FORCED MARRIAGE

Forced Marriage: a marriage where one or both people do not (or cannot) consent to the marriage and pressure or abuse is used.

A QUICK HISTORY

• Common in Europe before 1700s
• Usually for political/financial reasons (assimilation)
• Often used for prisoners of war
• Was questioned in the 18th Century, replaced by "romantic marriages"
• Child marriages included

MODERN VIEWS

• Human rights abuse (goes agains Universal Declaration of Human Rights)
• Outlawed by United Nations
• Forbidden by many religions (e.g. Roman Catholic Church)
• Prevented in many countries by Istanbul Convention
• Still practiced in parts of South Asia, East Asia and Africa

CONSEQUENCES

• Puts victims into a cycle of abuse from "spouse"
• Younger victims more likely to develop serious health problems
• Can result in illiteracy and lack of education for those effected
• "Bride kidnapping", literally forcing marriage
• Honour Killing of those who reject the wedding

RECENT CASES

• 16-year-old girl married to a man she met only once in 2012 despite Court Order forbidding it
• Heshu Yones, stabbed to death by Kurdish father when her parents found a love song dedicated to her
• 17-year-old Laura Wilson killed by her boyfriend Ashtiaq Ashgar (UK's first white victim of honour killing)
• 14-year-old girl taken to Pakistan, married to a 24-year-old man, abused and pregnant a month later
• Shafilea Ahmed (1986-2003), British-Pakistani girl killed by her parents for rejecting an arranged marriage

WHAT NEEDS TO BE DONE

• Already illegal, but still easy to get around the relevant laws
• Increase penalties for causing/assisting a forced marriage
• Specialised task-force to deal with cases of forced marriage
• More communication options for potential victims
• Proper protection for those protected by anti-forced-marriage laws