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Police Inspectorate backs call for change to safeguard sexual abuse victims from Black and minoritised communities

Published: December 16th, 2022 Updated: December 16th, 2022

The first ever Police super-complaint detailing the systemic failures of Black and minoritised sexual abuse cases by police forces across England and Wales has been upheld by the police inspectorate.

Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS), along with the College of Policing and Independent Office for Police Conduct, have upheld the super-complaint lodged by The Tees Valley Inclusion Project and the Halo Project charity, which sheds light on the widespread failures/negligence tens of thousands of victims and survivors of sexual abuse have been affected by, each year, by the police.

The Tees Valley Inclusion Project and the Halo Project Charity welcome the inspectorate’s response to their report, filed August 2020, which provided unequivocal evidence and victim accounts of how the failings/deficiencies severely damage the effectiveness of police investigations of sexual abuse affecting Black and minoritised complainants and have materially dented community confidence in the Police’s commitment to properly investigating serious allegations of sexual abuse, in addition to endangering and irrevocably impacting the lives of those affected.

The complaint contains case studies, victim experiences, expert witness statements, academic research, and the experiences of specialist Black and minoritised staff working in the Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) sector across England and Wales, collectively identifying the specific barriers which effect reporting sexual abuse within Black and minoritised communities.

Yasmin Khan, Director of the Halo Project charity, said:

“We provided unequivocal evidence informed by victims of sexual abuse from black, minoritised communities. Our super-complaint, highlights institutional failings from police investigations across England and Wales which have been upheld on every single count. The inspectorate publishing our report, along with recommendations to all police forces will help build confidence among Black and minoritised communities, however, immediate,  transformative change within policing is now needed urgently, in order to reduce the systematic failings experienced by BME victims of serious and historic abuse and prevent further, unnecessary trauma and harm.

We welcome the call for major changes in policing so that all forces nationally have an in-depth knowledge and detailed understanding of the cultural context of Black and minoritised communities in Britain today and the additional barriers and risks that exist, so that they can provide an effective, evidence-based, and trauma-informed response to victims and survivors at risk. This is not only possible, with expert intervention and education, but critical, across the entire police service. There is no longer any excuse for the ongoing issues which have been identified. Change must now be treated with the urgency required to protect lives.

The inspectorate’s support of the report’s recommendations is a testament to the courageous victims who came forward after suffering in silence for so long, to give evidence and help shape this report, to ensure others do not experience the same failures they did. I also want to acknowledge the contribution our BME specialist services including Muslim Women’s Network, BAWSO, Henna Foundation and many others who helped provide case studies and interviews which informed our report.  We now need to see the implementation of the report’s recommendations in action and accountability to ensure that all survivors of sexual abuse coming forward are given the dignity, protection, and justice they deserve.”

The super-complaint was also supported by Nazir Afzal OBE, a Former Chief Prosecutor for England and Wales, who said: 

“In my experience of three decades in justice I have seen first-hand how victims of sexual abuse have been let down by everyone responsible for safeguarding them and if you’re minoritised then your experience is significantly worse. Tens of thousands have suffered in silence without the support they desperately need. The super-complaint recommendations are critical in enabling victims to have greater confidence that police will respond appropriately every time, and nobody is left behind. Failing to take advantage of this opportunity is not an option.”

The Halo Project is committed to driving forward positive change as part of the police super-complaint and will work with police forces to generate this change to create a safer environment for Black and minoritised communities and the public at large.

The report is available to read at 

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/police-super-complaints-police-response-to-bame-victims-of-sexual-abuse

A 24/7 Support Line for victims of rape and sexual abuse in England is available to victims – call 0808 500 2222 or visit www.247sexualabusesupport.org.uk.

For support or further information on the super-complaint, please call us on 01642 683 045 or email us at info@haloproject.org.uk

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Covid pandemic shines alarming light on level of honour-based violence, says leading UK charity

Published: July 15th, 2022 Updated: July 21st, 2022

By Zoe Crowther

The pandemic has revealed the devastating and real extent of honour-based violence in the UK, according to the founder of a leading charity which supports survivors.

Yasmin Khan, founder of the Middlesbrough-based Halo Project, a charity which supports honour-based abuse (HBA) survivors, believes the Covid-19 pandemic has led to a surge in survivors coming forward after two years of being unable to seek help.

The National Lottery-funded charity has identified huge gaps in the reporting and understanding of HBA, which Khan says is even more prevalent than official figures suggest: the Home Office has only started collecting data from police forces on HBA offences since April 2019.

In the lead up to the National Day of Remembrance for Honour Based Violence (July 14th), the leading National Lottery funded charity, Halo Project, is now calling on victims to spot the signs, report the crime and get the right support they need.

Khan said: “We are seeing a tsunami of victims coming forward who have been extremely traumatised.

“This pandemic has exposed such inequalities and gaps in services, and a lot of staff are burnt out.”

There is no specific offence of ‘honour’-based violence. However, the Crown Prosecution Service describes ‘honour’-based violence as an incident or crime “which has, or may have, been committed to protect or defend the ‘honour’ of the family and or the community.”

Honour-based abuse, although not defined in law, refers to where the concept of ‘honour’ has been used to carry out an offence, such as female genital mutilation (FGM), forced marriage, or honour killings.

