5.15 Forced Marriages and Honour Based Violence

AMENDMENT

This chapter was revised and updated to include Honour Based Violence in November 2018.

1. Definition of Forced Marriage

In a forced marriage, one or both spouses do not consent to the arrangement of the marriage and some elements of duress are involved. Duress can include physical, psychological, financial, sexual and emotional pressure. Forced Marriage is an abuse of human rights and, where a child is involved, an abuse of the rights of the child.

There is a clear difference between a forced marriage and an arranged marriage. In arranged marriages, the families of both spouses take a leading role in arranging the marriage but the choice of whether or not to accept the arrangement remains with the young people.

Forced Marriage is a violation of a person’s human rights and cannot be justified on religious or cultural grounds.

Forced Marriage is primarily an issue of violence against women. Most cases involve young women and girls aged between 13 and 30, although there is evidence to suggest that as many as 15% of victims are male. See Section 3, Legal Position for legal position in relation to children under 16.

There have been cases involving families from East Asia, the Middle East, Europe and Africa. Some forced marriages take place in the UK with no overseas element, while others involve a partner coming from overseas or a British citizen being sent abroad.

2. Reasons given for Forced Marriages

• Cultural or religious traditions;
• Controlling unwanted behaviour including promiscuity or being gay or lesbian;
• Protecting ‘family honour’;
• Responding to peer group or family pressure;
• Attempting to strengthen family links;
• Ensuring land, property and wealth remain within the family;
• Protecting religious and cultural ideas which are misguided;
• Preventing ‘unsuitable’ relationships e.g. outside the ethnic, cultural religious or caste group;
• Assisting claims for residence and citizenship;
• Fulfilling long-standing family commitments;
• Ensuring care for a child or adult with physical or learning disabilities when parents or existing carers are unable to fulfil that role.

Consequences of Forced Marriage

Victims specifically women and young girls forced to marry may find it very difficult to initiate any action to end the marriage and may be subjected to repeated rape (sometimes until they become pregnant) and ongoing domestic abuse within the marriage. In some cases they suffer violence and abuse from the extended family, often being forced to undertake all the household chores for the family.

Victims frequently end up trapped in a relationship marred by physical and sexual abuse. The impact this has on children within the marriage is immense. Children may learn that it is acceptable to be abusive and that violence is an effective way to get what you want. They may learn that violence is justified, particularly when you are angry with someone.

Children witnessing abuse can be traumatised because witnessing persistent violence undermines children’s emotional security and capacity to meet the demands of everyday life. Children’s academic abilities can be affected. Witnessing violence as a child is associated with depression, trauma related symptoms and low self-esteem in adulthood.

Some victims feel that running away is their only option. Those who do leave often live in fear of their own families who will go to considerable lengths to find them and ensure their return. Victims trapped in a forced marriage often suffer violence, rape, forced pregnancy and childbearing, being withdrawn from education early or extended periods of removal from education.

3. Legal Position

The minimum age at which a person is able to give consent to marriage is 16; a person between the ages of 16 and 18 may not marry without consent from all those with parental responsibility (unless the young person is a widow or widower).

Section 12(c) of the Matrimonial Causes Act 1973 states that a marriage is voidable if either party to the marriage did not validly consent to it, whether as a consequence of duress, mistake, unsoundness of mind or otherwise. A voidable marriage exists and is valid until a decree of nullity is obtained. The proceedings must be instituted within 3 years of the date of the marriage or the Court must extend the time limit.

The term “honour crime” or “honour-based abuse” embraces a variety of crimes of violence. Perpetrators, usually parents or family members, could be prosecuted for offences including threatening behaviour, conspiracy, assault, kidnap, abduction, false imprisonment, harassment, child cruelty, trafficking and, in worst cases, murder. Forced Marriage is a crime under the Anti-Social Behaviour Crime and Policing Act 2014.

Sexual intercourse without consent is rape, regardless of whether this occurs within the confines of a marriage.

In addition, the Forced Marriage (Civil Protection) Act 2007, which was implemented in November 2008, makes provision for protecting children, young people and adults from being forced into marriage without their full and free consent (through Forced Marriage Protection Orders).

