Wanting to set off the metal detector

[Deleted]

I think that this is very clever and I hope that information about this technique is spreading among all girls in danger of being married off against their will.

[Deleted]

However, I expect they are handed back to their families forthwith, and there is hell to pay afterwards. The novelty of the technique will wear thin pretty quickly. Sadly.

[patricklondon]

However, I expect they are handed back to their families forthwith, and there is hell to pay afterwards

I assume it's intended to give the girl a chance to explain to whoever's undertaking the inevitable (private) body search that would take place after such an alarm, which would mean someone official already in a position to protect her. Forced marriage is illegal in the UK, but hard to prevent unless the girl is able to get to talk to officialdom in private. If all this happens at airport security, it's much more likely that the authorities simply wouldn't permit her to get on the plane anyway. There'd still need to be someone to shelter her once it's been reported, but once the allegation's been made, it has to be taken seriously.

[Deleted]

In France there have been numerous cases of the schoolmates mounting a media campaign to bring girls back who have been tricked or coerced into going. "It's just a holiday, nothing to worry about." They used to disappear without a trace, but mobile phones and Facebook have made it much easier for them to call for help.

But it is better if they never get on the plane in the first place.

[bjd]

But if they are minors, they are still sent back to their families, aren't they?

And an article about "putting a spoon in your underwear" in the paper will quickly tip off any prospective parents.

What I find pathetic is that there are still people forcing their under-age daughters into marriage to men they don't know (or even if they did know them, it's abusive).

[Deleted]

No, since forced marriages are illegal in European countries, they are taken away from their parents when it is determined that they are in danger.

Many of the parents who do this sort of thing are also illiterate, so they probably don't read articles like that. In fact, one of the reasons that they try to get the girls back to the home country early is to get them out of school when they see that they are beginning to think independently and are getting 'too smart.'

[patricklondon]

As kerouac said goes for the UK too. There's a whole set of governmental practice guidelines for officials in any range of departments that might come across such an allegation, about how to handle it and the various legal instruments and social services that may and should be used to prevent, or rescue someone from, what is after all a form of rape.

[Deleted]

I wish I was less cynical than you gentleman about the fate of these girls/women, but I'm not really. The law and good intentions will take them to a certain point, but then... What happens to them after they've been rescued and processed? To be ripped from their families and culture, given some counselling and a bed in a shelter, then released to find a life for themselves?

I've read too many stories of Canadian girls who are "going to visit auntie in the old country", and never return. Or worse, murdered for their dowry money. The practice of arranged marriages will slowly die out, but it'll take a few more years yet.

[patricklondon]

The practice of arranged marriages will slowly die out, but it'll take a few more years yet.

There is a difference between arranged marriage (which can be similar to using a dating agency, but run by family) and forced marriage (which really is based on deceit and force on younger girls who have no say).

[bjd]

Some info from the FMU (Forced marriage unit) in Britain in 2012

STATISTICS JANUARY TO DECEMBER 2012
- The FMU gave advice or support related to a possible forced marriage in 1485 cases.
- Where the age was known, 13% involved victims below 15 years, 22% involved victims aged 16-17, 30% involved victims aged 18-21, 19% involved victims aged 22-25, 8% involved victims aged 26-30, 8% involved victims aged 31+. The oldest victim was 71 and the youngest was 2.
- 82% involved female victims and 18% involved male victims.
- The FMU handled cases involving 60 different countries, including Pakistan (47.1%), Bangladesh (11%), India (8%), Afghanistan (2.1%), Somalia (1.2%), Turkey (1.1%), Iraq (1%), Iran (0.9%), Nigeria (0.9%), Sri Lanka (0.9%), Egypt (0.6%), Saudi Arabia (0.6%), Yemen (0.6%), The Gambia (0.5%), Morocco (0.5%), and Ukraine (0.5%). The origin was unknown in 7.7% of cases.
- Within the UK the regional distribution was: East Anglia 2%, East Midlands 3%, London 21%, North East 1%, North West 8%, Northern Ireland 0.2%, Scotland 1%, South East 11%, South West 2%, West Midlands 16%, Wales 1%, Yorkshire and Humberside 7%. The region was unknown in 27% of cases.
- 114 cases involved victims with disabilities.
- 22 involved victims who identified as lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender (LGBT).
Forced Marriage Unit

[Deleted]

Now the question is: if there are 1485 official cases, what multiplier should be used to find the real number of cases? Five times more? Ten times more?

[tempelton]

The real numbers we will never know, since most woman just vanish.

I had a Turkish school friend, her sister was allowed to marry a German, after school was over she just vanished into thin air, years later she came to visit me once, her parents took her to Istanbul and married her off to a guy she didn't know, the reason her dad gave was that he wants at least one son in law he can talk to , her sister got her out of there so she was able to tell me.

I have a Turkish woman at work, she grew up until she was 6 years old in Ankara and has family in rural Anatolia, when she turned 18 she suddenly got married to a guy from Istanbul, she never was there before in her live, the man was at least 10 years older than her, she is divorced by now, but still even if you call this an arranged marriage she had nothing to say, to much pressure from the family.
One good thing she gets support from her also divorced parents, others are not so lucky and get shot by brothers or other male family members.

On the other hand we always forget about the men, I'm not talking about a 70 year old guy marrying a 11 year old girl, but often the young men a pressured into a marriage they don't want also.

[Deleted]

There was a series of murders in the Turkish community of Alsace a few years ago, concerning both young women who refused to return to Turkey for arranged marriages and others who had fallen in love with local French (and non Muslim) men. As I recall, in most cases, they were killed by their brothers. I also recall a grandmother being convicted.

Out of this evil, there was perhaps some good, because after the various highly publicized trials and extremely severe court sentences, the French of Turkish origin seem to have "calmed down" and are no longer the principal perpetrators of this sort of crime.

At the moment, attention is focused mostly on sub-Saharan African families. Most Maghrebi families, which used to be another problem, seem to have moved forward into the new century. Naturally, there are still numerous incidents.

Of course, I should mention that my grandparents had picked out a spouse for my mother. She rejected him and chose a husband as different as possible. That turned out to be another mistake, but at least it was her mistake.