Honour-based abuse survivor S* sought help from the Halo Project last year. Having been abused and controlled by her husband, the charity put together a safety plan and provided her with a refuge.

“They gave me a plan B and they gave someone I can share everything with,” she said.

“A caseworker used to sit and listen to me for a long time and it really made a difference.

“People should not be scared to come forward because of their culture. People should know where to ask for help.”

Honour Based Abuse is misunderstood and underreported, meaning that hundreds of victims are not being helped and perpetrators are escaping justice.

Based in North East England, the Halo Project has directly offered support to more than 3,000 HBA survivors since 2011, by providing services such as emergency accommodation, language support, legal advocacy, and a national helpline.

Many survivors they work with are aged between 16 and 24.

“Organisations like ours are so important as the steppingstone for survivors to get the services that they deserve,” Khan said.

“Everyone who comes through our doors is uniquely different; we can’t give them a one size fits all service.

“It’s about tailoring our services to meet their needs and we’ve become real experts in the field, not only for victims, but also for public bodies who need our insight to improve.”

The Halo Project has been involved in a systematic review of police forces in England and Wales, which will result in a published report later this year.

Many HBA survivors feel there is no way out and Khan said the charity has worked with individuals who have tried to take their own life as a result: “Survivors have told us: ‘You’ve saved my life. You’ve turned my life around.’

“When they come to our service, that might be their only chance. And we’ve got to get it right the first time.”

The Halo Project’s long-term aim is to build a ‘zero-tolerance’ approach to honour-based abuse and ‘eradicate’ gender-based violence.

Despite lockdown making face-to-face support difficult, the Halo Project maintained services for survivors via video calls throughout.

N*, a survivor of domestic abuse, was supported by the Halo Project last year to find legal representation and secure a divorce with her abusive husband, who is no longer allowed to come into contact with her or her children.

“My mental health was not good, so their help was very, very important,” she said. “It was my start for a new life.”

She urges other women to not wait for their abusive partners to change, saying: “I waited 13 years and nothing happened. The help I received from Halo was my start, and they will be in my mind all my life.

“Now, everything is okay and I have plans for my future and my children.”

Khan said that funding from The National Lottery has enabled the Halo Project to develop its services further.

She explained: “The National Lottery has been absolutely amazing in understanding our project needs and developing them with us, and really meeting the gaps in services.

“This funding has acted like a safe passage for other funders to come on board, because it shows we are credible and have a history of external funding. That has been a real positive for us.”

Journalist and broadcaster Samira Ahmed, who has long been a supporter of projects tackling HBA, said: “Throughout my career, I’ve always had a special interest and concern in violence against women, particularly honour-based violence against women.

“Honour-based violence has always been there, but we didn’t always call it honour-based violence. The word ‘honour’ is controversial – some people feel it shouldn’t ever be used in the context of violence against women – but it struck me that the problem was never going away, that there were always accusations of racism if people tried to talk about it, and women were being silenced.”

Mrs Ahmed acknowledged HBA continues to be underreported and underacknowledged by the wider public, partly due to these difficulties associated with labelling and discussing it.

She added: “I’ve been really struck when I’ve gone into some communities, and spent time talking to people, police, social workers, women’s groups, about how much pressure there is to not talk about honour-based violence, because somehow it tars a whole community and that it suits racists to talk about it.

“That’s been the real challenge as a journalist: finding that balance between being scrupulously fair and not feeding racism, but also just calling a crime a crime.”

To find out more about the Halo Project and the work they do, visit https://www.haloproject.org.uk/

National Lottery players raise more than £30million a week for good causes, making projects such as these possible. Find out how your numbers make amazing happen at: www.lotterygoodcauses.org.uk

*Name anonymised to protect the identity of the survivor

Source – https://uk.news.yahoo.com/covid-pandemic-shines-alarming-light-on-level-of-honour-based-violence-says-leading-uk-charity-093415921.html?soc_src=social-sh&soc_trk=tw&tsrc=twtr&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly90LmNvL09aTHdZdG1rdFQ&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAANrfYREyZ9ycM0ogxO9wcd5IGqsMfJ0kNNt5P0i7w0Z3dD0GnD0ydz6B0fncXIH6oVKlbTTwrX_73_JY-wy-RfHvNCdp0YmJcpJoYR3rBS68aeCNbN9BBMIIbXz1A50SoM5GtqFcw6DCFGikYzKAGKUaco2Zb0gdcm7iHfXFPpyw&guccounter=2

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National Lottery-funded UK charities unite to mark Day of Memory for victims of Honour-Based Abuse

Published: July 12th, 2022 Updated: July 21st, 2022

Leading charities across the UK that support survivors of honour-based violence and abuse are calling on victims to spot the signs and report the crime.

In the lead up to the Day of Memory for victims of Honour Based Abuse (July 14), National Lottery-funded charities throughout the UK are calling for increased visibility, reporting and understanding of HBA, to ensure survivors get the right support they need.

