Visa age raised to curb forced marriages
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article1563905.ece
THE minimum age at which foreign nationals can receive marriage visas to enter Britain is to be raised from 18 to 21 in an attempt to crack down on forced marriages, writes David Cracknell.
It will mean that about 3,000 people a year, mainly women from India, will be prevented from coming to the UK. Their intended spouse will also have to be at least 21 for them to be allowed into the country.
The government also intends to introduce confidential interviews for people entering the country who might have been forced into marriage.
Tony Blair will make the announcement as he publishes a 10-year plan this week on crime, security and justice — part of his “legacy” package that he hopes will bind his successor.
The move to raise the minimum age comes after a long campaign by Ann Cryer, Labour MP for Keighley. The government has previously raised the minimum age requirement from 16 to 18, but will now go further.
In Denmark, where the age requirement was raised in 2002 to 24, there was a 27% drop in the number of applications for family reunification in the first six months.
Blair said in December: “We stand emphatically at all times for equality of respect and treatment for all citizens. Sometimes the cultural practice of one group contradicts this . . . A good example is forced marriage. There can be no defence of forced marriage on cultural or any other grounds.”
A Downing Street source said: “The new proposals will take this further, by raising the minimum age of the spouse and sponsor from 18 to 21. This will give more protection against forced marriage, by giving people a greater chance to finish higher education, become more independent, and be able to assert their wishes.”
According to government sources, 18% of marriage visas — 3,000 — issued to people from the Indian sub-continent in 2005 were to people under 21.
The Metropolitan police have called for forced marriage to be made a criminal offence, suggesting a link between the practice and “honour” killings and arguing that it would make prosecutions easier. However, the government has rejected this.
Last year Blair signalled his support for a bill making forced marriage a civil offence, which would mean that victims could sue for damages rather than the offenders being sent to jail.
Blair will also announce this week plans to boost police powers to seize criminal assets. Currently the police can seize cash if they believe it amounts to the proceeds of crime, but not other goods that have been bought with the money.
The policy review will propose allowing police to take goods to the value of £100,000, including “bling” jewellery, plasma television sets and laptops bought by criminals.
Comment:
Yes we as Muslims agree that forced mariages are haram and don't emanate from the Islamic culture and neither is love marriage Islamic either. Islam has its own unique method for marriage which has been discussed in detail in many articles and talks.
The quote below explains the real motives of why the Government is concerned with forced marriages whose stats are only 5% of the number of women raped in Britain yearly.
[b]" A Downing Street source said: “The new proposals will take this further, by raising the minimum age of the spouse and sponsor from 18 to 21. This will give more protection against forced marriage, by giving people a greater chance to finish higher education, become more independent, and be able to assert their wishes.” [/b]
Many Muslims choose to marry young because it is a protection from zina and committing haram and also fulfills half of ones deen.
So what effect will this policy have upon Muslims and will it benefit our community? InshAllah please add your views.
I do not understand the point behind this.
I thought we in the uk accepted universally the age of 18 for anything adult?
"For too long, we have been a passively tolerant society, saying to our citizens 'as long as you obey the law, we will leave you alone'" - David Cameron, UK Prime Minister. 13 May 2015.
I have mixed views regarding this…
In my town, there are lots of unhappy marriages between really old men and very young women…the reason why such marriages took place is cos the girl came from a very poor family and had little choice in this matter….so in a way it’d be good if the girl was at least 21 before getting married.
BUT, how on earth can raising the visa age reduce the number of forced marriages?
A girl can be forced into marriage at age 14, 16, 18, 21 and even 30.
And what’s with the generalisation that by raising the marriage age people will gain “higher education, become more independent, and be more able to assert their wishes?”
One can only do that if they come from a family that allows them to pursue higher education, be independent etc etc
I feel very, very strongly against forced marriages…however, I fail to understand how this law will change stuff.
In my opinion this proposal has little to do with curbing forced marriages and a lot to do with cutting down [b]legal[/b] immigration, and consequently the growth in the Muslim population.
It is a fact that Muslims get married younger than the majority of the British population, especially those who originate from the Indian sub-continent, where arranged marriages are more common.
At the moment, young men and women get marriage VISAs and then come to Britain, many of them then start to have children, who are born as British nationals. (thus increasing the British-Muslim/Muslim-British population)
I think that if marriage VISAs are not permitted at such a young age, the Government hopes that young people wanting to get married to foreign nationals will travel abroad and start their families 'back-home' as it were, and any children they have will not be born as British nationals and therefore will not have any right to live here.
