[Test] What's New - Stop Violence Against Women

Domestic Violence

General Information Best Practices Law and Policy Ongoing Developments

Human Trafficking

Human Trafficking Overview Training and Advocacy Ongoing Developments Sex Trafficking and Safe Harbor Resource Pack

Sexual Harassment

General Information Training and Advocacy Law and Policy Ongoing Developments

Sexual Assault

General Information Advocacy and Training Law and Policy Ongoing Developments

Other Forms of Violence Against Women

Crimes Committed in the Name of "Honor" Dowry-Related Violence Female Environmental Refugees Female Genital Mutilation Femicide Forced and Early Marriage Forced/Coerced Sterilization Gender-Based Asylum Harmful Practices Indigenous Women Maltreatment of Widows Son Preference Violence Against LGBT Women Violence Against the Girl Child Violence Against Women and HIV/AIDS Women and Armed Conflict Violence Against Women with Disabilities

Russian Site

Our Work

What's New

Archives 2003 Archives 2004 Archives 2005 Archives 2006

Advocacy Tools

Women's HR Training Human Rights Reporting Community Education Advocating for New Laws on Violence Against Women and Girls Women Human Rights Defenders and Safety

International Law

United Nations Systems European System

Expert's Corner

Make A Donation

Anti-Gender Developments

Netherlands: Women's Rights Advocates Concerned with Police Involvement in Arranged Marriage

Tuesday, May 21, 2013

Femmes for Freedom, a Dutch organization advocating against forced marriage, recently criticized the actions of the Dutch police as they allegedly assisted an underage couple wed in the Netherlands. The police escorted the bride from her school to the wedding location. The Muslim couple married so that the bride would not have to marry her cousin in a traditionally arranged marriage in her native country of Pakistan.

Shirin Musa, spokesperson for Femmes for Freedom, expressed the organization’s concern that the underage bride could not properly consent to the marriage, stating “At such a young age there is as much of a possibility that she will be trapped in this marriage as she would be in an arranged one.”

The department of justice in The Hague estimates that over a dozen teenage girls are forced into arranged marriages each year in the Netherlands.

Compiled from: Cluskey, Peter, “Dutch police criticised for allegedly helping two underage Muslims to marry,”The Irish Times (15 May 2013).

For More Information:

Please see the Forced and Child Marriage section of this website.

In This Section

The Advocates for Human Rights Site Map About the Site

330 Second Avenue South, Suite 800, Minneapolis, MN 55401 USA Phone: (612) 341-3302 Fax: (612) 341-2971 Email: hrights@advrights.org

Although Stop Violence Against Women endeavors to provide useful and accurate information, Stop Violence Against Women does not warrant the accuracy of the materials provided. Accordingly, this Web Site and its information are provided "AS IS" without warranty of any kind, express or implied, including but not limited to, the implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular use or purpose, or non-infringement. Some jurisdictions do not allow the exclusion of implied warranties, so the above exclusion may not apply to you. We reserve the right to make improvements and/or changes in the format and/or content of the information contained on the Web Site without notice.This information is provided with the understanding that Stop Violence Against Women and its partners are not engaged in rendering legal or other professional services. If legal advice or other expert assistance is required, the services of a competent professional should be sought.

Copyright © 2018 The Advocates for Human Rights. All rights reserved. Permission is granted to use this material for non-commercial purposes with proper attribution to The Advocates for Human Rights.