WUNRN
CANADA - STATEMENT TO NOT
CRIMINALIZE FORCED MARRIAGE IN CANADA - ANALYSIS
SALCO - South Asian Legal Clinic of
Ontario, Canada - Forced Marriage Project
"A forced marriage is a form of violence and an abuse
of human rights. It is a practice in which a marriage takes place without the
free consent of the individuals getting married. Forced marriage can happen to
anyone; of any gender, of any age." SALCO
Direct Link to Full 3-Page 2014
SALCO STATEMENT AGAINST CRIMINALIZING FORCED MARRIAGES IN CANADA:
Excerpt from Page 3:
"We strongly believe that the
criminalization of forced marriage is NOT the right answer for Canada. This
statement is made based on the work that SALCO has done with other national
stakeholders, and most importantly with hundreds of victims of forced marriage
throughout Canada. While we agree that prevention is important in the
discussion around forced marriage in Canada, we believe that education is the
most effective preventative tool in this debate. We suggest that educating and
raising awareness within the Immigration, Law Enforcement, and Health and
Education sectors is the best practice.
Finally, we stand for
victims/survivors of forced marriage, whose voices have told us time and time
again that they would not come forward if it meant criminal sanctions for their
own family. We must continue to ensure that victims/survivors (and not
perpetrators) are the centre of the Canadian debate on the criminalization of
forced marriage in Canada."
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