Right to Know

• In only 5 years (2010-2014) more than 11,000 cases of “honour” based violence were recorded by the police. But this is not the full picture: in 2012 1 in 5 police forces failed to properly record cases and many cases are never reported.
• In 2015 the Forced Marriage Unit gave advice or support to 1267 cases of forced marriage, twenty seven percent were under 18. (FMU)
• Over 60,000 girls under the age of 15 are at high risk of FGM every year in England and Wales. Over 137,000 women in England and Wales are already living with the consequences of FGM.

1. That they have the right not to face “honour” based violence, forced marriage or FGM.
2. That support is available for them if they are worried about “honour” based violence, forced marriage or FGM.
3. That their teachers and the staff at their school or college will understand and take steps to protect them if they disclose “honour” based violence, forced marriage or FGM.

• All schools must embed the prevention of “honour” based violence, forced marriage and female genital mutilation into their safeguarding procedures, which must be monitored by Ofsted.
• All school staff must be trained to understand and spot the signs of “honour” based violence, forced marriage and FGM and to know what to do if any student could be at risk.
• Every student must be educated that they have the right not to face “honour” based violence, forced marriage or FGM and that support is available for them and for anyone who they are concerned may be at risk.

The Right to Know campaign has teamed up with young people, who are often the most affected by “honour” based violence, to make sure that their voices are heard. They performed flash mobs and got public support for the campaign. We captured the action in this short film:

You can also get involved by tweeting Justine Greening, the Secretary of State for Education:

@Justine Greening make every school #FGM, #ForcedMarriage & #honourbasedviolence safe. #RightToKnow

Follow us on Facebook and Twitter @IKWRO, use the campaign hashtag #RightToKnow and watch this space for online action, photos and film!