August 4, 2025
By Xari Jalil
LAHORE
A report was released by Women Action Forum on Monday, highlighting the extent of violence against women and girls over the past four years from July 2021 to June 2025. The report and its data was based on media monitoring on a daily basis conducted by the Women’s Action Forum, Hyderabad.
WAF compiled data from regional newspapers, verified reports, social media and digital platforms therefore the data includes only those cases which were reported, whereas WAF members who launched the study stressed that the actual incidence would be estimated to be significantly higher due to underreporting, fear of retaliation, and institutional inaction.
| Year | Total Cases |
|---|---|
| 2021 (Jul–Dec) | ~259 |
| 2022 | 745 |
| 2023 | 792 |
| 2024 (Jan–Jul) | 380+ |
| TOTAL | 2,176+ |
According to the report, in 2021 (July to December) more than 259 cases were reported where some form of gender based violence occurred. This was a six month recording of data. The next year in 2022, there were 745 cases of GBV, in 2023 the number increased to 792, and in the six months of 2024 (Jan to July) over 380 cases were reported. The total number of GBV cases during these years were 2,176.
From 2021 to 2022, reported murders rose by 216%, rape cases surged by 291%, and suicide cases nearly doubled. By 2023, GBV incidents peaked at 792 cases, and even the partial data for 2024 shows over 380 cases in just seven months. These numbers point not to isolated events, but to entrenched structures of gendered violence.
How Patriarchy Operates: Silent Control and Systemic Violence
The report addresses the issue of patriarchy and specifies that it does not always speak in violence, but it always enforces control. It highlights that patriarchal systems work quietly but with full strength, governing women’s lives by especially controlling their choices in love, marriage, work, and movement (mobility); uses concepts of perceived honour, shame, and family reputation as tools to isolate and discipline; denies economic independence, mobility, and public participation.
In a home run under the system of patriarchy there is expected to be surveillance, restriction, and emotional violence, while punishing any form of resistance. Women who assert autonomy face murder especially on basis of ‘honour’, sexual violence, or are pushed to suicide. Suicides, often framed as personal tragedies, can actually be acts of desperation born from abuse, blackmail, and systemic neglect. Women in such spaces may not choose their partner, or even seek divorce, and rejecting control becomes a death sentence
At the same time the justice system fails survivors while protecting perpetrators, reinforcing the victims’ silence.
CRIME CATEGORIES
Murder (excluding honour based killings)
The breakdown for murder cases is as follows: In 2021, there were 57 murders, 180 murders in 2022, 172 murders in 2023, 122 murders in 2024 giving a total of 531 murders. These did not include those murders which ostensibly took place because of reasons of perceived ‘honour’.
Honour based killings
A total of 307 honour based killings occurred during the past four years according to the WAF report. In 2021, there were 63 killings reported, in 2022, around 82, in 2023 around 85 and in 2024 77.
Rape and sexual violence
In 2021, between 21 and 25 cases of rape and sexual violence were reported. Some of these cases were unclear therefore there are no exact numbers. The following year around 90 cases were reported. In 2023 there were 96 cases and in 2024 reported cases went down to 47. The total number from 2021 to 2024 was more than 250 cases.
Around 45 other unspecified cases were recorded.
| Crime Type | Total Cases |
|---|---|
| Murder (non-honour) | 531 |
| Honour Killings | 307 |
| Suicides | 548 |
| Rape/Sexual Violence | 250+ |
| Domestic Violence | 139 |
| Abductions/Kidnapping | 163 |
| Harassment | 94 |
| Attempted Suicides | 26 |
| Acid/Burn Attacks | 16 |
| Forced/Child Marriage | 43 |
| Other/Unspecified | 45 |
| TOTAL (All Crimes) | ~2,176+ |
The reported cases are focused across districts of Sindh. Karachi led with the highest number of cases, followed by Hyderabad and Larkana, Kahirpur, Jacobabad and Dadu among others.
Key observations and trends
Some of the key trends noted down in the report include the rising number of certain crimes including honour based killings – most of whom took place at the hands of male relatives; there were a rising number of suicides – hundreds of women and girls ended their lives because of domestic issues, blackmail, forced marriage, or abuse. A worrisome number were under 25 years of age.
Several reported cases of rape showed that they involved minors and gang rape. Very few resulted in arrests or convictions. Meanwhile most survivors of domestic abuse had no legal or social support.
It was also worrisome that victims of rape, murder, and forced marriage included girls as young as 12 years.
Who killed whom?
Based on the report, the perpetrators of gender-based violence (GBV) have been reported to overwhelmingly close male relatives, highlighting the systemic, relational, and patriarchal nature of the violence. Most of the perpetrators were husbands (over 120 cases), brothers (60 cases), in laws (around 47) and fathers (at least 38), followed by other male relatives and strangers or acquaintances.
Over 95% of honour based killings were committed by male family members — mostly husbands, brothers, and fathers.
WAF’s Feminist Resistance
Throughout the four years, WAF claims that it has also responded and directly engaged with families and police to over 80% of cases with legal aid and FIR follow-up; protests, vigils, and media statements; survivor support and counseling referrals and advocacy with police, courts, and civil society.
The four-year data proves that violence against women is not just a personal or individual issue but a situation created by social, political, and ideological forces. A significant factor is the organized hate campaigns against feminist movements by religious groups and through media narratives.
Events such as the Aurat March, peace rallies, protests, and women stepping into public spaces have been branded “un-Islamic,” a “Western agenda,” or “obscene.” Such narratives portray women’s demands for dignity, equality, and rights as dangerous to society.
These are not mere cultural disagreements but ideological assaults that provide moral justification for violence against women.
The report also addresses how Pakistan’s political arena has witnessed widespread use of sexually demeaning language against women leaders from opposition parties. This language not only reflects gender bias but also fuels a climate of violence. ‘When the media broadcasts such statements without critique or fails to take women’s struggles seriously, it reinforces inhumane portrayals of women,’ it says.