Good morning/evening everyone. Today I am here to talk about an issue that has been plaguing Australia for many years. Forced marriage.
The Australian legal system aims to provide safety to the community, by providing an effective and impartial justice process for the community. Although that safety is there, a major crime is still slipping through the cracks. Forced marriage is a topic that no one would like to believe is happening. It is usually an underground practice that is hard to prosecute as victims usually do not speak up about it. However, the government have set in place harsh laws to help prevent this crime from continuing.
A forced marriage is when one or both parties are married without their consent. This is done through coercion from family members or friends; with threats of violence, verbal abuse and of being disowned from the family. Arranged marriage is different from forced marriage as it is completely legal and consent is given by both parties. Religions such as Amish, Hindus, Muslims and Jews believe and practice forced marriage, which is completely fine. However, if one party does not agree to the marriage then it becomes a forced marriage.
(C2013C00152), which has been updated and is now referred to as the Crimes Legislation Amendment (Slavery, Slavery-like Conditions and People Trafficking) Act 2013. Under this Act “a marriage is a forced marriage if, because of the use of coercion, …show more content…
Although it is an underground practice where victims usually do not speak up about, when one does the laws are there to help and protect the victim. With a few minor changes to the law victims of forced marriage will speak about their stories and hopefully the issue will become a more open and relevant topic in the legal system. After hearing me talk about it I hope that you as well feel as strongly as I do, just like the people in this video. (Play
The Australian legal system aims to provide safety to the community, by providing an effective and impartial justice process for the community. Although that safety is there, a major crime is still slipping through the cracks. Forced marriage is a topic that no one would like to believe is happening. It is usually an underground practice that is hard to prosecute as victims usually do not speak up about it. However, the government have set in place harsh laws to help prevent this crime from continuing.
A forced marriage is when one or both parties are married without their consent. This is done through coercion from family members or friends; with threats of violence, verbal abuse and of being disowned from the family. Arranged marriage is different from forced marriage as it is completely legal and consent is given by both parties. Religions such as Amish, Hindus, Muslims and Jews believe and practice forced marriage, which is completely fine. However, if one party does not agree to the marriage then it becomes a forced marriage.
(C2013C00152), which has been updated and is now referred to as the Crimes Legislation Amendment (Slavery, Slavery-like Conditions and People Trafficking) Act 2013. Under this Act “a marriage is a forced marriage if, because of the use of coercion, …show more content…
Although it is an underground practice where victims usually do not speak up about, when one does the laws are there to help and protect the victim. With a few minor changes to the law victims of forced marriage will speak about their stories and hopefully the issue will become a more open and relevant topic in the legal system. After hearing me talk about it I hope that you as well feel as strongly as I do, just like the people in this video. (Play