Victims of forced marriage in UK underestimated

The number of women who have become victims of forced marriages in the UK has been drastically underestimated, according to a report published on Mar. 11. Government figures had previously suggested there were about 300 forced marriages a year but the study, which focuses on Luton, suggests the true figure could be up to 4,000. "This report is living proof that the government's figures on forced marriage are woefully inadequate," said Margaret Moran, a member of the Commons home affairs select committee, which is investigating forced marriages and domestic violence. "If you multiply the statistics up and down the country, we're talking about 3-4,000 cases per year rather than 300." Women who become victims of forced marriage often have no idea who their husbands will be and have no rights once they are married. The study, carried out by Dr. Nazia Khanum, found there were 300 approaches each year to Luton-based support services from people worried about forced marriages. Moran said: "This report is the only study in the whole of the UK that uses research at a local level, presenting cases as they occur in a community ... The results are startling." She said the report could still be underestimating the scale of the problem. "The victims of forced marriages will generally not go to statutory agencies, like the police or the government's forced marriage unit, fearing the size and impersonality of these national organizations will lead to their exposure." Last week children's minister Kevin Brennan appeared before the home affairs select committee where it emerged that 33 children had vanished from school records in Bradford. During the session, local authorities in 14 high-risk zones were given until today to count how many children were missing from schools in their areas amid fears that many may have become victims of forced marriages. In the report Khanum says there is a wall of silence around forced marriages and called for the authorities to take it more seriously. "Forced marriage should be recognized as a form of bullying and domestic abuse and tackled in accordance with the normal professional standards and guidance for such cases," she said. Khanum said teachers and others who work with girls and young women should look out for signs of family bullying or pressure. Campaigners believe cultural sensitivity has sometimes prevented those who fall victim to forced marriage being identified. But Moran said it was important the problem was not seen as one that affected one specific community. "After reading the report you realise that forced marriage is not simply a problem in the Asian community; it cuts across all kinds of races and cultures. It is a problem that affects the whole of society." The select committee is expected to report back within the next two months.