The Chief Excutive With the Senior Consultant of "Dannerhuset" - a privately organization working on improving the rights of women, Copenhagen, Denmark
"A new study has found that the practice of forced marriage among immigrants in Britain is much more common than previously assumed"
So in Denmark, how many calls do u receive per day? and how do you deal with such calls, I mean the taken procedures after receiving the call
Answer
Dear Amin Khan.
Thank you for your question. In Denmark this is a relatively new phenomenon. It is a taboo and it is very difficult to get exact data on the matter. But the NGO's involved with women rights and the Danish government is very focused on the issue.
In Dannerhuset we receive calls about this almost every day. We try to find out if the girl who calls us is in danger, we try to figure out what kind of help she needs.
Name
Azmahar
- Hungary
Profession
Question
I'm stunned, what is the motive that push the parents into doing a terrible act like forcing daughters into marring from undesirable men, how could you define the reasons behind such a harmful act!!
Answer
Dear Azmahar,
thank you for your question. Well, it can be difficult to understand.
The way we see it is often a desire to connect with and build relations with other families, that will strengthen the position of the family and the community.
Also, We think it is important to know that the family does not think that what they do is an evil act. They think primarily of the benefit of the entire family. What we see is that the result is a clash between traditions and generations. We also see that forced marriage can be a way of securing the future of the family financially.
Best regards,
vibe and Henriette
Name
Denmark- Jamal
-
Profession
Question
I think that re-habilitation programs for those victim women is a must , alsor I suggest offering courses for parents themselves, warning them for the dangerous effect of this act.
So what about the re-habilitation going on in the Dannerhust ?
Answer
Hi Jamal,
Thanks for your question. I think that your idea about courses for parents is an excellent idea. How do you think we could do that - how do you think we could make the families interested in this?
By the way we do have mediation programs. It is relatively new but the general feeling is that this is an important tool for solving problems for solving the generational conflict.
And for rehabilitation in Dannerhuset (our shelter) well, this is what we do every day.
have a nice day, Jamal
Name
ziera
-
Profession
house wife
Question
Do the state or the government plays any active role in preventing or restricting this acts, or they do it a far from the governmental legislations?
Answer
Hi Ziera,
thanks for your question.
In Denmark forced marriages are illegal by law. This means that if some one takes a case to court every one involved in the matter can be convicted.
But so far we have had very few of these court rulings. It is very rare that these cases are brought to court. It is very difficult to prove the case because the community can be very tight and keep the information to themselves. This means that it can be very difficult for us to help the girls, but we do what we can.
Best regards,
Henriette and Vibe
Name
Jamila- France
-
Profession
Question
Hello all,
Does the shelter conduct any surveys on the actual statistics of forced marriage in Europe? If yes, from where exactly does it come the highest percentage of forced marriage?
Answer
Hi Jamilla,
thanks for a very interesting question.
Unfortunately we do not have much statistical information on the matter. So I cannot give you exact numbers from Europe. But I can tell you that with in the Danish shelter Dannerhuset,
we primarily help girls from the Turkish, the Moroccan and the Pakistani communities. These are also some of the largest immigrant communities in Denmark.
Sincerely,
Henriette and Vibe
Name
Jasmina
-
Profession
teacher
Question
dear Vibe and Henriette,
could you tell me what is the main ways of treatments you use with the guests of the shelter? And do the other private organizations, such as; hospitals, cooperate with you in order to treat the victums and make them productive individuals?
Answer
Hi Jasmina,
Well, whenever a women comes to us we discuss whether she should stay with us for a while or "just" receive some counseling.
If she chooses to stay with us we provide the following.
- Safety - we are a safehouse with a high security level
- Counseling and immediate crisis management
- We help her with financial matters, with finding new housing,
- We help her in her dialogue with the local authorities, police, hospitals e.g.
- We help her building a new network
- We do children counseling and child therapy
- We help her settling into a new life perhaps help her starting an education, new work or so on
Best regards,
Vibe and Henriette
Name
Monzer jessar
-
Profession
Question
Hello all,
I know my question might seem a little bit odd, but I read several times about forced marriage for men, so have you ever heard about this topic?\
And if yes, why you don’t pay attention for them either? And start working on the topic from various points of view?
Answer
Hi Monzer,
You are right. Forced marriage also happens to men. The problem can be even more tabooed. So it is very difficult to help these young men.
They themselves are not very open about it. But we do hear the stories and we feel that there is a need to focus on this topic. So - good question!
If young men contact us at Dannerhuset we refer them to experts within the field. We have a few consultants whom we cooperate with.
Best regards
Vibe and Henriette
Name
Cerebrosus
-
Profession
Question
I think it's a crime against humanity to force one or more of the marriage parties to get married without his or her consent or against his or her will. But regarding the European case, don't you think it's weird for a liberal society to contain such customs?. Knowing that those kind of customs almost vanished in middle east and Africa.
Answer
Hi Cerebrosus.
Well, we agree that it is strange that these things still take place. But they do and we can only try to develop our culture in such a way that forced marriages will be history here to.
For us the task is to be in constant dialogue with the immigrant communities about the matter.
Best regards
Henriette and Vibe
Name
Mohammed-
- Algeria
Profession
Question
Regarding the forced women, what do you think about the society's perception towards them? Women like them must have been raised in a closed community, do you think that she would be affected by her relative's conceptions towards her situation, would they sympathize or blame her acceptance?
Answer
Hi Mohammed,
Thanks for this very important question and also complex one! We will try to answer briefly.
We do think that women brought up in a closed community find it very difficult to act against the will of her family. We often meet women who have fled from the family and who fear for their lives.
But at the same time feel guilty for not living the way her family wants her to. She is often torn between her wish to live her own life, the way she feel is right for her and her families expectations.
We often see that these young women wish to decide for themselves who they should marry – not necessarily a non-Muslim guy, but just some one else, than the one her family has chosen for her.
Best regards,
Vibe and Henriette
Name
sameer
-
Profession
Question
When the women seek help from the shelter, don’t you expose yourselves to the danger of being threatened from the woman's family and relatives, how do you deal with such an issue?
Answer
Hi Sameer,
thanks for your concern! Well yes this is an issue, but we are trained professionals and know how to deal with this. We have a very close cooperation with the police and we do take a number of security measures.
Best regards
Vibe and Henriette
Name
Editor
-
Profession
Answer
Dear visitors,
The session has ended. We would like to thank Ms. Vibe Klarup and Ms. Henriette Hojberg for taking the time to answer your questions and we apologize for not being able to accommodate all the questions within the time allocated to this session.
We request our readers to join us in the upcoming sessions.