Anyone threatened with forced marriage or forced to marry against their will can apply for a Forced Marriage Protection Order. (If the person is over the age of 18 and has capacity they can choose to go for a FMPO as opposed to the criminal route however the Criminal Justice System route options would have to be fully considered taking into account a victim wishes). Such an order can be granted to prevent a marriage occurring or, where a forced marriage has already taken place, to offer protective measures. Orders may contain prohibitions (e.g. to stop someone from being taken abroad), restrictions (e.g. to hand over all passports and birth certificates and not to apply for a new passport), requirements (e.g. to reveal the whereabouts of a person or to enable a person to return to the UK within a given timescale) or such other terms as the court thinks appropriate to stop or change the conduct of those who would force the victim into marriage. A power of arrest may be added where violence is threatened. Breaches of such orders are not criminal offences but will be dealt with as contempt of court and the court will have a full range of sanctions, including imprisonment.

Fifteen County Courts have been designated to deal with applications and make orders to prevent forced marriages.

Third parties such as relatives, friends, voluntary workers and police officers can apply for a protection order with the leave of the Court. Since 1st November 2009, local authorities can seek a protection order for Adults at Risk or child without the leave of the court.

For further advice and information about how to make such an application, see the guidance for local authorities on applying for Forced Marriage Protection Orders: A Guide to the Court Process republished in 2014 by HM Courts and Tribunal Service (FL701). Additional information can be found at Karma Nirvana which is the national HBA helpline for victims and professionals.

The Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014 made it a criminal offence, with effect from 16 June 2014, to force someone to marry. This includes:

• Taking someone overseas to force them to marry (whether or not the forced marriage takes place);
• Marrying someone who lacks the mental capacity to consent to the marriage (whether they’re pressured to or not).

Breaching a Forced Marriage Protection Order is also now a criminal offence. The civil remedy of obtaining a Forced Marriage Protection Order through the family courts, as set out above, continues to exist alongside the criminal offence, so victims can choose how they wish to be assisted.

Forcing someone to marry can result in a sentence of up to 7 years in prison.

Disobeying a Forced Marriage Protection Order can result in a sentence of up to 5 years in prison.

For additional reading refer to the Multi-Agency practice guidance: Handling cases of Forced Marriages and The Right to Choose: Multi Agency Statutory guidance for dealing with forced marriage.

4. The Young Person

Isolation is one of the biggest problems facing those trapped in, or under threat of, a forced marriage. Many young people who face a forced marriage will not even discuss their worries with their friends for fear their families may find out. Only rarely will they disclose fear of forced marriage.

A young person in this situation, however, may show signs that are noted at school or by friends of their own age group.

These can often be a noticeable change from previous behaviour.

Typical indicators are:

• Truancy;
• Decline in performance or punctuality;
• Low motivation at school;
• Poor exam results;
• Being withdrawn from education by those with Parental Responsibility and / or requests for extended leave;
• Not allowed to attend extra-curricular activities;
• Self harm and attempted suicide;
• Female Genital Mutilation;
• Eating disorders;
• Depression;
• Social Isolation;
• Siblings forced to marry;
• Family disputes;
• Unreasonable restrictions e.g. house arrest;
• Other young people within the family reported missing;
• History of siblings leaving education and marrying early;
• Reports of domestic violence or breaches of the peace at the family home;
• The individual reported for offences e.g. shoplifting or substance misuse;
• Unreasonable financial control, for example confiscation of wages/income.

Please also see Flowchart: Warning Signs of Victim of Forced Marriage.

5. Referrals

Forced marriage places young people and adults at risk of rape and possible physical harm. Some cases have resulted in the reluctant spouse being murdered. All agencies need to be aware of Forced Marriages and the possibility of dealing with the issue.

Information or a referral about forced marriage may be received from the young person or from a friend or relative, or from a statutory, voluntary or faith organisation. Forced marriage may also become apparent when other family issues are addressed such as domestic violence, self-harm, child abuse or neglect, family and adolescent conflict or missing children or runaways.

It is important that staff of all agencies understand the difficulties that young people face in challenging a forced marriage. They are likely to have no experience of living outside the family and may face rejection and harassment by the family and by the community.

