October 4th 2024.
According to the Australian Federal Police (AFP), a man from New South Wales (NSW) was recently sentenced to jail for attempting to force his teenage children into marriage. The children had moved to Australia from Pakistan in 2021 to live with their father, who was now married to a new wife and had half-siblings in Leeton, NSW. However, things took a drastic turn when they arrived in the small town of Riverina, where their father confiscated their passports and phones.
In 2022, the father informed his 17-year-old daughter that she would be marrying a chemist from Pakistan. He even planned to have the wedding ceremony conducted over the phone. Despite protests from the mother, the father threatened to have the children deported if she did not comply with his wishes. The children were also prohibited from contacting any family members in Pakistan without supervision. The father had made it clear that he wanted his children to marry within his clan, rather than their own mothers, whom he referred to as "lowlife" and "bastard," according to the Sydney Morning Herald.
The children had previously visited their father in 2017, where the 12-year-old daughter was told she could not go to school until she was married. Meanwhile, the 10-year-old son was forced to do mechanical work on cars, arranged by his father. However, the children's plans to marry them off were foiled when the eldest son, 15, and daughter, 17, managed to escape from their home in the cover of darkness. They contacted their aunt in Pakistan using a secret SIM card they had hidden and begged her to help them avoid the forced marriages.
The siblings then found out that their father would be traveling to Melbourne on February 3rd, and they planned their escape for the next morning. They managed to sneak out of their home, taking their passports and a few belongings. They even cut a hole in the window to make their escape. To prevent their stepmother from alerting their father, they also took the internet modem. Later, they were picked up by relatives and taken to Narrandera Airport, where they flew alone to Sydney, over 550km away. They were met by a friend of their mother's who took them to Mascot Police Station to report their father.
The father was arrested a month later and told the AFP officers that it was his duty as a Punjab father to arrange the marriages of his children. However, the siblings, who spoke very little English, appeared in the Downing Centre yesterday, where they shared their ordeal and how their lives had been "destroyed" by their father's actions. The father pleaded guilty to two counts of attempting a forced marriage in the same court. During a search of their home, AFP officers found a phone containing messages about planning the children's weddings. The father was sentenced to three years and four months in prison, making him the second person in Australia to be convicted of a forced marriage case.
Throughout this difficult time, the siblings have been supported by specialist youth organizations, who have helped them overcome the trauma they experienced. It is a heartbreaking reminder that forced marriages still occur in today's society, and it is a serious crime that can have long-lasting effects on the victims. The children's bravery in escaping and speaking out against their father's actions should be commended, and it is a testament to their strength and resilience. We can only hope that their story will raise awareness and prevent similar situations from happening in the future.
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