Eight Chinese nationals arrested as Pakistan busts prostitution ring that sent young women to China via fake marriages
- Official says several gangs were believed to be operating, mainly targeting members of Pakistan’s Christian minority
- Arrests came a week after Human Rights Watch said Pakistan should be alarmed by recent reports of human trafficking
Pakistani authorities have arrested 12 suspected members of a prostitution ring taking young Pakistani women to China, part of a growing human trafficking problem often based on fake marriages, officials said on Monday.
Those arrested included eight Chinese nationals and four Pakistanis, said Jameel Ahmad, a top official at Pakistan’s Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), which deals with human trafficking.
“We busted the gang after the FIA received information about increasing smuggling of Pakistani woman to China where they are thrown into prostitution,” Ahmad said.
He said several gangs were believed to be operating, mainly targeting members of Pakistan’s Christian minority.
The arrests came a week after Human Rights Watch said Pakistan should be alarmed by recent reports of trafficking of women and girls to China. It said the allegations were disturbingly similar to the pattern of trafficking of “brides” to China from at least five other Asian countries.