§ Dr. KumarTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the work of the Community Liaison Unit. [137534]
§ Mr. MullinThe Community Liaison Unit (CLU) is based in the Human Rights Section of Consular Directorate in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. It provides assistance to British Nationals in danger of a forced marriage overseas.
The CLU covers three main areas of work:
Casework:
Since the establishment of the CLU in October 2000, staff have dealt with over 600 cases of young British Nationals fearing or escaping from a forced marriage overseas. Forced marriage is a serious human rights abuse and is not sanctioned by any religion or culture. It is quite different from an arranged marriage, in which the parties give their full and free consent. The CLU has dealt with victims, male and female, aged between 11 and 39, and from a wide range of backgrounds including Sikh, Hindu, Catholic and Muslim to date.
Public sector guidance:
The CLU also works with other Government Departments to develop guidance for public sector services that may come into contact with forced marriage cases. To date the CLU has developed a video for schools, guidelines for police and are currently awaiting clearance on guidelines for social services. They have also provided support to link UK and foreign police services tackling some of these issues.
Outreach:
The CLU also work in the UK with NGOs, refuges, community groups, public sector, and faith groups to raise awareness of the issue and the help available to 651W victims. Overseas, the CLU and posts (Embassies and High Commissions) work with partners in the judiciary, police and NGO community.
The Community Liaison Unit also worked in partnership with the British Muslim community from 2000–03 to organise the British Hajj Delegation to Mecca. Responsibility for the Hajj Delegation has now moved to the Middle East Assistance section of Consular Directorate. This section deals with consular assistance to distressed British Nationals in the Middle East, including Saudi Arabia, which means they are better placed to offer assistance to British Hajjis.