The National Lottery-backed campaign also coincides with the launch of a book, ‘No Safe Place’, co-written by award-winning author, and Head of Policy and Research at Southall Black Sisters, Dr Hannana Siddiqui. Dr Siddiqui wrote the book in collaboration with Bekhal Mahmod, whose sister, Banaz Mahmod, was murdered in a so-called ‘honour killing.’

The book, which comes out on July 12th, recounts the extraordinary and horrific true story of Banaz’s murder at the hands of her father, uncle and male cousins, and the subsequent court case, at which Bekhal gave evidence against her family members.

National Lottery-funded charities and organisations throughout the UK are taking part in the call to action today. These include Southall Black Sisters in West London, the organisation which supported Bekhal Mahmod following the tragic murder of her sister; Glasgow-based charity, Community Infosource, which sees men working in partnership with men to tackle issues, supporting them to change their attitudes and practices; Welsh charity BAWSO, which supports ethnic minorities affected by violence and exploitation; and Savera UK, a charity which has supported hundreds of clients with their one-to-one services covering Merseyside and Cheshire, as well as reaching thousands more through their national helpline.

Award-winning journalist and broadcaster, Samira Ahmed, has also lent her voice, encouraging a more open dialogue around the issue of HBA.

She said: “Throughout my career, I have always had a special interest and concern in violence against women, particularly honour-based violence against women. Honour-based violence has always been there, but we did not always call it honour-based violence. The word ‘honour’ is controversial – some people feel it should not ever be used in the context of violence against women – but it struck me that the problem was never going away, that there were always accusations of racism if people tried to talk about it, and women were being silenced.”

Mrs Ahmed acknowledged HBA continues to be underreported and underacknowledged by the wider public, partly due to these difficulties associated with labelling and discussing it.

She added: “I’ve been really struck when I’ve gone into some communities, and spent time talking to people, police, social workers, women’s groups, about how much pressure there is to not talk about honour-based violence, because somehow it tars a whole community and that it suits racists to talk about it.

“That’s been the real challenge as a journalist: finding that balance between being scrupulously fair and not feeding racism, but also just calling a crime a crime.”

There is no specific offence of ‘honour’-based violence. However, the Crown Prosecution Service describes ‘honour’-based violence as an incident or crime “which has, or may have, been committed to protect or defend the ‘honour’ of the family and or the community.”

‘Honour’ can be the motivation, excuse, or justification behind a range of violent acts against women and girls, sometimes resulting in so-called ‘honour killings.

HBA can take many forms, including child marriage, virginity testing, enforced abortion, forced marriage, female genital mutilation, as well as physical, sexual, and economic abuse and coercive control.

HBA is widely misunderstood and underreported, meaning that hundreds of victims are not being helped and perpetrators are escaping justice.

Yasmin Khan, founder of National Lottery-funded charity, the Halo Project, believes the COVID-19 pandemic has led to a surge in survivors coming forward after two years of being unable to seek help.

Her charity has identified huge gaps in the reporting and understanding of HBA, which Khan says is even more prevalent than official figures suggest: the Home Office has only started collecting data from police forces on HBA offences since April 2019.

https://get-latest.convrse.media/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.gazettelive.co.uk%2Fnews%2Fuk-world-news%2Fnational-lottery-funded-uk-charities-24465297%3Futm_source%3Dtwitter.com%26utm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_campaign%3Dsharebar&cre=bottom&cip=22&view=web

Khan said: “We are seeing a tsunami of victims coming forward who have been extremely traumatised.

“This pandemic has exposed such inequalities and gaps in services, and a lot of staff are burnt out.”

The Halo Project’s long-term aim is to build a ‘zero-tolerance’ approach to honour-based abuse and ‘eradicate’ gender-based violence.

Khan said that funding from the National Lottery has enabled the Halo Project to develop its services further.

National Lottery players raise more than £30million a week for good causes, making projects such as these possible. Find out how your numbers make amazing happen at: www.lotterygoodcauses.org.uk

Source – https://www.gazettelive.co.uk/news/uk-world-news/national-lottery-funded-uk-charities-24465297?utm_source=twitter.com&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=sharebar

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Posted in Honour Based Abuse, Honour Killings | No Comments »

Home Office stats on honour-based abuse doesn’t reflect true numbers says charity

Published: March 17th, 2022 Updated: July 21st, 2022

Statistics from the Home Office show that West Yorkshire has one of the highest rates of honour-based abuse in the country, but campaigners say that the number is a “huge underestimation”.

By Shawna Healey

Statistics from the Home Office show that West Yorkshire is tied with having the second greatest number of reported incidents of honour-based abuse (HBA) in England and Wales.

HBA is a form of gender-based violence that encompasses multiple patterns of behaviours and incidents including sexual assault, female genital mutilation, forced or child marriage, and murder – known as ‘honour’ killings, which take the lives of 12-15 women a year in the UK.

The police and the Crown Prosecution Service defines HBA as an incident or crime involving violence, threats of violence, intimidation, coercion, or abuse – including psychological, physical, sexual, financial, or emotional abuse – which has or may have been committed to protect or defend the honour of an individual, family or community for alleged or perceived breaches of the family or community’s code of behaviour.”

Between 2020 and 2021, West Yorkshire Police had 203 reported incidents of HBA or nine reported incidents of HBA per 100,000 people, the same as the West Midlands and Bedfordshire. This is compared with Greater Manchester Police, which has the highest HBA rate of police force area, with twelve per 100,000.