Forced marriage involves complex and sensitive issues; where information is available to any agency which gives rise to concerns about a forced marriage involving a young person under 18 it should be referred to Children’s Social Care Services in accordance with the Referrals Procedure.

A child at risk of forced marriage may also be at risk of honour based abuse. Extreme caution should be taken in sharing information with any family members or those with influence within the community as this may alert them to your concerns and may place the student in danger.

If you have concerns that a child is at risk you should contact Children’s Services and/or Norfolk Constabulary without delay:

Children’s Advice and Duty Service: 0344 800 8021

Norfolk Constabulary: 101 or in urgent cases dial 999

All referrals must be responded to and further advice may be sought from the Multi-Agency Safeguarding Hub (MASH) in the first instance and/or the Forced Marriage Unit in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

For additional reading refer to the Multi-agency practice guidance: Handling cases of Forced Marriages and the Multi Agency Practice Guidance: Forced Marriage and Learning Disabilities (published by the Forced Marriage Unit in June 2009). See the GOV.UK website.

6. The Role of the Police

Forced marriage is a criminal offence. Perpetrators may also be prosecuted for a variety of offences, such as threatening behaviour, conspiracy, assault, kidnap, abduction, rape and murder.

A person fleeing a forced marriage, or the threat of a forced marriage, should be referred to the police if:

1. There is any suspicion that they have been the victim of a crime; or
2. The person is under the age of 18; or
3. There are any concerns about their safety, or about the safety of their siblings or children.

If the person is under 18, the Police will:

• Consult the Police Child Abuse Investigation Unit;
• Inform Children’s Social Care Services;
• Check if the child is the subject of a Child Protection Plan;
• Ensure that an Appropriate Adult and, if needed, an accredited interpreter is in attendance at all interviews – members of the extended family or community leaders are not appropriate in this situation.

7. The Role of Children’s Social Care

Children’s Social Care Services will carry out an assessment of the child’s circumstances and needs and make a detailed record of any reported history of abuse.

When assessing the risk of harm, a full family history must be taken to consider any forced marriage and abuse of any other member of the family as well as a secret boy or girlfriend, pregnancy, and self harming.

Children’s Social Care Services must:

• Give the young person advice on personal safety;
• Consider the possible need for immediate protection and placement away from the family;
• Discuss with police any concerns for the safety of any other child or young person and any suspicion that a crime may have been committed.

NB. Cases involving suspicions of a forced marriage are NOT suitable for a Family Group Conference to be arranged because of the risk of physical danger and emotional manipulation which the young person may experience as a result.

8. Information, Record-Keeping and Confidentiality

It is important for Children’s Social Care Services to obtain as much information as possible when a young person is first referred, as there may not be another opportunity. A record should be taken of the young person’s immediate personal details and the family details including any information about the need for an interpreter.

Records should also be kept by partner agencies on relevant information including, Education, Health, Police  as per Section 5 page 21 of the new Forced Marriage guidance.

Full details of the allegation should be recorded, including details of any threats or hostile actions against the young person.

A record should also be made of the details of the person making the initial referral, including contact details and their relationship to the young person.

Concerns about forced marriage should not be discussed with the young person’s family or friends, and/or information should not be shared with other agencies without the express consent of the young person, unless it is necessary to protect the young person and is in accordance with the Information Sharing and Confidentiality Procedure.

The worker must think very carefully about the need to disclose information and to whom it may be disclosed. Disclosure may lead to the young person’s estrangement from the family and increase the risk of suffering or likely to suffer Significant Harm to the young person. If approached, parents may deny that the young person is being forced to marry, move the young person, expedite any travel arrangements and bring forward the forced marriage.

All agencies should take particular care to ensure that members of their staff do not:

• Use family members, friends, neighbours or community leaders as interpreters;
• Send the young person back to the family home against their wishes;
• Approach the young person’s family or friends or others within the young person’s community without the young person’s explicit consent;
• Notify the family in advance of enquiries;
• Attempt to mediate between the young person and the family except at the young person’s specific request;
• Breach the young person’s confidentiality, unless this is necessary to ensure their safety;
• Make arrangements for a Family Group Conference because of the risk of physical danger and emotional manipulation which the young person may experience as a result.

