Domestic violence is the largest cause of morbidity worldwide in women aged 19-44, greater than war, cancer or motor vehicle accidents. According to the British Crime Survey, 1 in 4 women and 1 in 6 men in the UK will experience domestic violence at some point in their lives. The vast majority of serious and recurring violence is perpetuated by men towards women. Domestic violence accounts for 16 per cent of all violent incidents reported to or recorded by the police. Around 2 women a week are killed by their partner or former partner. Domestic violence is estimated to have cost the UK £25.3 billion in 2005-06. Home Office figures suggest there are around 12 "honour" killings each year, but the total is likely to be far higher. The Government's Forced Marriage Unit deals with 5,000 enquiries and 300 cases of forced marriage each year. 30 per cent of these concern under-18s, and 15 per cent are men. The Committee concludes the Government approach to all forms of domestic violence is disproportionately focused on criminal justice responses at the expense of effective prevention and early intervention. There are also serious concerns about the amount of refuge space for those fleeing violence, and the provision of domestic violence services is a "postcode lottery". Availability of Probation Service perpetrator programmes is so poor some courts cannot use them as sentencing options. The Department for Children, Schools and Families should introduce an explicit statutory requirement for schools to educate children about domestic and "honour"-based violence and forced marriage. Front-line professionals - teacher, health professionals, visa entry clearance officers, police, judges and magistrates - who come into contact with victims should receive accredited training to enable them to identify abuse and refer the victim to appropriate support.

This book explores the contemporary phenomenon of forced marriage and 'honour' killings in Britain. Set against a background of increasing 'honour'-based violence within the country's South Asian and Muslim Diasporas, the book traces the development of the 'honour' question over the past two decades. It accordingly witnesses unprecedented changes in public awareness and government policy including ground-breaking 'honour'-specific legislation and the criminalisation of forced marriage. All of which makes Britain an important context for the study of this now indigenous and self-perpetuating social problem. In considering the scale of the challenge and its underlying causes, attention is paid to the intersections of gendered power structures that disadvantage female members of 'honour' cultures as well as feminist theories that seek to explain them. The book features five key case-studies of 'honour' killings and draws from a wide range of narratives including those of 'honour' violence survivors, grassroots service providers and legislators. Such myriad of perspectives reveals the complexity of the 'honour' issue and the deep ideological divisions that characterise it. With the UK's multiculturalist discourse unable to reconcile protecting patriarchal minority cultures with safeguarding gender equality and human rights, the book raises fundamental questions about the country's future direction. Following a long trend of state-sponsored integrationist policies, the government's response to the 'honour' question points decisively in the direction of a post-multicultural British nation.

Honor-based violence (HBV) is a crime committed to protect or defend the honor of a family and/or a community. It is usually triggered by the victim‘s behavior, which the family and/or community regards as causing offense or dishonor. HBV has existed for thousands of years but has only very recently become a focus of law enforcement, policy makers,

Honour based violence and abuse manifests itself in different forms, and this book offers a comprehensive understanding of this phenomenon. This book argues that the limits of honour crimes must be defined more widely so that they include conducts and behaviours that originate from the patriarchal notion of honour, such as honour based oppression and breast ironing. The book provides a critical analysis and synthesis of the law in England and Wales and in the international human rights sphere. The relevant domestic legislation and cases are examined to reflect on whether adequate protection is provided for the victims and potential victims of honour based violence and abuse. Since honour based violence is a violation of human rights, the relevant international human rights law is examined to illustrate the perception of such crimes in the international arena. The effectiveness of any remedy for victims of honour based violence and abuse depends on its capability to change deep rooted behaviours in communities with honour based patriarchal values. This book argues that the law does not provide the effective impact required, in part due to patriarchal structures, and that more efforts should be dedicated to changes in education. It is held that there is a need for an educational programme that is especially designed to tackle violence and promote gender equality. The book will be essential reading for academics, researchers and policy-makers working in the areas of Human Rights Law, Criminal Law and Gender Studies.

In the last 20 years, the related phenomena of honour-based violence and forced marriages have received increasing attention at the international and European level. Punitive responses towards this type of violence have been adopted, including ad hoc criminalisation and legislation containing direct references to the concepts of honour, culture, and tradition. However, criminal law-based responses present several shortcomings and have often disregarded the specific needs that victims of such crimes might encounter. This book examines the possibility of using alternative programmes to address cases of honour-based violence and forced marriages. After reviewing previous existing literature, it presents new empirical data. Introducing a case study from the United Kingdom, the book recalls the debate on Sharia Councils and the Muslim Arbitration Tribunal, but examines instead other community-based secular programmes. By comparison, a study from Norway on the work of the National Mediation Agency and the so-called Cross-Cultural Transformative Mediation model is investigated as part of a larger multi-agency approach. Ultimately, in an attempt to reconcile pluralism and the rule of law, the book proposes effective ways to tackle honour crimes based on cooperation and individualisation of the proceedings, and capable of improving women’s access to justice and reducing secondary victimisation. The book will be essential reading for researchers and academics in Law, Criminology, Sociology, and Anthropology and for policy-makers and practitioners working with honour-based violence cases.

This volume brings together the practical insights and experiences of individuals and organisations working in diverse regions and contexts to combat 'crimes of honour'. Authors examine strategies of response to such manifestations of violence against women, focusing largely on 'honour killings' and interference with the right to choice in marriage, and the related use and legal treatment of the defence of 'honour' and 'provocation' in different countries of Europe, the Middle East, Latin America and South Asia. This timely volume is distinctive in approach and content, highlighting activist and practice-orientated academic perspectives from both the South and the North. The authors give voice to the struggle to locate 'crimes of honour' firmly within the international framework of violence against women and human rights, rather than positioning these abuses as specific to particular cultures or communities. The first of its kind, this book serves as a resource in addressing 'honour crimes' and, more broadly, violence against women, and will be of interest to a multi-disciplinary academic audience as well as to lawyers, policy-makers and activists.