Honour based abuse and forced marriage

Honour based abuse is an incident or crime which has, or may have, been committed to protect or defend the ‘honour’ of the family and/or the community.

It can include:

• sexual violence
• threats to kill
• exclusion from the family or community
• pressure to move abroad.

Forced marriage is where one or both people are pressured into a marriage against their wish, and duress is used to enforce the marriage. Forced marriage is classed as domestic violence and can also be a form honour based violence.

Duress includes:

• psychological, sexual, financial or emotional pressure
• physical violence.

This is not the same as an arranged marriage, where although the families of both spouses assist in arranging the marriage, the choice to accept remains with the couple.