Forced Marriage in Germany

The situation for migrant women is different in a specific way.

A woman only has a residence permit through a man she has been forced to marry. She experiences violence within the marriage, entered into it against her will, and now wants to reach out for help. However, it is more difficult for the migrant woman to access state aid than it would be for a native-born woman, and she is also worried about losing her residence permit through a potential divorce.

This is because current regulations dictate that if a married migrant woman does not have her own residency permit, she must remain married for a period of three years to attain legal, autonomous residency status.

The woman must endure three years of forced marriage—a form of institutional discrimination

In addition to pressure from her family, the woman may also be confronted with discrimination in daily life, for example in the form of a “well-meaning” comment, or invasive questioning.

"Why do allow yourself to be oppressed like this? Don’t put yourself in this position! Just leave him.”It is not uncommon for white people to feel superior to BIPoC´s

Attitudes may emerge about the “poor migrant woman” who needs to be rescued, because some people assume that she is too underqualified to do things on her own. In addition, the woman’s experiences and opportunities for action are frequently ignored, and she is simply portrayed as a “victim”.

But in reality, things are different. To counteract all of the above, collectives, initiatives, contact points, and organizations have been and are being founded for and by migrant women.

The Austrian support organization SOMM (external link, opens in a new window), which works in particular with migrant women and Muslim women, is an example. Among other things, the organization works to create spaces for and alongside the women to enable them to exchange their experiences. It also provides counselling, German language lessons, and communication training, as well as computer courses.

Migrant-led organizations such as Casa do Brasil de Lisboa (external link, opens in a new window) have a similar approach. Based in Portugal, this organization resists racism, gender inequality, and political persecution.

In Ireland, Wezesha (external link, opens in a new window) is active in the areas of gender-based violence and migration.

In summary, whether in the context of professional or private life, decisions about a woman’s life should never be made for her. A woman must be able to make her own decisions about whether or not to marry, and whom she wants to marry.

This is applicable to all areas of life for those who identify as female.

Über keine Frau* dieser Welt sollte und soll hinweg entschieden werden. Sei es im Kontext ihres beruflichen oder privaten Lebens. Sie sollte sich selbst für oder auch gegen eine Ehe entscheiden dürfen und auch für die dementsprechende Person. So ist dieser Ansatz auf jegliche Lebensbereiche einer weiblich gelesenen/identifizierten Person zu übertragen.

Women*/Migrants*: The asterisk corresponds to correct gendering (gender-appropriate language) with inclusion to all gender-identities

However, in this post, it is meant to specifically draw attention to all female-read and female-identified people. Thus, including those who do not identify as female but experience the same discrimination as one. Male-read and male-identified people are excluded in this case.

#Gender (external link, opens in a new window)#Racism (external link, opens in a new window)#Statelessness (external link, opens in a new window)#ForcedMarriage (external link, opens in a new window)#LGBTIQ+ (external link, opens in a new window)