‘I wanted to say no to a forced marriage but I was scared I would be killed for bringing shame on my family’
The Government's Forced Marriage Unit was involved with a shocking 1,682 cases in 2009, 86 per cent of whom were women.
For girls as young as eight, the FMU, run by the Foreign Office and the Home Office, is a lifeline for those whose families are coercing them into marriage.
With offices in London, Pakistan and Bangladesh, it offers support and rescue missions for Brits taken abroad to marry against their wishes and who face violent repercussions if they "shame" their family by refusing.
This criminal practice is often swept under the carpet as a "cultural problem" - an attitude campaigners and survivors are determined to change.
Among the victims is 21-year-old Krutika, who was physically and verbally abused by her father and brother.
Because she dared to want an education and refused to marry a man she had never met, Krutika was forced to flee the family home fearing for her life and find refuge with the Asian Women's Resource Centre.
Her kind nature and delicate frame earned Krutika the nickname Sweety while she was staying in the refuge.
Alone and afraid, Krutika suffered post-traumatic stress disorder after leaving the family home yet still managed to pass her A-levels, win a place at university and find time to do volunteer work for children's charities.
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