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Where the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) has made China an important ally for Pakistan, it’s now spreading a negative count in Pakistani minds. Since the commemoration of the billion-dollar project, several criminal cases related to Chinese nationals have been reported time after time. Be it ATM skimming, issuance of Pakistan’s Computerized National Identity Cards (CNIC) or Chinese/Pakistani marriages, our neighbors from CPEC manage to stay in the news.
Since last year, Pakistan has been the hub of transnational marriages. Pakistanis were in sheer awe and called these marriages an advantage of CPEC but later it was discovered as a human trade case by the law enforcement agencies and the investigation started. The case spread all over the news with the blink of an eye and everyone was shocked.
Recently, The Deputy Director of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) made a statement in which he told the media that 8 Chinese nationals and 4 Pakistanis who were involved in human trade got caught from Punjab side and that the FIA will always expose every wrongdoing within the country. The Chinese culprits were responsible for marrying Pakistani girls and trading them to China and force them into illicit activities while the Pakistanis arrested were ‘brokers’ who helped them in finding a poor family.
Another case of a Christian girl from Gujranwala made it to the headlines two days back. Muqadas Ashraf, 16, was sold off to a Chinese man who came to Pakistan in search of a bride. The parents of the girl had taken money against their daughter and now she’s back in Pakistan. She was mistreated there, she’s pregnant now and wants a divorce. It’s all fraud and cheating, she stated.
In the picture above, Mehak Liaquat, another victim of human trading, shows her marriage certificate. Poor Christian girls from Pakistan are forced into marrying Chinese men who seem to be wealthy but in actual they are not that well to do and use Pakistani girls as a source of income.
As CPEC is seen as a huge advantage for Pakistan, these type of cases can’t be ignored. Pakistanis are urging the government and law enforcement agencies to take influential steps regarding the issue. The girls who are still trapped in China should be brought back and make sure no other girl becomes a victim of this ruthless business again.
