Case of 13‑year‑old Christian girl fuels European Parliament’s concern over Pakistan

The European Parliament expressed deep alarm on July 12 over ongoing reports of forced conversions of minority girls in Pakistan, using the ordeal of 13‑year‑old Christian girl Maria Shahbaz as a focal point. According to a recent study, United Nations estimates suggest that about 25 % of all forced‑religion‑change cases involve Christian minors.

Parliament members called on Pakistani officials to design an all‑encompassing national strategy that would ban child marriage and establish a dedicated system for handling grievances from families whose daughters have been abducted or coerced into changing their faith.

Maria’s case, in which she was allegedly taken by a 30‑year‑old man in July 2025, forced to embrace Islam and compelled toward marriage, was singled out to illustrate the gravity of the situation.

Despite clear indicators of the girl’s minority status and her age, the Federal Constitutional Court in Pakistan delivered a verdict favoring the accused and returned the child to him. The European Parliament sharply criticized the ruling and urged the provision of legal representation and mental‑health support for the young victim.