FIVE THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT FORCED MARRIAGES

British charities working to end forced marriage have seen a spike in calls from girls terrified their parents will marry them off when lockdown lifts.

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GROUP SEES 150 PER CENT RISE IN TEEN CALLS Karma Nirvana, which campaigns against forced marriage, said it had seen a 150 per cent increase in teenagers calling about forced marriage since lockdown began on March 23. The charity has since helped 43 people at risk,

the youngest aged eight.

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WOMEN’S CHARITY’S CASELOAD SOARS IKWRO, a charity helping women from Iranian, Kurdish and Afghan backgrounds, said cases had more than doubled in the lockdown. The girls it helps range from aged 15 to 17. Forced marriages in Britain are commonly associated with families from South Asian and Middle Eastern backgrounds.

Parents often send their daughters abroad for forced marriage, but they are illegal even if carried out overseas.

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LOCKDOWN LEAVES GIRLS WITH FEWER OPTIONS The government’s Forced Marriage Unit dealt with a record 1,764 cases relating to a possible forced marriage in 2018, but campaigners say no one knows the true figure.

The lockdown also means girls have fewer options to seek help and are more invisible to the authorities.

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TEENS FEAR RETURN OF GLOBAL TRAVEL Freedom Charity, which also works to prevent forced marriage, estimated a 50 per cent jump in requests for help. “We’re mostly being contacted by teenagers. They’re very scared about being forced into marriage when people are allowed to travel again,” said founder Aneeta Prem.

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JOB LOSSES MAY BE SPURRING PARENTS Prem said job losses caused by the lockdown may be motivating some parents. A 16-yearold told the charity her family wanted to send her to Pakistan to wed. “The father had lost his income and said she was a burden on the family,” Prem said. And an 18-year-old, whose parents moved to Britain from Bangladesh, had begged a shopkeeper for help after learning she was to be married off now that her exams were cancelled. “She was hysterical. Normally she would have been able to talk to someone at school,” Prem said.