At least 46% of the forced marriage cases reported to the British authorities were linked to Pakistan, the UK Home Office (HO) data have revealed. The Forced Marriage Unit (FMU) stats for the year 2018 released this week shows the breakdown of the cases by countries as cases related to 64 “focus” countries were handles by the British Officials around the world.
According to the latest figures, FMU gave advice and support to 1507 cases of possible forced marriage in 2018 with 687 victims were of Pakistani origin which makes Pakistan with the largest numbers of forced marriage related cases. The reason being the large size of the Pakistani diaspora in the UK. The proportion of cases relating to Pakistan has increased by around 9%compared with 2017. However, the proportion of cases relating to Pakistan in 2018 is stable compared to 2011-2016.
Out of 687 Pakistani cases, 515 victims were female and 133 male, age wise an alarming numbers of 119 (17%) were 15 and under, 125 (18%) of 16-17 years, 132 (19%) 18-21, 101 (15%) 22-25 year and in 71 (10%) cases the victims were aged between 26-30 years. 35% of Pakistani cases are linked to the North West (122 cases) and Yorkshire and Humber (119 cases) regions, with 47 cases linked to Manchester and 45 to Leeds. 85% of cases were handled entirely in the UK, where the focus was on preventing the marriage before it was due to take place, or where the marriage had taken place and the victim was being forced to sponsor a spousal visa.
Pakistan is followed by Bangladesh with 133 (9%) cases, UK 102 (7%), India 85 (6%), Afghanistan 41 (3%), Somalia 41 (3%), Iraq 33 (2%) and Saudi Arabia 8 (1%) reported case. 12 cases (1%) involved victims who identified themselves as lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender (LGBT). Some 93 cases (6%) involved victims where there was a concern that they may have a learning disability.
According to the analysis, 1,129 cases (75%) involved female victims and 267 (18%) with male victims, this demonstrates that forced marriage is a crime which disproportionately affects women, but that it is also not an issue which only women face; men can also be forced into marriage. UK region associated with the greatest number of cases was London 268 cases, 18% followed by North West of the country with 228 cases, 15% and West Midlands 176, 12% of all cases reported.
FMU said that when a victim is overseas, the risk is often elevated because it can mean the wedding is imminent. The security situation in certain countries or regions within countries also affects the risk and the level of support the FMU is able to provide. However still In 2018, they supported the repatriations of 23 individuals to the UK.
According to the findings, majority of referrals (62%) came from professionals such as those in the education, legal and health sectors, as well as from other third parties, for example non-governmental organisations. The other calls/referrals came from victims (19%)and the remaining ones from friends, partners, family members and anonymous callers (19%). The fact that only about a fifth of cases were notified to FMU by victims who were self-reporting may reflect the hidden nature of forced marriage and the fact that victims may fear reprisals from their family if they come forward.
Support and campaign groups says people force others into marriage due to a range of factors such as preserving wealth and family reputation. Many victims are subject to emotional blackmail and physical threats. A number of them may be forced to marry a member of their extended family, for example, a cousin. In most of these case, it’s the parents and close family members who force the victims into the marriage, they added.
According to the HO guidance, forcing someone into marriage is a criminal offence. A forced marriage is defined as one in which one or both spouses do not consent to the marriage, and violence, threats, or any other form of coercion is involved. Coercion may include emotional force, physical force or the threat of it, and financial pressure. In an arranged marriage, by contrast, both parties have consented to the union but can still refuse to marry if they choose to.
In order to effectively deal with this issue, FMU was established jointly by the UK HO and Foreign & Commonwealth Office (FCO) in 2005 to lead on the Government’s forced marriage policy, outreach and casework. The unit operates both inside the UK, where support is provided to any individual, and overseas, where consular assistance is provided to British nationals, including dual nationals.