Rates of HBA vary across Yorkshire, with the Humberside and North Yorkshire having the lowest rates out of England and Wales, with just one case reported per 100,000. In South Yorkshire, the rate is four per 100,000.

However, charities working with victims of HBA, who are most often women from the South Asian community says that the statistics are a “huge underestimation and fails to consider how some perpetrators will go to great lengths to protect their honour.”

Yasmin Khan, Director of the Halo Project, a charity supporting Black, Asian, and minoritized victims and survivors of domestic abuse, sexual violence and hidden harms including honour-based abuse, said: “HBA is especially prevalent among South Asian communities, where female victims face a higher risk of poor mental health and are three times more likely to commit suicide than female white British victims and seventeen times more likely than male South Asian victims.

“Victims are often discouraged in disclosing abuse from a young age because it brings ‘shame’ and ‘dishonour’ to the family – and many face additional barriers, such as language, insecure immigration status and past negative experiences with frontline services such as the police.”

One woman who suffered HBA and found help through The Halo Project is Madiha. Madiha arrived in the UK from Pakistan a decade ago and started to receive HBA after not being able to fall pregnant.

The abuse got so bad that she ended up in the hospital. It was here that she was suggested to 101 – the non-emergency crime hotline. She was told that she must report the crime herself, which in turn would allow a police officer to visit her take a statement.

Not speaking any English, she was unable to do this until a helpful NHS worker contacted The Halo Project who was then able to advocate on her behalf.

The charity worker helped Madiha work with a police officer who was specially trained in HBA to receive appropriate care.

Madiha safely moved from the hospital to an appropriate refuge and was able to remove her belongings from the family home. She was given constant emotional support as well as counselling and group activities to keep her confidence and morale levels up after leaving a traumatic situation.

One of the reasons why incidents of HBA is underreported is because “police forces haven’t got the understanding or fail to consider the additional barriers that victims from Black, Asian, or minoritized communities face, meaning they may drop the case or file it as a separate offence such as domestic abuse,” says Ms Khan.

She added: “This misreporting then causes HBA to not appear prevalent from a statistical point of view, meaning it is then not afforded the priority it needs in terms of attention, funding, and awareness, which results in the inadequate provision, a lack of safeguarding and a heightened risk to the lives of women.”

To change the way HBA is recorded and dealt with in society, the director of the Halo Project said: “We must change the monolithic approach to violence against women and girls and consider the complexities for all victims.

“Specialist training should be compulsory for all frontline professionals, a national strategy is needed to ensure all crimes of this type are recorded, and more funding must be allocated to services that understand and specialise in these cases.

“We must invest in the complexities of domestic abuse in all its forms because too many victims are suffering unnecessarily.

“The responsibility is on all of us to spot the signs of honour-based abuse, signpost survivors, and support specialist services.”

Detective Chief Inspector Allan Raw, of West Yorkshire Police’s Safeguarding Central Governance Unit, said: “There is no honour in any form of abuse. We take a victim-led approach to deal with these challenging issues which respects the views of victims and witnesses, provides the necessary support, confidentiality and protection from harm.

“Specialist officers located in the Force’s district Safeguarding Units or Domestic Abuse Teams are responsible for ensuring the safety of those who report concerns about themselves directly or who are otherwise brought to our attention as being potential victims, ensuring that all crimes are fully investigated and prosecuted wherever possible.

“However, we acknowledge that it is often difficult for victims as they do not want to prosecute their family, so our primary aim is to make sure the victim has the necessary support and above all, is safe.  Some police interventions in respect of honour-based abuse are preventative in nature and our response is always to work with partner agencies to safeguard that person from coming to harm, for example, by considering Forced Marriage Prevention Orders.

“We know that this is a hidden and under-reported crime and it is testament to the work that is being done to raise awareness and encourage reporting that we have seen more victims coming forward.

“West Yorkshire Police has invested in further awareness training for officers and staff to ensure that we are able to recognise honour-based abuse at the earliest opportunity and to ensure that we provide an effective response.

“If you have been a victim of honour-based abuse or have concerns for someone you know then we would urge you to please make contact with the police. Officers within our specialist safeguarding units understand the sensitive nature of these offences, and have access to interpreters where they are needed.”

If you need help or more information about honour-based violence or suspect somebody is a victim of HBA, please contact the following charities:

  • The Halo Project: Phone 01642 683 045 or email info@haloproject.org.uk. Their live chat is open from Monday to Friday 8am – 10am and 6pm – 9pm and Saturday and Sunday 10am – 2pm.
  • Karma Nirvana: Open from 9am to 5pm Monday to Friday. Phone 0800 5999 247.
  • Refuge: Domestic abuse hotline is open 24 hours on 0808 2000 247.
  • True Honour on 07480 621711.
Home office stats on honour-based abuse doesn’t reflect true numbers says charity

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Marriage Hell: My abusive arranged husband kicked me so hard our baby died & threatened to torch our house after I refused an abortion

Published: November 18th, 2021 Updated: July 21st, 2022

PEERING out of her bedroom window at the 12ft drop below, Tina Kenworthy uttered terrifying instructions that would send a chill through any parent: “Throw the quilt down and jump!”