When a referral is received, the young person should be interviewed in a secure and private place, on her or his own. The young person may want to be seen by a person of the same gender, and may also want to talk to someone from her or his own community – or to avoid talking to someone from her or his own community.

When arranging to see the young person, thought should be given to where and when this should happen, for example, if the young person is coming to an office, consider arranging the appointment out of hours to minimise risks to the safety of the young person.

The person interviewing the young person should:

• Discuss the range of options available to her or him and the possible consequences of each course of action;
• Signpost her or him to an appropriate adviser and/or make the young person aware of the right to seek legal advice and representation;
• Develop a “cover story” – a plausible alternative reason for the young person to be at the social work office, police station etc, in case she/he is seen there.

At all times confidentiality and discretion are vitally important.

Information about the young person and her/his whereabouts must be kept confidential. Access should preferably be restricted to named members of staff. This includes both paper-based and computer records.

Before making any enquiries, the worker should consider whether there is a risk that the family will become aware that these enquiries are being made.

When considering disclosure of confidential information to another person or agency, the young person should be informed, the reasons explained, and their consent sought.

Workers should be aware that some families will be intent on finding the young person, and often private investigators have been used to do this. Many times the family may approach a third party such as a local Councillor or MP with an apparently reasonable request to contact the young person; do not provide information without checking with a manager and the young person first.

9. Required Action

A Strategy Discussion/Meeting will be needed to deal with this issue; the Police, Housing Services, Children’s Social Care Services, Health and voluntary organisations must work together to address the young person’s need for information, protection, financial support, accommodation and emotional support. Legal advice will be needed to inform the Strategy Discussion as legal action may be necessary.

Where an Initial Child Protection Conference is convened, great care must be taken to manage information about the whereabouts of the young person. An interpreter fully independent of the family should be present at all times.

9.1 If the young person wishes to remain in the family home it is essential to devise a way of contacting them there discreetly without placing them at increased risk of harm. This should include a code word to ensure that contact has been made with the right person. A safety plan should be put in place with the young person; looking at how to raise the alarm if there are concerns about increased risk to safety; having access to emergency money; having an escape plan. Establish secure and agreed methods of contact should be discussed and documented clearly. Do not use written communications including emails as they may be intercepted. Telephone communications may be detected, for example, through the phone bill so discuss alternatives available to the young person.

9.2 A young person who wishes to leave the family home will need a leaving strategy. This will include issues such as: Where could they go in an emergency? If the young person is in immediate danger, it may be necessary to consider admission to local authority accommodation, an Emergency Protection Order or Police Protection. In this situation, it is not appropriate to rely on the extended family to provide a place of safety unless the young person can identify a relative in whom they have absolute trust. It may be necessary to place the young person outside her or his community and in a different local authority area.

9.3 A young person arriving in the UK for the purpose of a forced marriage, or following a forced marriage, will be in an extremely vulnerable position. They may have no contacts in the country, who are not involved in the forced marriage. They may not have indefinite leave to remain in the UK, but if they were to return to their country of origin they may be ostracised and exposed to a high risk of violence. In many cases they may not speak the language and will not have knowledge about local resources. They may require a range of support services the MASH must be contacted for a multi agency approach.

9.4 A young person may be going on a family holiday overseas and suspect that they will be forced to marry. Any such concerns should be taken seriously, but the arrangement of an extended holiday should not be assumed to imply that a forced marriage is planned.

9.5 Ideally the information below should be gathered by the police or a social care specialist. However there may be occasions when a person is going overseas imminently and as it is an emergency, an education or health professional may need to gather as much of the following information as possible should be gathered so that action can be taken, if necessary.

• Any addresses where the young person may be staying while overseas;
• Potential spouse’s name;
• Date of proposed wedding;
• Addresses of extended family members in UK and overseas;
• Details of travel plans, including estimated return date, and people likely to accompany the young person.