Its all a conspiracy I tell you!
Don't just do something! Stand there.
Salaam
Marrying someone eligible whom one is in love with is entirely Islamic.
As Muslims we should not be so negative. If forced marriages are curbed the thats wonderful. If young people desiring to marry people from other countries fear zina then that is a problem.
There are methods for the young people like marrying british folk or going abroad to marry.
What other methods might there be for curbing forced marriages? Ideas?
Gentleness and kindness were never a part of anything except that it made it beautiful, and harshness was never a part of anything except that it made it ugly.
Through cheating, stealing, and lying, one may get required results but finally one becomes
I dont see how this will change things.
People will just get forced into marriage at the age of 21.
What really gets on my nerves is old people from here (in their 40s) going back home and marrying a 20 something year old... now that is messed up.
Back in BLACK
Or, I'm sorry -- was this one for you? Is it true love?
"For too long, we have been a passively tolerant society, saying to our citizens 'as long as you obey the law, we will leave you alone'" - David Cameron, UK Prime Minister. 13 May 2015.
you talkin to me?
are you talkin to me??
Back in BLACK
[color=indigo][b]
You think thats bad? This grandad who lives down mi road who's 75+ got married to a 20 year old.. and they have a kid... *pukes*[/b][/color]
I think this is a brilliant idea.
A lot has probably got to do with restricting immigration, but actually I think this is something asian people, who have been affected by forced marriages, have been campaigning for.
I know too, too many girls who would have benefited from this. Raising the age to 21 DOES mean that people will have a greater chance to finish higher education and therefore be more independent. Most people who have been forced into marriages at a very young age are unable to stand up for themselves and correct their situation, because of their lack of education and their dependence on those who got them in such a situation in the first place. I think it's about control on the part of some parents.
I know a 16 year old who went to Pakistan to get married less than a year ago. Her baby may be due any day now, but she can't even apply for a visa for her husband, coz both are under 18. If this new age increase means they won't be able to see each other for another 3 years, then what kind of marriage is that? A completely daft one. I wouldn't even call that a marriage. Yes, she could leave this country to be with her husband, but you can't then say that it was all a conspiracy to get her out of the country. Her parents put her in that situation. Hopefully this new increase in age will protect such children from such parents.
Apparently now indefinite stay can only be issued after 2 years of gaining the first visa to come to this country, as opposed to 1. Again I think this is a good idea. I know lots of marriages which ended after the spouse gained a permanent visa. I don't think the government necessarily had a hidden agenda in bringing about this change. Most of the guys after gaining a permanent visa buy a house, have legal jobs, pay their taxes, work in factories, so actually I think the government has been quite reluctant to make this change - lots of asian women affected by forced marriages have been campaigning for this increase for years.
but u must of know of girls 21 or older who've been forced into marraige?
plus - a girl who comes from a backwards family who is more likely to force their daughters into marraige will be less likely to pursue higher education, a career or be independent
families that force their kids into marraige are mainly those who have kept a tight rein on their kids all their life too
exactly at it will mean they will wait a couple years
Those who danced were thought to be quite insane, by those who couldn't hear the music...
All this law achieves is to encourage visa applicants to fake their date of birth if they are under the minimum age limit, which has always happened anyway.
And there is nothing necessarily, at all, wrong with older men wedding younger women, whatever the age differential may be.
And from an islamic point of view 16 is the ideal age for marriage, especially for women, the younger the better.
considering the fact that most forge there age anyways its nothing new all there going to do is add a few digits and that nothing new this law wont do much might do a little but no a lot
Those who danced were thought to be quite insane, by those who couldn't hear the music...
Yeah girls over the age of 21 are also forced into marriage, but most of the girls I know are under 21. I don't think this will solve the situation but I believe it will help a lot of young people. I think most parents who intend to force their child into marriage, will do so the younger they are when they are easier to control.
True, a backwards family may not allow their daughter to pursue higher education and a career, but hopefully they won't want their daughter just sitting around doing nothing and also she would need a job to get her husband over when she does marry. A lot of girls I know that were forced into marriage were in education, but then had to give it up after getting married so they could start work to bring him over, and then leave work coz they were expecting.
I don't think anyone has the right to force someone to not marry young, which is what this law does. And I think that's wrong. However, always when people abuse something, all the people not abusing it suffer also. I don't think there's anything wrong with marrying young, just as long as the couple want to.