The frightened mum was teaching her sons how to escape their three-bedroom home in Leicester, in case her “monster husband” carried out his vile threat to burn down their house with them inside.

Tina, 49, had every reason to fear he’d go through with it – she claims he’d already dragged her down the stairs by her hair, beaten her up and kicked her in the stomach while she was pregnant.

After meeting her husband just twice, she was pressured into marrying him when she was 23.

Tina fell pregnant two months later, and says she noticed a radical change in his personality.

By the time their fourth son was born in 2007, she claims he was drinking excessively and taking drugs – and if she refused to have sex with him, he would attack her.

After 13 years of “torment”, Tina finally separated from her husband, but was dealt a devastating final blow – he left her in £40,000 of debt. 

Customer service team leader Tina has finally found happiness with a new partner, despite her family struggling to accept him at first because he wasn’t “chosen” for her and came from a different community.

She hopes by sharing her experience, it will encourage others in situations like hers to seek help and find a way out of abusive relationships.

Tina tells The Sun: “I felt like there was no escape. My husband became controlling very early on in our marriage and when he started to drink he would hit me for no reason.

“I tried to leave him multiple times and fled to women’s refuges but I didn’t feel strong enough or able to leave him for good.

“One of the worst times was when I was pregnant with our second child. He wanted me to have an abortion but I couldn’t do it and he turned really, really nasty.

“He kicked me in the stomach so hard that my baby stopped moving. Even after I had a stillbirth, I didn’t feel I could report how he was treating me to the police.

“Another time in the early hours of the morning, he grabbed a chunk of my hair and pulled me down the stairs to the kitchen because I refused to cook for him.

“At that time I was having panic attacks in the middle of the night and slept with my bedroom door locked and a knife under my pillow just so I could feel safe.

“I had to teach our boys how to jump out of the window because he threatened to set our house on fire while we were sleeping to burn us all alive.

He kicked me in the stomach so hard that my baby stopped movingTina Kenworthy

“During the worst parts of the marriage, I considered suicide because I couldn’t see another way out but I knew I couldn’t leave my boys with such a monster.

“It’s a miracle I survived and thankfully, I’ve now found a husband who truly loves me. I’m still dealing with the emotional abuse but I’m thriving and getting my life back on track.”

Pressured into marriage

Tina, who’s a Hindu, says the fear of “bringing shame” upon her family prevented her from feeling able to leave her husband sooner and her relatives often stressed divorce “was not an option”.

She was born in a small village in Shahkot in Punjab, India, and two years after moving to Britain in 1993, she returned to marry a stranger 18 months her senior.

She claims it wasn’t a forced marriage but it was “rushed” and she didn’t have time to get to know her future husband.

After returning to the UK she soon began to feel “trapped” by her husband’s increasingly manipulative behaviour.

After losing her second child in June 1997, Tina’s mental health nosedived and she became reliant on antidepressants.

Due to her husband controlling their finances, she struggled to find a way out of their marriage.

I couldn’t say no to him, if I did he would beat me up or tell my family I was not being a good wifeTina Kenworthy

She explains: “I was looking for a way to escape and the only way I knew how was to improve my education so that I could become financially independent.

“When I started university he became even more aggressive because he was losing control over my life and doors were opening up for me.

“In his eyes, he had control over my body. We were sleeping in separate rooms and he would force himself on me regularly.

“I couldn’t say no to him, if I did he would beat me up or tell my family I was not being a good wife.

“Due to him being a man they would take his side nine out of 10 times.”

Masked abuse

Tina claims her ex-husband would put on a front while visiting her relatives and played happy families so they would never suspect a thing.

“He was so manipulative, we would have a fight and then in front of my family he would be laughing, smiling and telling them how much he loved me,” she adds.

Tina claims she called the police at least 15 times during their marriage.

“In 2003, he was charged with actual bodily harm for assaulting me really badly, but pleaded guilty to common assault,” she recalls. 

“At that time he was truly horrible to live with, when he was drunk he would shout, scream and threaten to break the door down.

“In our culture, when you’re married you are your husband’s responsibility, which leaves so many ladies and young girls trapped in abusive relationships.”

In 2008, Tina finally left her husband after receiving advice from a women’s refuge about how to get a divorce and apply for financial assistance. 

He was so manipulative, we would have a fight and then in front of my family he would be laughing, smiling and telling them how much he loved meTina Kenworthy

She underwent a support recovery programme from the Helping Other People Everyday (H.O.P.E.) Training, which helped her to work through the trauma she endured.

“I’m really proud of what I’ve achieved, I’m empowered and believe in myself more than ever thanks to the counselling I’ve received,” Tina says.

“There are bad days but I have worked to become independent, mentally stronger and able to cope financially.”

Since their divorce was finalised in 2012, Tina claims she has not seen her ex-husband after he “fled”.

“Looking back I’m a much stronger person now and despite him taking out £40,000 in personal loans, I’m working to pay off what we owe,” she says.

Finding love again

As Tina slowly pieced her life back together, she joined the online dating site eharmony in 2014. 

