Pakistan Province Bans Forced Conversions of Christian Girls to Islam

Lawmakers in Pakistan’s Sindh Province have passed a law criminalizing forced conversions, acting on complaints by religious minorities, including Christians, that some Muslims have long been forcibly converting people of their communities, especially girls, to Islam. The Sindh Criminal Law (Protection of Minorities) Bill of 2015 punishes anyone

who forcibly converts a person of a religious minority with a prison sentence of up to five years, and up to three years for those who facilitate such conversion. “Unequivocally, it is a great step taken by the Sindh government to protect the religious minorities,” Nasir Saeed, the director of a U.K.-based group, the Centre for Legal Aid, Assistance and Settlement, said in a statement.  READ MORE