Our Chinese husbands running a brothel in Lahore, say two Pakistani girls

LAHORE – Two girls from eastern Punjab province have alleged that their Chinese husbands, who claimed to be Muslims, attempted to smuggle them to China and were running a brothel in Lahore on the pretext of a marriage bureau.

Samina and Tasawur Bibi of Kot Momin tehsil, told local media that their parents married them off to Chinese men, who assured their parents they would keep the girls in Lahore and arrange business for the families.

But, soon after they realised that their ‘husbands’ were neither Muslim nor honest, they managed to escape from a brothel in Lahore’s DHA Phase I being run by the Chinese men.

The girls also approached a lawyer for dissolution of marriage and appealed to the Punjab inspector general of police to take action against the culprits.

While most of the Pakistani families are eagerly waiting for any information on their daughters, who were married to Chinese men and later taken to China, a Chinese diplomat serving in Pakistan has claimed that China found no evidence of human trafficking.

https://twitter.com/zlj517/status/1129800564248862722

Lijian Zhao, Deputy Chief of Mission (DCM) of Chinese Embassy in Islamabad, shared the video of a Pakistan girl telling how happily married she is to her Chinese husband. The Chinese man is seen holding her in the video.

Sharing the video, the diplomat said that most marriages between China and Pakistan are good.

He assured the Pakistani nation that illegal marriage brokers shall be punished, not brides and bridegrooms.

“These are lies Pakistani girls are trafficked to China for forced prostitution or sale of organs. We investigated and found no evidence,” he wrote.

Zhao’s latest tweet comes amid a Federal Investigation Agency’s crackdown after Pakistani women reported that they were trapped into fake marriages by Chinese nationals.

China has been expressing support for Pakistan's crackdown on those involved in fraudulent transnational marriages. China has also sent a task force to Pakistan for law enforcement cooperation.

https://en.dailypakistan.com.pk/headline/china-withholds-visas-of-90-pakistani-brides-amid-probe-into-human-trafficking/

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Pakistani Missions in China are closely monitoring the situation and extending all possible assistance to Pakistani citizens who may have any complaints on the subject.

A spokesperson of the Chinese embassy in Islamabad had earlier said, "If any organization or individual commits a crime in Pakistan under the banner of the cross-border marriage, China supports the Pakistani side to crackdown on it according to Pakistani laws."

https://twitter.com/CathayPak/status/1126729897945092096

The statement of the spokesperson however mentioned that several media reports were based on fabricated facts and were spreading rumors on linking illegal marriages with forced prostitution in China.