A year later she met Andrew Kenworthy and the relationship was a world away from what she’d experienced in the past.

They married in 2017, and Tina says she now knows what a loving relationship feels like.

“We have arguments like any couple but we listen to each other, can give our opinions without fear and speak honestly with one another,” she says.

“My boys see it too and tell me, ‘Mum, you deserve this.’ When I look back now I feel like I’m lucky to be alive and to have found such happiness.”

Honour-based abuse on the rise

Abuse after arranged and forced marriages have come into the spotlight after a spike in recorded crimes across the country. 

New figures reveal that ‘honour-based’ violence has risen 81 per cent in the last five years – from 884 in 2016 to 1,599 last year.

The data, which came from 28 out of 39 constabularies after freedom of information requests by The Guardian, didn’t surprise several charities who spoke to The Sun.

They said the true extent of the problem is considerably worse than the figures suggest because many people do not feel safe reporting abuse.  

Meena Kumari, of H.O.P.E. Training, and Yasmin Khan from The Halo Project, are calling for more to be done.

“I believe this rise is the tip of the iceberg,” Meena tells The Sun.

She believes specialist training should be compulsory for all police officers, constables and volunteers and a national strategy to ensure all crimes of this type are recorded.

Meena also has called for more funding to investigate the “low number of charges and fall in conviction rates” to work out how best to help victims.

Yasmin echoes these calls for better training to recognise the abuse and more assistance for those trying to leave abusive partners.

It’s estimated that between 12 and 15 people die each year in the UK from so-called “honour killings” – but Yasmin insists that figure is “a huge underestimation”.

Among the victims is Banaz Mahmod whose family plotted her murder in 2006 after she left an allegedly abusive marriage and chose a partner of her own choosing.

Yasmin says: “Families will not report a missing man or woman to the police and there are also people who have been taken abroad and killed.

“Some will go to great lengths to protect their family’s honour, including hiring bounty hunters. We need to do more and respond better to save lives.”

For information or help visit get in touch with the Halo Project, H.O.P.E Training and Consultancy or Karma Nirvana.

Tina’s story will be published in the book The Story Of My Life book and also featured on the Positive Minds podcast, shared by the mental health charity Our Solutions CIC.

https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/16764324/arranged-marriage-tina-kenworth-domestic-abuse/

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Asian victims are ‘being failed’

Published: September 29th, 2021 Updated: July 21st, 2022

By: Lauren Codling

CAMPAIGNERS have warned that Asian victims of abuse are “being failed” due to a lack of cultural understanding by authorities, which they said can cause police investigations to “fall apart”.

In interviews with Eastern Eye this week, charity bosses have said police should do more to recognise the specific barriers and safeguarding risks ethnic minority victims face when reporting a crime, as not doing so means there is an increased risk of victims retracting their reports.

One academic said victims are denied justice as police officers “misinterpret, destroy or inaccurately record evidence”.

Their comments follow an outpouring of grief and anger following the murder of Sabina Nessa, a 28-year-old teacher whose body was found in a park near her home in south-east London in September. A 36-year-old man charged with her murder denied the charge in a London court on Tuesday (28).

Nessa’s case has reignited the discussion around the level of violence faced by women and girls, with a new report revealing there are an estimated 1.6 million female victims of domestic abuse in England and Wales in the year ending March 2020. The report, by the Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services, said there were 618,000 female victims of sexual assault.

Writing for Eastern Eye this week, Professor Aisha K Gill, PhD, CBE, of the University of Roehampton, a leading criminologist, said in the past two decades that she has worked in the field, she found that prosecution cases often fall apart because police officers “misinterpret, destroy or inaccurately record evidence”.

She confirmed she had made formal complaints regarding these accusations. “They may even fail to gather key evidence in the first place because they deem the accused’s story more credible than the victims,” said Gill, a professor of criminology.

Yasmin Khan founded the Halo Project, a charity which supports victims of honour based violence and forced marriages in the UK. She explained ethnic minority victims do not get to the criminal justice stage due to the lack of understanding by police forces, who fail to apprehend the specific barriers and safeguarding risks BAME victims face when the abusers share the same culture and ethnicity.

“(Investigations fall apart) because police officers haven’t got the understanding and don’t consider the barriers that black and minority ethnic victims of sexual abuse are facing,” she said. “Victims are being failed all the time.”

In a 2020 report, the charity identified nine key failures in police responses to reports of sexual abuse within the ethnic minority community.

This included a disproportionate focus on community impact; lack of empathy from the police; and a failure to understand the “retraumatising effect” of the prosecution process.

“We need to make sure that (authorities are) removing the barriers for victims to come forward and make those disclosures – not put barriers in place for them,” Khan told Eastern Eye.

Natasha Rattu, executive director at charity Karma Nirvana, agreed the criminal justice often discredits victims who delay reporting. “In cases of honour-based
abuse, we know victims very often do retract,” she told Eastern Eye. “(We need) to  ensure that when people do come forward and report, we get it right, by engaging with them and improving their confidence.”

“They shouldn’t be feeling that the reason they want to retract is because they don’t feel (authorities) understand. Many victims do retract for those reasons, and that’s entirely unacceptable.”

