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| Fears over forced marriage levels | Fears over forced marriage levels |
| (30 minutes later) | |
| Figures showing hundreds of pupils from ethnic minorities are being removed from school have sparked concerns many are being forced into marriages abroad. | Figures showing hundreds of pupils from ethnic minorities are being removed from school have sparked concerns many are being forced into marriages abroad. |
| Figures compiled in an official government report highlight how many children have disappeared from school registers in England. | Figures compiled in an official government report highlight how many children have disappeared from school registers in England. |
| MPs fear some have been forced into marriages against their will. | MPs fear some have been forced into marriages against their will. |
| A separate report out today suggests the number of illegal forced marriages each year runs into several thousand. | A separate report out today suggests the number of illegal forced marriages each year runs into several thousand. |
| Dig deeper | Dig deeper |
| A committee of MPs has demanded answers with some suspecting that young girls and occasionally even boys are being taken out of education and forced to marry against their will - often because they are deemed to have become too Westernised. | A committee of MPs has demanded answers with some suspecting that young girls and occasionally even boys are being taken out of education and forced to marry against their will - often because they are deemed to have become too Westernised. |
| Local authorities have a statutory duty to inform social services if there is no good reason for long-term school absence. | Local authorities have a statutory duty to inform social services if there is no good reason for long-term school absence. |
| Local councils deny the missing youngsters are likely to have been forced into marriages. | Local councils deny the missing youngsters are likely to have been forced into marriages. |
| My father told me that I wouldn't be coming back and that I couldn't do anything about it Ruksana Ruksana's forced marriage | |
| But government officials have been told to "dig deeper" into the data with MPs suspecting the problem is much more widespread than previously thought. | But government officials have been told to "dig deeper" into the data with MPs suspecting the problem is much more widespread than previously thought. |
| One teenage Pakistani girl told the BBC how she was pulled out of school when she was just 13, taken to Pakistan and forced to marry a man who assaulted, abused and raped her. | One teenage Pakistani girl told the BBC how she was pulled out of school when she was just 13, taken to Pakistan and forced to marry a man who assaulted, abused and raped her. |
| She prayed someone back in England would report her disappearance and come looking for her but nothing happened. | She prayed someone back in England would report her disappearance and come looking for her but nothing happened. |
| "I think they let me down", she says. "I did still secretly think when I was in Pakistan, the school might search for me. Nobody looked for me. It was horrific." | "I think they let me down", she says. "I did still secretly think when I was in Pakistan, the school might search for me. Nobody looked for me. It was horrific." |
| Having come back to the UK to have a baby, she is now in hiding after her husband followed her from Pakistan. | Having come back to the UK to have a baby, she is now in hiding after her husband followed her from Pakistan. |
| The government's forced marriage unit investigates about 300 cases a year, sometimes conducting clandestine rescue operations. | The government's forced marriage unit investigates about 300 cases a year, sometimes conducting clandestine rescue operations. |
| However, a Home Office-funded study published today suggests that sort of number may be happening every year in the town of Luton alone. | However, a Home Office-funded study published today suggests that sort of number may be happening every year in the town of Luton alone. |
| Ten times higher? | Ten times higher? |
| The report documents hundreds of calls to support groups from people worried about forced marriage and concludes that nationally the figure is likely to be 10 times that. | The report documents hundreds of calls to support groups from people worried about forced marriage and concludes that nationally the figure is likely to be 10 times that. |
| Enforced marriages used to be prevalent in many cultures - in Britain they were often described as "shot-gun weddings". | Enforced marriages used to be prevalent in many cultures - in Britain they were often described as "shot-gun weddings". |
| Now they tend to persist in traditional patriarchal societies, most commonly in Pakistan, Bangladesh and India. | Now they tend to persist in traditional patriarchal societies, most commonly in Pakistan, Bangladesh and India. |
| Forced marriages are not the same as arranged marriages in which both parties consent. | Forced marriages are not the same as arranged marriages in which both parties consent. |
| However, the families involved often do it because they believe they are protecting the young person - preventing them being corrupted by Western values. | However, the families involved often do it because they believe they are protecting the young person - preventing them being corrupted by Western values. |
| Without real cultural change, efforts to encourage ethnic integration in Britain are likely to see more forced marriages, not fewer. | Without real cultural change, efforts to encourage ethnic integration in Britain are likely to see more forced marriages, not fewer. |
| If you know anyone who may be forced into marriage overseas, you can call the government's Forced Marriage Unit on 020 7008 0151. From outside the UK, dial +44 20 7008 0151. | If you know anyone who may be forced into marriage overseas, you can call the government's Forced Marriage Unit on 020 7008 0151. From outside the UK, dial +44 20 7008 0151. |
| All calls are treated in confidence. | All calls are treated in confidence. |