children,” it mentioned.

The report noted that the culture of impunity is sustained by a police system that routinely avoids filing cases against religious authorities. It added that complaints are often withdrawn under pressure or discreetly buried, conveying the grim message that the system protects the cleric, not the child.

The stark question confronting Pakistan is whether it will continue to shield abusive structures or protect its future generations.

“Until Pakistan chooses to dismantle the systems enabling this violence, madrassas will remain sanctuaries for predators — and the cycle of trauma will continue unbroken,” the report noted.

–IANS

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