‘Authorities must take abuse claims seriously’

According to government statistics, the number of rape convictions in England and Wales reached a record low in 2020-21. Only three per cent of alleged rapes ended in a conviction.

In a 2013 report by the Home Office, researchers found only around 15 per cent of those who experience sexual violence report the crime to the police.

Aneeta Prem, the founder of Freedom charity, said she has found it takes a “long, long time” before a victim will report a case against a perpetrator. It is vital such reports are always taken seriously by authorities, she said.

“People are very reluctant to report and when they do come forward, they need to be believed,” Prem said.

Khan also noted the emphasis is on the victim – not the offender. “(Women) have to make the complaints, we have to change our direction on an evening when we’re walking home, we have to choose what we ignore, and what we think is improper,” she said. “We’ve been victim blaming for far too long.”

Prem echoed Khan’s sentiments. “I heard one comment about Sabina, asking why she was out in the dark? But it was only 8:30pm (when she was allegedly attacked), it isn’t even that late to be going out. We shouldn’t be blaming women for going out and getting attacked.”

In reaction to the murder of marketing executive Sarah Everard in south London in March, the government vowed to make Britain’s streets safer for women by including increased funding for street lighting and closed-circuit TV.

However, Khan does not believe the government is doing enough. Authorities need to take a preventative approach instead, she said. “We need to ensure we’re understanding the root cause, which I don’t think has been happening.”

Gill has called for an overhaul of the criminal justice system that would ensure steeper penalties for gender-based violence and a focus on early education and prevention. Rattu argued that specialist services such as Karma Nirvana needed to be sustained and prioritised so that the needs of all victims could be tailored to.

Reacting to the news of Nessa’s murder, London mayor Sadiq Khan told Eastern Eye he was “devastated” by her death. “What happened to Sabina is every parent’s nightmare and every woman’s worst fear,” said Khan, who is a father to two daughters. “Her death is a tragedy and I stand with the community in Kidbrooke (in south-east London, where Sabina lived) and with Londoners across our city, united in grief, and united in our determination that justice is done.”

The mayor said City Hall had invested £60.7 million to tackle all violence against women and girls. The funding is being used to reduce waiting lists, keep doors open for vital specialist support services for victims and improve the police response to domestic abuse and violence against women and girls.

“Women and girls in London deserve to feel safe at all times, in every part of our city and I remain committed to making our city safer for them,” the mayor said.

Apsana Begum, Labour MP for Poplar and Limehouse in east London, said the case had filled her with “rage and grief”. “It provides a reminder of the fact that basic safety is not a right afforded to all equally,” she told Eastern Eye. “On average, one woman is killed every three days in the UK – that is one woman too many every day and every year.”

She said the case reminded her of the murders of Everard as well as sisters Bibaa Henry and Nicole Smallman, who were stabbed to death by a then-18-year-old man in north London last June. “These are not one-off or isolated incidents; this sort of violence has been persistent for centuries and decades and it must be ended,” Begum said.

“We cannot turn a blind eye to this public health crisis”

Many others have also made comparisons between Nessa and Everard, who was killed by a police officer in March.  Everard’s murder sparked a widespread debate about the safety of women and gendered violence in the UK.

However, Gill said cases involving women of colour do not lead to the same level of public outrage and anger as those involving white women.

“Countless women of colour have died during this epidemic of violence against women,” she said. “We cannot turn a blind eye to this public health crisis.”

Yasmin Khan agreed the reaction to Nessa’s murder should reach the same level of attention. “The outpouring for Sarah Everard was right, but the outpouring for Sabina needs to be echoed in the same way and provide that catalyst for change,” she said.

Rattu added: “They were two women who were murdered by the very same attitudes, fundamentally, and they both deserve to be remembered. We need to
make sure that we don’t have more cases like (the murders of Nessa and Everard).

“We’re seeing it happen more and more, which in the society and day and age we
live in, should not be our reality in 2021.”

In response to Eastern Eye, a National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) spokesman acknowledged the challenges for policing in response to violence against women and girls. “While policing has improved in our response, we are determined to do even better,” they said.

The spokesman noted the drivers of violence, abuse or intimidation are “hugely complex”, highlighting additional challenges such as court backlogs and the  increase in investigation of digital devices now required, “which present challenges”.

“There are no easy answers to this problem, but collectively government, policing and the criminal justice system need to keep working together to find ways to swiftly secure justice for victims,” the spokesman said.

The Home Office and the College for Policing did not respond to a request for comment from Eastern Eye.

Asian victims are ‘being failed’

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Why does FGM happen and where is it legal?

Published: June 2nd, 2021 Updated: July 21st, 2022

EastEnders has tackled many controversial topics in its history, and now it is bravely addressing the practice of FGM – female genital mutilation.

Mila Marwa has opened up on the show as she worries that her younger sister is to receive the same treatment she got as a child.

This is a very real issue many women face: UNICEF estimated in 2016 that 200 million women living in 30 countries—27 African countries, Indonesia, Iraqi Kurdistan and Yemen—have undergone the procedures.

What are the reasons for FGM?

