Shaping Priority Services for UK Victims of Honour‐Based Violence/Abuse, Forced Marriage, and Female Genital Mutilation

Abstract

Victims of honour‐based violence/abuse (HBV/A), forced marriage (FM), and female genital mutilation (FGM) are now defined as ‘priority groups’ in the UK's Code of Practice for Victims of Crime (commonly known as the Victims’ Code of Practice or VCOP). These groups encompass: those who are affected by the most serious forms of crime; those persistently targeted by crime; those vulnerable by age or physical or mental health; and those classified as intimidated victims. The Code recommends that these victims receive a ‘priority service’ that includes rapid needs assessment and enhanced support. This article draws upon research commissioned by a county police force in southern England which wanted to develop its provision for ‘priority service’ victims. It analyses data gathered from interviews with victims and multi‐agency practitioners and explores four dimensions of victim and practitioner experience: recording and locating victims; initiating a case; modes of protecting victims; and closing a case. It also discusses future directions and challenges for priority victim work in England and elsewhere, and identifies the many challenges experienced by practitioners working to support the victims of HBV/A, FM, and FGM. It argues that the voices of both victims and practitioners must be considered in the co‐creation of future priority services in this field.

Police Understandings of and Responses to a Complex Vignette of “Honour”-Based Crime and Forced Marriage

“…Unlike the United Kingdom and Scotland, Canada and Alberta did not track or release police data on HBC and FM at the time of this study (Chantler & McCarry, 2020;Gill et al, 2018;Hague et al, 2013;Hall, 2014). The Calgary Police Service (CPS) did collect such data for a short period prior to the study; approximately 40 "honour"-based violence (HBV) victims came forward in 2012 (Quebec Council for Women, 2013).…”

“…In Canada, the majority of HBK victims are racialized women, and HBC and FMs are mainly reported in certain communities (e.g., South Asian and Kurdish; Chantler et al, 2009;Gill et al, 2012;MacIntosh, 2012). However, HBC should not be regarded as intrinsically a cultural problem (Olwan, 2013) since it occurs in a range of cultures (Chantler, 2012;Gill et al, 2018;Hall, 2014): it does not support the designation of any particular culture, ethnicity, or religion as "barbaric" (Gill, 2006;Hall, 2014;Jiwani, 2014;Olwan, 2014). All cultures are complex and nuanced, and most -including Euro-Canadian culture -have been impacted in various ways by patriarchy and misogyny.…”

“…Such institutionally racist practices make victims "vulnerable to accepting abuse and retracting their statements" because they lack trust and confidence in the police (Belur, 2008, p. 440). The available research indicates that victims of HBC and FM are usually reluctant to report their experiences to the police, give statements, or criminally charge or testify against family members (Blum et al, 2016;Chantler & McCarry, 2020;Gill, 2009;Gill et al, 2018;Hall, 2014). Previous negative experiences in countries of origin also influence certain communities' perceptions of police intervention (Chan, 1997).…”

“…While strategies have been implemented in the United Kingdom to assess risk, train police officers, raise public awareness, and collect national police data to support victims of HBC, police remain inconsistent in responding to HBV (Gill & Harrison, 2016;Idriss, 2018) and scholars continue to focus on the need to improve the criminal justice system response (Gill, 2009;Gill et al, 2012;Hague et al, 2013;Hall, 2014). Existing scholarship has focused on the variations in victims' and survivors' lived experiences of HBV (Gill et al, 2018;Khan et al, 2018;Withaeckx & Coene, 2014), FM (Chantler et al, 2009;Chantler & McCarry, 2020;Esthappan et al, 2018;Gill et al, 2018;Jaspal, 2014;Samad, 2010). Interviews with women impacted by these acts of violence help us better understand the experience of reporting them to the police, whose responses vary unpredictably and may even do further harm (Gill et al, 2018;Idriss, 2018;Mulvihill et al, 2019).…”

“…In this view, women are responsible for maintaining "honour", and the family must punish them if they are viewed as having injured the family's "honour". Behaviours associated with a woman's sexuality or body can lead families to trigger the process of an FM or to commit murder (HBK) to restore family "honour" (Gill, 2009;Gill et al, 2012;Gill et al, 2018;Idriss, 2018;Korteweg & Yurdakul, 2010).…”