Dozens of ‘honour-based’ crimes reported to police
DOZENS of socalled ‘honourbased’ crimes are being reported in Greater Manchester every year, according to new figures.
Six cases of honourbased violence, where victims are attacked for ‘bringing shame’ on their family, have already been reported in the region this year.
There have been 138 cases reported to Greater Manchester Police since 2012.
Offending a family’s honour can involve wearing western clothes or refusing to take part in a forced marriage, which was banned in England and Wales by new laws in 2008.
Some victims claim the violence they suffered was overlooked for fear of appearing racially or culturally insensitive.
One woman from Greater Manchester said that none of her teachers questioned that at 15 she got married in Pakistan and left school.
She said: “They didn’t want to be seen to be picking on someone from a different background.”
The marriage gave her husband a visa to come across and join her in the UK. He later subjected her to horrific physical, mental and sexual abuse.
She said: “When you don’t have anyone to talk to, you believe it’s normal because the people that were close to me would tell me it was okay.
“My family would say he is your husband, you have to accept it.
“It was all about honour.
“If I disobeyed them it would go against their honour.”
In many instances, honour crimes are committed by family members against a female relative.
Many reports concern families from south Asian backgrounds.
But honour crimes have also occurred in Middle Eastern and African families.
GMP have said they are aware that honourbased abuse is under reported and are investing in further training for staff to handle honour crime effectively.
In a statement, GMP said: “We are also carrying out work within our communities to educate the public and challenge the misconception of honour as a term used to describe what is anything but honourable.”
When asked if they thought fear of causing racial offence was a barrier to reporting suspected honour-base crimes, they said: “We are working to tackle our understanding of the issue, identify the gaps and assess how we can improve the service that we provide to victims.”
William Bose, a spokesman for the charity Karma Nirvana, which tries to tackle the problem, said: “It’s infuriating for us because we want the law of the land to apply to everyone, regardless of ethnicity.
“For far too long perpetrators have pulled out the race or Islamophobia card and it has been extremely effective.
“Culture, religion and tradition cannot be an excuse for not respecting human rights.”
One of the highestprofile cases of honourbased violence is that of Shafilea Ahmed, from Cheshire, who was murdered by her parents, Iftikhar and Farzana Ahmed in 2003.
When Shafilea’s parents were found guilty of murder, the trial judge Mr Justice Roderick Evans observed: “Your concern about being shamed in your community was greater than the love of your child.”
Both are five years into 25-year prison sentences.