The person interviewing the young person should:

• See the person immediately in a secure and private place where the conversation cannot be overheard;
• Explain all the options available to the person; they do not need to go if they think they perceive they are at risk of forced marriage;
• Recognise and respect their wishes and advise the individual of your concerns;
• If you have concerns for the safety of a student under 18 years old, activate local child safeguarding procedures and use existing national and local protocols for multi-agency liaison with police and children’s social care. Liaise with the MASH for police and adult or children’s social care to establish if any incidents concerning the family have been reported (e.g. missing persons or domestic violence etc.) Trained specialist are available in the MASH who have responsibility for forced marriage they will perform a risk assessment;
• Reassure them about confidentiality;
• Establish a way of contacting them discreetly and by safe means to make contact with the young person, e.g. a mobile phone that will work overseas;
• Obtain the details listed above to pass to trained specialist;
• Consider the need for immediate protection and placement away from the family;
• Liaise with the guidance/pastoral/head teacher as appropriate;
• Establish if there is a family history of forced marriage, i.e. siblings forced to marry. Other indicators may include domestic violence, self-harm, family disputes, unreasonable restrictions (e.g. withdrawal from education or “house arrest”) or missing persons within the family;
• Establish if the student has dual nationality as they may have two passports. Keep a separate note of their passport number and the date and place of issue.

Further information to gather if the individual is going overseas imminently:

• Give the young person the address and phone number of the British Embassy in the country to which they are travelling;
• Encourage the young person to memorise at least one telephone number and e-mail address;
• Ask the young person for details of a trusted person in the UK with whom they will keep in contact whilst overseas, who will act on their behalf and who can be approached if they do not return;
• Take a written statement from the young person that they want the police or children’s social care or another person to act on their behalf if they do not return by a certain date;
• Ask the young person to make contact without fail on their return;
• Record some information that only the young person will know this may help later in confirming their identity. If there is a clear risk of forced marriage, and the risk is imminent, it may be necessary to take emergency action to remove the young person from home in order to protect them and prevent the travel abroad.

9.6 Young people who leave home to escape a forced marriage or the threat of one face particular difficulties. Agencies may be criticised for providing support and protection to a young person who has run away from home, and for failing to share information about the young person’s whereabouts with the family. The first consideration must be for the young person’s safety and welfare. Any young person who has run away from home should be interviewed on their own to establish why they ran away. Issues related to forced marriage may come to light at this time. If the young person is at risk of being forced into a marriage, it may not be in their best interests to disclose any information to their family, friends, or members of their community until their continued safety has been secured. If there are concerns that a child or young person is in danger of a forced marriage, local agencies and professionals should contact the Forced Marriage Unit in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

10. One Chance Rule

All practitioners working with victims of forced marriage and honour-based violence need to be aware of the “one chance” rule. That is, they may only have one chance to speak to a potential victim and thus they may only have one chance to save a life. This means that all practitioners working within statutory agencies need to be aware of their responsibilities and obligations when they come across forced marriage cases. If the victim is allowed to walk out of the door without support being offered, that one chance might be wasted.

Flowchart: Warning Signs of Victim of Forced Marriage

Flowchart: Warning Signs of Victim of Forced Marriage

RELATED GUIDANCE AND ADVICE

The Right to Choose: Multi-agency statutory guidance for dealing with forced marriage
Multi-agency practice guidelines: Handling cases of Forced Marriages
Forced Marriage and Learning Disabilities: Multi-Agency Practice Guidelines

Further advice can be sought from the Forced Marriage Unit in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office – see National Contact Details.The Right to Choose: Multi-agency statutory guidance for dealing with forced marriage

11. Introduction to Honour Based Violence

Honour based violence is the term used to describe murders in the name of so-called honour, sometimes called ‘honour killings’. These are murders in which predominantly women are killed for perceived immoral behaviour, which is deemed to have breached the honour code of a family or community, causing shame.

The Metropolitan Police definition of so-called honour based violence is: ‘a crime or incident, which has or may been committed to protect or defend the honour of the family and/or community’.

Professionals should respond in a similar way to cases of honour violence as with domestic abuse and forced marriage (i.e. in facilitating disclosure, developing individual safety plans, ensuring the child’s safety by according them confidentiality in relation to the rest of the family, completing individual risk assessments etc).

12. Recognition

A child who is at risk of honour based violence is at significant risk of physical harm (including being murdered) and/or neglect, and may also suffer significant emotional harm through the threat of violence or witnessing violence directed towards a sibling or other family member.

Significant harm is defined in Responding to Concerns of Abuse and Neglect Procedure, Concept of significant harm as a situation where a child is likely to suffer a degree of physical harm which is such that it requires a compulsory intervention by child protection agencies into the life of the child and their family.

