Doyle: Forced marriages in Britain are becoming an ever increasing problem. As one might expect, the victims overwhelmingly come from Asian families, notably Pakistanis, Indians and Bangladeshi. Current estimates put the number of forced marriage incidents involving British nationals at 10,000 per year.
Admin: Indeed. The interesting fact in all this is the rise in the number of men seeking help at specialist units set up for just such problems. Approximately 65% more calls were made to the FMU (Forced Marriage Unit) this year than the previous. The young men are often forced into marriage because their family suspect or know that they are homosexual.
Doyle: That means the family’s honour is at stake which is an extremely important aspect of many South Asian societies. So much so, that many would prefer their children to be killed than reveal a secret that we in the West would barely bat an eyelid to.
Dijkstra: I guess this is a big issue and rallying point amongst British lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people?
Admin: No.
Read more: Specialist unit reports more male forced marriages. (BBC)
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