Child abuse – Antoniushilfe will not stay silent
Again and again we witness the abuse of children, in Pakistan too. Recently a girl from our school project was sold to a human trafficker by her own father.
Most of these children are nameless and far away from us. This girl – we call her Aleyna (name changed) – was part of our school project. The following report is from our co-worker Anthony Javed:
Child abuse and neglect are serious global problems. Whether physical, sexual, emotional or through neglect, they leave children with severe and lasting psychological harm. In this case, a ten-year-old orphan girl was physically abused by a man.
Background: Aleyna was born in 2014 into a Christian family in Faisalabad district. Her mother died giving birth. Her father, a day labourer living in rented housing, then looked after her. But he was an alcoholic who abused his daughter physically and verbally. On 23 April 2024 he sold her to a trafficker in Faisalabad.
I received a call from Father Azhar OP, a Dominican priest who works with Anthony's Foundation. He told me about Aleyna. I was shocked to hear this story in my office, where I work as a lawyer.
I took two men with me and drove straight to the brothel. Fortunately the trafficker was not there. We could not ask the police for help, because they protect the man and take bribes from him every week. Inside, I met a woman named Faiza, who helped me find the girl. We searched every room and finally found Aleyna – unconscious and tied up with ropes. I untied her, took the child and fled.
Soon afterwards the trafficker called me. I don't know how he knew my home and office address. He threatens to kill my family and demands the girl back, claiming he paid 400,000 PKR (about €1,350) for her. Aleyna stayed with Dominican sisters at their convent for a week and now lives with a Catholic family.
Anthony Javed, Faisalabad, 13 May 2024
Our co-worker Anthony is now under serious threat. The traffickers first demanded the child's return by phone, threatening to murder him and his family. In a threatening letter they repeated the demand and asked for €3,300 instead. We have decided to pay this sum to protect Aleyna and Anthony's family – even if some may consider this a mistake. We ask for your support with this.
On 16 June 2024 there was an attack on Anthony: while riding his motorbike with his nephew, he was deliberately forced off the road by another motorbike. Thank God the fall was not serious; Anthony suffered injuries to his knee and ankle.
Reiner Wettcke for Antoniushilfe e.V.