"I bought you. You are my wife": "Modern Slavery" and Forced Marriage

McCabe, Helen; Eglen, Lauren

Abstract

Forced marriage is identified as a serious global challenge and has recently been linked to modern slavery. In this article we seek to understand how slavery, institutions and practices similar to slavery, and other forms of exploitation are linked to forced marriage. Innovatively, we do this through deductive and close textual analysis of the world’s largest database of survivor narratives.
We found that people who are forced to marry experience a range of forms of exploitation and human rights violations, including institutions and practices similar to slavery and – arguably – slavery itself. This includes forced labour, forced pregnancy, forced sterilisation, sexual exploitation, domestic servitude, trafficking in persons, and significant restrictions on personal liberty and movement. Sometimes this occurs during their marriage; sometimes it occurs before, leading to a forced marriage; on occasion it happens after, because of women’s vulnerability on having exited a forced marriage.
Our findings should prompt further research into the links between forced marriage, modern slavery, and trafficking in persons. Absent any further research, they should already help policymakers and those on the front line to understand the links between these phenomena, and thus aid the achievement of both Sustainable Development Goal 5 (especially 5.3) and 8 (especially 8.7).

Citation

McCabe, H., & Eglen, L. (in press). "I bought you. You are my wife": "Modern Slavery" and Forced Marriage. Journal of Human Trafficking, https://doi.org/10.1080/23322705.2022.2096366

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Jun 1, 2022
• Online Publication Date: Jul 24, 2022
• Deposit Date: Jun 9, 2022
• Publicly Available Date: Jul 25, 2023
• Journal: Journal of Human Trafficking
• Print ISSN: 2332-2705
• Electronic ISSN: 2332-2713
• Publisher: Routledge
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/23322705.2022.2096366
• Keywords: Law; Sociology and Political Science; Transportation; Anthropology; Demography
• Public URL: https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/8391289
• Publisher URL: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/23322705.2022.2096366