Early and Forced Marriage in Australia

According to Human Rights Watch, 14 million girls are married, worldwide, each year - with some as young as eight or nine. While early and forced marriage appears most prevalent in countries of Africa, Asia and the Middle East, several recent cases have shown Australia is not immune to the practise.On March 8 th 2013, yup, that's international women's day, Federal legislation passed to specifically outlaw the practice. The amendment created new offences relating to slavery and slave-like practices including forced marriage. Under the Act, a marriage is a forced marriage if – because of the use of coercion, threat or deception – one party to the marriage entered into the marriage without freely and fully consenting.But it's not as feminist as it sounds. These laws have come at a time when Australia's anti-immigration policies are actively preventing Australian refugees from war-torn countries to sponsor and assist other family members from getting here. Forcing people in communities to marry their relatives overseas, sometimes seems like the only option.