China warns citizens against marrying Pakistani and other foreign women, citing fraud and legal risk
Police in China's Xintian County have cautioned citizens that marriages with foreign women, including Pakistanis, are often transactional and can bring fraud and legal trouble.
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The Chinese government has officially cautioned its citizens to be careful about marrying women from Pakistan or any other foreign country. The directive has been issued by China's provincial administration and police, and it has caused considerable stir in international political and social circles. China says such marriages involve business transactions rather than emotional support. As a result, Chinese citizens are facing large-scale financial fraud and are getting caught up in serious legal trouble.
The warning was made public by the local police of Xintian County. In its press release, the police said the trend of Chinese men marrying women from Pakistan and other countries has risen sharply in recent days. But most such relationships are founded on money, not love. The result, police said, is fraud and family tension, and people have to face false court cases.
According to the police, a large syndicate of agents who arrange marriages illegally is currently active in both China and Pakistan. These agents trap girls from poor families, or Chinese men struggling with financial hardship, and charge commissions running into lakhs of rupees. The administration has said clearly that those who fall into the hands of such middlemen or agents are certain to suffer financial loss. Often, within days of the marriage, the woman disappears or files a complaint with the police, causing Chinese citizens financial and mental distress.
On the directive of the Chinese government's home ministry, a strict campaign against such illegal marriages has now been launched at the provincial level. Before Xintian County, police in Henan province had also issued a similar stern notice for their residents. International marriages entered into for business or profit are completely prohibited by law in China.
The notice from police and the administration lists three strict legal provisions. First, the offence of fraud: if a police investigation finds that a marriage was arranged illegally solely for financial gain or through a broker, a case of fraud and criminal conspiracy will be registered against those involved. Second, violation of immigration law: if a foreign woman or girl enters China on an illegal visa or false documents, strict action will be taken under immigration law. Third, detention and deportation: after a marriage in breach of the rules, the woman or man concerned can be taken into police custody and sent back to their country.
According to older figures from China's official statistics department, about 120 Pakistani girls married Chinese men in 2018. By 2020 the number had crossed 600. After this sudden jump, complaints of human trafficking and forced marriage rose internationally. China's government then stopped releasing official figures on such marriages altogether.
In May this year, a Chinese national was arrested by local police in Pakistan. He faced the serious charge of luring a young Pakistani girl to China and trying to force her into marriage. These incidents have put the administrative machinery of both countries on alert. China has appealed to its citizens to marry only on the basis of true love and in compliance with legal immigration rules.
