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Honour-based abuse: still a lot more to be done

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08 March 2024 / Emma Barrow
Issue: 8062 / Categories: Features , Criminal , Family
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Emma Barrow makes the case for a statutory definition of this often-unreported crime
  • The government recently rejected calls to introduce a clear definition of honour-based abuse into the legal system.
  • We urgently need a clear statutory definition in order to enhance the reliability and quality of data available.
  • Law reform, more police training, community outreach and protections for victims during the legal process may help tackle this issue.

Honour-based abuse is an act of violence committed by an individual to protect or defend the ‘honour’ of a family or community. The abuse can take many forms, including child marriage, virginity testing, enforced abortion, breast-flattening, female genital mutilation (FGM), as well as physical, sexual and economic abuse and coercive control.

Current studies estimate that as many as 60,000 women and girls in the UK could be at risk of FGM, and more than 125,000 may already be living with the consequences.

Between March 2021 and March 2022, 2,887 honour-based abuse-related offences were recorded in the

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