perspective-child online protection

Unveiling Deepfakes

Laila* first met Adeel* at a fine dining restaurant along the coastline of Karachi city, after eight months of online dating on Instagram. She was then 20, he 21. The two talked for hours as the golden sun set, meeting the horizon of the sea. Laila described Adeel as the kindest, most caring man she ever met, and wanted to…

Between Books and Screens

A SCHOOL administrator recently remarked in a tone of resignation that these days many parents would rather have their children remain occupied with academic work than risk letting them venture outside. “The world beyond the gate,” she said, “is no longer safe.” Streets feel more chaotic, parks feel less secure,…

Are Schools Ignoring a Bullying Epidemic?

Mrs Arshad’s son, Aalyan, was subjected to bullying at a private school…

Addressing the digital gender gap

GENDER equality is not just a basic human right. It is also…

AI and the Child

Artificial intelligence is quietly shaping a generation’s thinking. Children are increasingly using AI tools to answer questions, complete assignments and tackle problems that once required reflection and research. What appears to be efficiency may also be altering the way thinking itself develops. This shift is unfolding within a generation shaped…

Digital Sexual Exploitation

As the international world processes the heinous amounts of child sexual abuse data released from the Epstein files, at home the National Cyber Crimes Investigation Agency of FIA has uncovered a major network involved in the sexual exploitation of children via blackmail. A prime suspect, hailing from Murree, has been…

For Distressed Children, Railway Stations Become a Refuge

LAHORE: Railway stations across Pakistan are increasingly becoming refuge points for children fleeing troubled homes, as poverty, domestic tensions, corporal punishment, and the influence of social media push minors onto the streets. According to official data shared by Pakistan Railways Police, 658 children, including 413 boys and 245 girls, were…

Beyond the CRC review

Pakistan’s sixth and seventh periodic review before the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC), held in Geneva on January 15-16, 2026, marked an important moment of reflection and accountability, examining progress made since the previous review in 2016. More than a formal reporting obligation, the review…

The Horrors of AI

The year 2026 started on an alarming note regarding the use of artificial intelligence. One of the viral cases these days is Britain’s media regulator investigation into Elon Musk’s X over concerns its Grok AI chatbot was creating sexually intimate deepfake images in violation of its duty to protect people…

Digital Violence is Real Violence

Violence against women remains among the most pervasive and least prosecuted human rights violations in the world. For decades, this violence occurred mainly in homes, workplaces, streets or institutions. Today, it has expanded into a new and far more complex frontier: the digital realm. As the country and the world…

Horror Of Child Pornography

Another horrifying incident has come out of the hotbed of child exploitation, Muzaffargarh. A young boy, sent to collect his brother’s unpaid wages, was sexually assaulted and filmed by a man his family once relied on for employment. This case, shocking as it is, comes on the heels of an…

Wounded Childhood

PAKISTAN is unkind to its children. The NCRC’s State of Children in Pakistan Report 2024 scans the grim circumstances our young are forced to navigate, and spells out the systemic apathy towards their safety, health and progress. It asserts that the country faces tremendous difficulties in safeguarding the rights of…

Digital Children

AS most parents with young children will agree, the easiest way to pacify a bawling child is to hand them a smartphone, tablet, or other digital device. But though this might ensure temporary calm, the long-term effects of this practice — particularly the unsupervised use of digital devices — can…

Countering Cybercrime

THE new National Cyber Crime & Investigation Authority appears to have landed in limbo, with the authorities apparently unsure about what purpose they expect to see it fulfil. According to a news report in this paper, the government has formally repealed the rules devised to govern the body, leaving its…

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