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Original poster

Child marriage

357 replies

FruityPops · 07/10/2013 12:20

Why are so many imams in the UK willing to force fourteen year old girls to marry against their wishes? Don't ordinary muslims know what's going on?

www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2447720/Clerics-18-mosques-caught-agreeing-marry-girls-14-Four-imams-investigated-undercover-operation.html

OP posts:
friday16 · 07/10/2013 12:22

Don't ordinary muslims know what's going on?

What makes you think they don't?

hiddenhome · 07/10/2013 12:22

Of course they know Wink

Original poster
FruityPops · 07/10/2013 12:25

friday and hiddenhome - why don't they do anything about it then?

18 out of the 56 mosques approached agreed to do it - this is not a tiny minority by anyone's standards.

OP posts:
hiddenhome · 07/10/2013 12:27

Nothing is done because people don't like to rock the boat. The places I've worked in where blatant wrongdoing is going on, but it's impossible to change things because it's such a big thing to do.

Hubb · 07/10/2013 12:28

I, as an "ordinary" Muslim, have never come across this and am really shocked.

But why should ordinary muslims know what the sick ones are up to? It's not my job to police something I've never heard about or come across.

Original poster
FruityPops · 07/10/2013 12:29

Maid - Does the MCB actually have any authority over anyone? If so, who appointed them, and are they all men?

OP posts:
hiddenhome · 07/10/2013 12:30

I've read a few autobiographies by muslim women who were forced into marriage and they all describe how the practise is well known about within their communities and the families go to great lengths to cover up what is going on. People can hide a great deal from the outside world and convince themselves that the outside world is hostile and 'won't understand'. Religious cults operate a similar system whereby their members are made to believe that the outside world is dangerous and wrong.

Trapper · 07/10/2013 12:31

What about child abuse in the church - surely "ordinary Christians" should have known?

Original poster
FruityPops · 07/10/2013 12:32

Hubb - I'm glad you've never come across it, but it seems to be more prevalent than people thought - like the abuse that went on at the BBC, which people turned a blind eye to.

OP posts:
BlingBang · 07/10/2013 12:32

My two friends were told from the age of 8 who they would be marrying. So used to it by the time they married they probably never thought to question it. Both finally divorced their husbands who were born and raised in Pakistan so had a very different mindset - it was all really ugly.

fuzzywuzzy · 07/10/2013 12:32

I'm Muslim and this is not known within my community.

I know for a fact our imam would not even be approached for such a marriage as he'd give them short shrift and alert the authorities.

Hubb · 07/10/2013 12:32

Glad you've used "a few biographies" as your backing for making such sweeping statements hidden

Exactly Trapper.......

hiddenhome · 07/10/2013 12:33

I'm sure a great many ordinary Christians knew about Dodgy Priest A at X Parish and not to leave their kids alone with him. Stories soon get round about what is going on.

YouTheCat · 07/10/2013 12:33

Exactly, Trapper.

But this is all about 'those evil, child abusing Muslims' isn't it? Ffs there are abusers in all walks of life and all religions.

Original poster
FruityPops · 07/10/2013 12:34

Trapper - two wrongs don't make a right. You shouldn't excuse evil just because someone else has been doing it too.

OP posts:
nennypops · 07/10/2013 12:34

It' s a Daily Mail report about Islam, a topic on which they are well known to have a particularly unpleasant agenda. Therefore I would take very little of this report as reliable without seeing the evidence.

However, as usual they have buried the most relevant bit in paragraph 19 -

"The Muslim Council of Britain’s Ibrahim Mogra said: ‘UK law does not allow the marriage of underage girls and that’s all that matters to us here. In this country, it is illegal, it is forbidden and no imam should be allowed to conduct the marriage of an underage child.’"

Hubb · 07/10/2013 12:34

May be more prevalent than people thought...but how is it up to ordinary muslims to know about these things, which is what you hint at in your OP

fuzzywuzzy · 07/10/2013 12:35

Quite a roll on Mn recently

We've covered

The face veil
The babies in hijab
Halal slaughter
and now forced marriage of minors (thus far both the Muslim Mners on this thread have never heard of it in their communities, but apparently it's prevalent because everyone's read about it, so we're all turning a blind eye to it Hmm).

nennypops · 07/10/2013 12:36

like the abuse that went on at the BBC, which people turned a blind eye to.

What has this got to do with the topic? And why only refer only to the BBC when the perpetrators of the abuse were being allowed to operate much more in children's homes and hospitals with blind eyes being turned?

InspectorMagnet · 07/10/2013 12:36

I wonder if the statistic of 18 out of 56 mosques is misleading. Presumably the invesigators only approached mosques where they thought it more likely to get agreement for a forced marriage.

Obviously, 18 mosques is 18 too many but it may be a far lower percentage than suggested by 18 out of 56 mosques.

Original poster
FruityPops · 07/10/2013 12:38

Cat - if we don't speak about what is happening, more young girls will be raped.

OP posts:
nennypops · 07/10/2013 12:39

I'm sure a great many ordinary Christians knew about Dodgy Priest A at X Parish and not to leave their kids alone with him. Stories soon get round about what is going on.

Evidence? Surely you are aware that child abusers are unfortunately very good indeed at covering up what they do, not least by threatening their victims and making them feel guilty about what is happening.

YouTheCat · 07/10/2013 12:39

No one has said two wrongs make a right. Two wrongs make a wrong ffs - the fact that they're Muslim is totally irrelevant. Abuse happens in all areas of society.

Fuzzy, I'm not a Muslim and I'm finding some attitudes on here lately bloody terrible.

YouTheCat · 07/10/2013 12:40

So, Fruity, only Muslim girls will be raped and we have the power to stop all of that happening?

How?