EVERY few months, another set of figures reminds Pakistan of a painful reality. Sahil’s latest Six Months Cruel Numbers Report, documenting 3,172 cases of gender-based violence between January and June this year, is the latest in a long line of studies showing that women continue to face violence in alarming numbers. Murders, torture, abductions, rapes and ‘honour’ killings all feature in the report, but the numbers tell only part of the story. Some of its most important findings challenge widely held assumptions. More than half the reported incidents occurred in the victims’ own homes, while acquaintances and husbands together accounted for more alleged perpetrators than strangers. This shows that the danger is often not lurking outside the home but within it. Since the report is based on newspaper accounts, it is also safe to assume that many more cases never came to light because victims feared speaking out or had no one to turn to.

The value of such reports lies not simply in counting victims but in showing where the problem persists and where the response is falling short. If particular districts continue to account for a disproportionate share of cases, resources should be directed there. If homes are where so much violence occurs, survivors need better access to shelters, legal aid, counselling and protection, alongside effective policing. The fact that most reported cases were registered with police is encouraging, but filing an FIR is only the beginning. Justice depends on proper investigations, timely trials and support for victims throughout the process. Pakistan has no shortage of reports describing the problem. What has been missing is the determination to learn from them. True progress will occur not with the publication of another report six months from now but when such cases finally begin to decline.

Published in Dawn, July 27th, 2026