Honour based violence
Has your friend been a victim of honour based violence?
The people who commit honour based violence are usually family members or acquaintances who mistakenly believe someone has brought shame to their family or community by doing something that is not in keeping with the traditional beliefs of their culture. The victim is often a member of their own family.
If you think a friend has been, or is being, subjected to honour based violence then you can help put a stop to it.
Give them support
They'll need to talk. But they may find it hard, especially where family loyalties are at stake. Also, if you have a different background to their own they might think you could never understand what they're going through. The most important thing is to just be there and listen to them.
Encourage your friend to talk to someone else about it. This might be very scary for them, so don't push too hard. But they should:
- talk to their teacher or another responsible adult
- contact ChildLine to talk to a professional who can offer help and advice
- talk in confidence to one of the organisations and charities listed on our ‘More help and advice’ page such as Southall Black Sisters on 0208 571 0800 or the HM Government Forced Marriage Unit on 020 7708 0151.
They should also report it as a crime:
- They can contact their local police station or speak to their Safer Schools Officer or Safer Neighbourhoods Team. If it's an emergency they should call 999.
- If they feel unable to talk to us they could call the Crimestoppers charity www.crimestoppers-uk.org anonymously on 0800 555 111. (They won't have to give their name and their call will not be traced).
- Or for more information visit the ‘Reporting crime’ section on the Metropolitan Police website or the ‘How to contact us’ page on this site.
You can also talk to us yourself or ask someone else to speak to us on your behalf, like a friend or relative, a community leader or even a solicitor. You could even ask someone from your local authority, housing association or advice bureau to speak to us on behalf of you or your friend.
Our Community Safety Units
The Metropolitan Police Service has made it a high priority to tackle honour based violence with special Community Safety Units located in each of our 32 boroughs. We will investigate all instances of honour based violence, even in cases where there is only a small amount of information or where a victim has not reported it themselves.
Getting more help
For more information about honour based violence visit our ‘Get the facts’ or ‘More help and advice’ pages.