Search for Justice, together with the Children Advocacy Network (CAN Pakistan) and the Child Rights Movement Punjab, welcomes the passage of the Punjab Child Marriage Restraint Bill 2026 by the Punjab Assembly, terming it a significant step towards protecting children from the harmful practice of child marriage.
The organizations noted that this legislative development reflects growing recognition of the urgent need to address child marriage, which continues to expose children—particularly girls—to heightened risks of violence, abuse, interrupted education, and long-term socio-economic disadvantage.
“While the passage of this bill is an important milestone, legislation alone will not be sufficient,” said Rashida Qureshi, a representative of Search for Justice. “The real test lies in ensuring effective, timely, and non-discriminatory implementation, backed by strong monitoring and accountability mechanisms.”
The organizations emphasized that the effectiveness of the law will depend on clear enforcement protocols, capacity building of relevant authorities, and functional coordination between key departments, including law enforcement, child protection, and local administration. They also stressed the importance of accessible reporting mechanisms and child-sensitive response systems to ensure that cases are identified and addressed promptly.
The organizations further highlighted that addressing social norms and strengthening community-level awareness will be critical to preventing child marriages before they occur, and called for sustained public engagement alongside legal enforcement.
Search for Justice, along with its partners, reaffirmed its commitment to working with government institutions, civil society, and development partners to support the effective implementation of the law and to advance efforts aimed at ending child marriage in Punjab and across Pakistan.
