Written by Marie Jenkinson – a caseworker in the Forced Marriage Unit of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.
Forced Marriage Unit Helpline: 0207 008 0151
Forced marriage is an appalling and indefensible practice and is recognised in the UK as a form of violence against women and men, domestic and child abuse, and a serious abuse of human rights.
The UK leads the world in tackling forced marriage and trying to prevent this abuse of human rights. The Forced Marriage Unit (FMU) is a joint Foreign and Commonwealth Office and Home Office Unit, which was set up in January 2005 to lead on the Government’s work on raising awareness of forced marriage, improving policy and supporting victims both inside the UK and overseas.
I am one of the caseworkers in the Forced Marriage Unit, working every day to protect those who are at risk of forced marriage or those who have already been forced into marriage.
After my usual crowded train journey I arrive early, colleagues are slowly trickling in but it is still quiet. I value this time to organise my day before the helpline starts ringing at 9am, as you never know what each day might bring. (Outside of office hours victims and potential victims can call our Global Response Centre on 0207 008 1500).
I am working on a Forced Marriage presentation for an outreach session to UK Visa and Immigration (UKVI). We do a number of awareness raising visits around the UK for police, Social Services, local authorities and so on. The UKVI outreach is an important one as the officers are being trained to work as visa officers in our British Embassies overseas and need to be able to identify possible forced marriages.
If a forced marriage has taken place overseas the UK victim is often then forced to sponsor their overseas spouse to come to the UK. If they do not want to do this they can write a Public Statement withdrawing their sponsorship for the visa. This is a careful decision for victims to make as their spouse (and families) will always be formally informed that sponsorship was revoked. We work closely with victims to ensure their safety in the UK as well as overseas.
My first call of the day is from a teacher. She is worried about a 16 year old GCSE student who travelled overseas with family during the school Christmas holidays and has not returned to school. Saif* had mentioned a while back that he was worried his parents might “get him married” as it had happened to his brother when he was around the same age. When the teacher spoke to Saif ahead of his travels he laughed and said there was no need to worry – his parents has reassured him there was no marriage planned and they would be back home in time for the new term.
After this phone call, I call Social Services to report Saif was ‘missing in education’ and ask them to visit Saif’s home to find out where he is. I remind them of the statutory guidance on handling forced marriage cases, particularly that they should not mention forced marriage as this might put Saif in danger. If Saif is still overseas Social Services need to get his contact details. If they get this, I will then ask my colleague at the British High Commission to make contact with him. If there are any concerns about forced marriage we will ask Social Services to have a Forced Marriage Protection Order (FMPO) put in place ordering the parents to have him brought back to the UK. If they did not comply with this order they could be sent to prison for up to five years.
Once I have spoken to Social Services I get an e-mail from my colleague with the good news that a 19 year old girl, Robina* has just got on a flight back to the UK. She had been taken overseas by family under the guise of a family holiday and left with relatives. She contacted her best friend in the UK to say that her aunt was introducing her to possible suitors for marriage. Despite Robina stating clearly that she did not want to get married her parents and her aunt were not listening and had picked a match for her. She had been scared and asked her best friend to contact the Forced Marriage Unit.
Robina’s aunt did not know she had a mobile phone. She was not able to make phone calls but she was able to send texts. I contacted my colleague at the consular office at the British Embassy overseas and asked her to establish text contact with Robina. When my colleague got in touch, Robina was not able to say where she was in the large city as she had not been allowed out much since she had got there. This increased the complexity of the case.
We asked Robina if she would be happy for a FMPO to be applied for; we explained that the Order would instruct her parents to have her brought back to the UK. She agreed to this and we worked with the police in the UK, to have the Order put in place. The next day Robina sent a text saying her aunt was planning a shopping trip to a well known nearby mall, so my colleague arranged to meet up with her. When they met, Robina said she did not want to return to her aunt’s house, so my colleague took her to the safety of the Embassy and arranged a place in a refuge while the paperwork and flights were prepared. Once we knew Robina was safe the FMPO was served on her parents.
We work closely with our consular colleagues overseas. They have in-depth knowledge of local languages and local law. My colleague had already told us that Robina would need an exit visa signed by a male relative in order for her to leave the country. We included this instruction in the FMPO so that her father would sign the papers. If he did not do this he faced arrest. We sent the signed visa to my colleague and she was able to meet with the immigration department of the country concerned to get the visa.
As I now know Robina is on a flight I call Southall Black Sisters (SBS), a charity delivering our repatriation project, to request they meet Robina at the airport. They knew to expect this call soon and are ready to go and support her. I also alert the airport police to make them aware of Robina’s arrival in the event any family or friends were at the airport. SBS will now find a hostel or refuge for Robina and will continue to support her in the UK. My job is so rewarding and it’s a great feeling to know that another victim has been saved from the misery and horror of a forced marriage. With the day passing quickly, and my colleagues hard at work, I take a quick break to make a coffee whilst wondering what the rest of the day will bring.
Forced Marriage Unit Helpline: 0207 008 0151
*names have been changed to protect identity