The NHS explain that there are no health benefits to FGM and it can cause serious harm, including:

  • constant pain
  • pain and difficulty having sex
  • repeated infections, which can lead to infertility
  • bleeding, cysts and abscesses
  • problems peeing or holding pee in (incontinence)
  • depression, flashbacks and self-harm
  • problems during labour and childbirth, which can be life threatening for mother and baby

The reasons why some cultures or communities practice FGM is more to do with societal norms, attitudes and beliefs.

The practice is rooted in controlling women’s sexuality and attempts to ‘preserve’ a woman’s purity.  

What is FGM? What are the different types?

Female genital mutilation (FGM) is a procedure where the female genitals are deliberately cut, injured or changed. It’s also known as female circumcision or cutting, and by other terms, such as sunna, gudniin, halalays, tahur, megrez and khitan.

There are four main examples of FGM:

  • type 1 (clitoridectomy) – removing part or all of the clitoris
  • type 2 (excision) – removing part or all of the clitoris and the inner labia (with or without removal of the labia majora)
  • type 3 (infibulation) – narrowing the vaginal opening by creating a seal, formed by cutting and repositioning the labia
  • other harmful procedures to the female genitals, including pricking, cutting, scraping or burning the area
Why does FGM happen and where is it legal?

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Domestic abuse: Where to get help and how to make a silent 999 call

Published: June 1st, 2021 Updated: July 21st, 2022

Yasmin Khan, the Welsh Government’s advisor for domestic abuse advises what help is available for victims

If you are a victim of domestic violence in Wales, or are concerned about a friend or loved one, there are many ways to receive help, advice and support.

On Tuesday, ITV Wales detailed how the daughters of a woman who was murdered by her partner have described the pain of watching their mother become a “helpless” victim of domestic abuse.

An estimated 5.5% of adults aged 16 to 74 years – 2.3 million people – experienced domestic abuse in the year ending March 2020, according to the Crime Survey for England and Wales.

  • What is domestic abuse?

Police forces across Wales describe domestic abuse as “any incident or pattern of incidents of controlling, coercive or threatening behaviour, violence or abuse between those aged 16 or over who are or have been intimate partners or family members regardless of gender or sexuality.”

This can also include honour-based abuse and forced marriage.

South Wales Police said: “Domestic abuse can affect anyone regardless of ethnicity, age, gender, sexuality or social background.

“If you are suffering from physical, sexual, psychological or financial abuse, or are being threatened, intimidated or stalked by a current or previous partner or close family member, it’s likely you’re a victim of domestic abuse.”

  • How to get help if you are a victim of domestic abuse:

Anyone who is immediate danger is advised to call 999. If they are unable to speak, the ‘Silent Solution system’ enables a 999 mobile caller who is too scared to make a noise, or speak, when prompted by the call handler, to press 55 to inform police they are in a genuine emergency.

Whilst the police will not be able to track your mobile phone’s location by pressing 55 during the phone call, it will let the phone operator know that this is not a hoax call and you will be put through to the police.

If you call 999 from a landline, the Silent Solution system is not used as it is less likely that 999 calls are made by accident.

Many services have online chat or text messaging services if you are unable to speak on the phone.

Victims can walk into pharmacies across the UK using the code word ‘ANI’ and will be offered a quiet and private space by a member of staff who can support them;

The Help Hand signal – the signal is performed by holding one hand up with the thumb tucked into the palm, then folding the four other fingers down, symbolically trapping the thumb in the rest of the fingers.

https://www.itv.com/news/wales/2021-05-25/domestic-abuse-where-to-get-help-and-how-to-make-a-silent-999-call

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Saira Khan: ‘Growing up, I thought domestic abuse was part of our culture and normal’

Published: June 1st, 2021 Updated: July 21st, 2022

When I was thrust into the media spotlight after being on The Apprentice in 2005, I vowed to use my platform to talk about life growing up in Britain.

From a young age I felt that while I was British – born and educated here – I was not represented.

At times, it felt like Asian matters were dealt with by unelected community leaders, while the rest of the population was accounted for by laws and MPs.

Many women like me, who try to straddle two distinct cultures, see and experience things that others never do – arranged marriages, forced marriages, child brides, cultural control.

Many come here from places like Pakistan, India and Bangladesh, with no knowledge of the language, and are forced to be dutiful maids at the mercy of the families they have been married into

This is a generalisation but, from what I saw growing up, it was a regular norm. That is my truth.

Some people accuse me of only highlighting negative stories from the South Asian culture.

The trolls come out in force, some issuing death threats, in the hope I will just shut up.

But I have always made a stand for the women in my community because so many can’t speak up.

They don’t know who to talk to without feeling judged. And they could be ­ostracised – or killed – for dishonouring their families.

The guilt bestowed upon Asian women from birth is indescribable. You learn to live with it but that guilt shapes every aspect of your life.

And it keeps the misogyny alive.

MPs don’t want to discuss the abuse in case they’re accused of being racist. But silence results in innocent women being abused, violated and murdered.

I grew up thinking it was acceptable for men to shout at women and that hitting is part of our culture and normal.

It isn’t. It’s domestic abuse and there are laws in this country to protect us from it.

We need this message to infiltrate all communities in Britain.

https://www.mirror.co.uk/3am/celebrity-news/saira-khan-growing-up-thought-24211502

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