WOMEN AND FORCED MARRIAGE IN SCOTLAND

From a legal perspective, Scotland is a pioneer as the first country in Europe with
legislation specifically criminalizing the breach of a Forced Marriage Protection Order. This
emphasizes the awareness that Forced Marriage happens and that vulnerable people need to be
protected. However, since the introduction of forced marriage legislation, there have been no
prosecutions on the basis of Forced Marriage in Scotland.
It has always been debated whether an Act of Parliament was actually required or
whether existing laws would have been adequate to deal with the issues women face with
regards to marriage (for example, see ‘A Choice by Right’, 2000). The lack of prosecutions is
used as an argument for this position. However, what this research demonstrates is that forced
marriage very much does happen in Scotland and that there are multiple reasons as to why
women do not come forward to report it.
- Why Forced Marriage?
‘The freely given consent of both parties is a prerequisite of Christian,
Hindu, Muslim and Sikh Marriages.’
‘A Choice by Right’, 2000; p.6
Forced Marriage is a violation of human rights that affects women from a vast range
of backgrounds. The pressure to enter an unwanted marriage, often requiring a
financial/property exchange (dowry) is equivalent to slavery, whereas subjection to unwanted
sexual advances is tantamount to rape. Women surviving forced marriages find themselves
completely isolated. They are forced to endure continuous abuse, often throughout their
lifetime, and this has detrimental results.
Women who access Saheliya services with regards to forced marriage display clear
signs of trauma. If they have not yet been subjected to the marriage, they are living with the
fear of abduction and physical and psychological violence; they are often wondering what their
options are and looking for ways to express the huge dilemma of doing ‘what a daughter ought
to do’ even if this means a life full of pain and abuse. If they have been through a forced
marriage, they carry the aftermath of possible abduction; extreme isolation; psychological and
physical violence from their husbands and/or in-laws; repeated rape and abuse; unwanted
pregnancy; self-harm; and many have gone as far as to attempt suicide, often more than once.
However, direct work with BME communities has made it clear that forced marriage
is very much still an issue concerning women from these backgrounds. Recent research
suggests that one of the reasons for this is a very obvious breakdown in intergenerational
communication: ‘In a 1983 survey, 81% of South Asian parents but only 58% of their children
agreed that arranged marriages still work well within the Asian community and should be
continued’ (Anwar, 1998; cited in Phillips & Dustin, 2004). This, together with the patriarchal
structures and male dominance in BME communities, as well as women’s lack of power and
autonomy provide fertile ground for their rights to continue to be abused.
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