The cases of Arzoo Raja and Leah Sharibu – in Pakistan and Nigeria – raised today in Parliament during an Oral Question on Gender Based Violence. Forcibly abducted, forcibly converted, forcibly married.

Nov 10, 2020 | Parliament

Arzoo Raja

The cases of Arzoo Raja and Leah Sharibu raised today in Parliament during an Oral Question on Gender Based Violence. Forcibly abducted, forcibly converted, forcibly married.

Lord Alton of Liverpool (CB)

My Lords, I have been able to send the Minister details of a case involving a young girl called Arzoo Raja, 13 years of age, whose parents I spoke to at some length last week. She was abducted, forcibly converted and forcibly married in Pakistan, in a case similar to that of Leah Sharibu in Nigeria. What are the Government able to do to build up legal capacity in such countries, so that these cases can be challenged in the courts, and what are we doing to promote the Declaration of Humanity, in which the department has been involved?

Baroness Sugg (Con) [V]

My Lords, I am afraid that I have not seen the case the noble Lord refers to, but I will ensure that I look into the detail of it. Of course, it is important that we support freedom of religion and belief in all countries around the world, and we will ensure that we continue to do so.

Leah Sharibu
Lord David Alton

For 18 years David Alton was a Member of the House of Commons and today he is an Independent Crossbench Life Peer in the UK House of Lords.

Social Media

Subscribe to Blog

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Site Search

Recent Posts

Share This