Honour based violence cuts across all cultures and communities, and cases encountered in the UK have involved families from Turkish, Kurdish, Afghani, South Asian, African, Middle Eastern, South and Eastern European communities. This is not an exhaustive list.

The perceived immoral behaviour which could precipitate a murder include:

• Inappropriate make-up or dress;
• The existence of a boyfriend;
• Kissing or intimacy in a public place;
• Rejecting a forced marriage;
• Pregnancy outside of marriage;
• Being a victim of rape;
• Inter-faith relationships;
• Leaving a spouse or seeking divorce.

Murders in the name of ‘so-called honour’ are often the culmination of a series of events over a period of time and are planned. There tends to be a degree of premeditation, family conspiracy and a belief that the victim deserved to die.

Incidents, in addition to those listed above, which may precede a murder include:

• Physical abuse;
• Emotional abuse, including:
  ◦ House arrest and excessive restrictions;
  ◦ Denial of access to the telephone, internet, passport and friends;
  ◦ Threats to kill.
• Pressure to go abroad. Victims are sometimes persuaded to return to their country of origin under false pretences, when in fact the intention could be to kill them.

Children sometimes truant from school to obtain relief from being policed at home by relatives. They can feel isolated from their family and social networks and become depressed, which can on some occasions lead to self-harm or suicide.

Families may feel shame long after the incident that brought about dishonour occurred, and therefore the risk of harm to a child can persist. This means that the young person’s new boy/girlfriend, baby (if pregnancy caused the family to feel ‘shame’), associates or siblings may be at risk of harm.

13. Disclosure and Response

When receiving a disclosure from a child, professionals should recognise the seriousness/immediacy of the risk of harm.

For a child to report to any agency that they have fears of honour based violence in respect of themselves or a family member requires a lot of courage, and trust that the professional/agency they disclose to will respond appropriately. Specifically, under no circumstances should the agency allow the child’s family or social network to find out about the disclosure, so as not to put the child at further risk of harm.

Authorities in some countries may support the practice of honour-based violence, and the child may be concerned that other agencies share this view, or that they will be returned to their family. The child may be carrying guilt about their rejection of cultural/family expectations. Furthermore, their immigration status may be dependent on their family, which could be used to dissuade them from seeking assistance.

Where a child discloses fear of honour based violence, professionals in all agencies should respond in line with

Safeguarding Children Affected by Domestic Abuse Procedure and Forced marriage of a child Procedure; and the supplementary procedure Safeguarding children affected by domestic abuse.

The professional response should include:

• Seeing the child immediately in a secure and private place;
• Seeing the child on their own;
• Explaining to the child the limits of confidentiality;
• Asking direct questions to gather enough information to make a referral to LA children’s social care and the police, including recording the child’s wishes;
• Encouraging and/or helping the child to complete a personal risk assessment

(see the proformas in the Safeguarding Children Affected by Domestic Abuse);

• Developing an emergency safety plan with the child;
• Agreeing a means of discreet future contact with the child;
• Explaining that a referral to LA children’s social care and the police will be made (see Referral and Assessment Procedure);
• Record all discussions and decisions (including rationale if no decision is made to refer to LA children’s social care).

See also Referral and Assessment Procedure, Referral criteria, which provides guidance on the difference in LA children’s social care between s47/assessment.

LA children’s social care should incorporate into their assessments the safety planning, self-assessment and risk assessment processes in Safeguarding Children Affected by Domestic Abuse.

Professionals should not approach the family or community leaders, share any information with them or attempt any form of mediation. In particular, members of the local community should not be used as interpreters.

All multi-agency discussions should recognise the police responsibility to initiate and undertake a criminal investigation as appropriate.

Multi-agency planning should consider the need for providing suitable safe accommodation for the child, as appropriate.

If a child is taken abroad, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office may assist in repatriating them to the UK. See also Accessing information from abroad Procedure.

Home Office guidance also recommends you contact FORWARD as they provide support, counselling and safe space for girls and women to talk about their experiences. They can also educate and work with families to prevent FGM happening to any other girls in the family. There are also specialist health services available to women who have undergone FGM.