This is first time post, though I'm a long time reader of others' posts. Am I being unreasonable to it's completely wrong, that in 2018 (the centenary of British women first gaining the right to vote on the laws they're governed by} as a country we allow some British women to be put in the position where they may be persuaded or coerced to give up their legal rights within the British legal system?
This is currently the case for over 100,000 British women because our government allows religious ceremony only marriages without there being a legal obligation alongside to have a legal civil ceremony. So, many women - who are often among the most vulnerable, aren't protected by our British court system. I only realised this because a friend (a former work colleague) was in the situation when she got married, where her future husband's family were pressing for a Sharia only marriage. Her father was inclined to agree with them, and it was only by her mother refusing to let her daughter be married only by Sharia law, that she had both a religious marriage and a civil ceremony. They were married for about 4 years during which her husband mistreated her and had several affairs. She was only able to achieve a divorce within the British legal system because her mother had insisted she have a civil ceremony.
How can the government continue to turn a blind eye to this? Religious only marriages put women in a severely disadvantaged position and yet this is allowed to happen. Baroness Caroline Cox, a cross-party member of the House of Lords is trying to introduce a private members' Bill to close this loophole in the law and protect these women - who are all British citizens. Her website (equal and free) gives more information if you are interested. Anyone who agrees with me can help to gain support for her Bill from the government by emailing their MP and also the Home Secretary. You can find your MP's contact details at "they work for you".
Thanks for reading.