Sameem Ali

Sameem Ali

Now in her 50s, Sameem Ali is a councilor in Moss Side Manchester. She was forced into a marriage at 13 and was a mother at 14.


In a series of eight short videos hear Sameem Ali talk about the lifelong trauma that survivors of forced marriage, domestic abuse, and so-called honour-based abuse have to contend with. She shares her views on:
  • the importance of counseling and therapy for survivors of forced marriage.
  • the importance of looking out for children missing from schools and off the register.
  • how important it is for social workers and health professionals to understand how to risk assess for forced marriage.
  • how important it is for the police to have proper funding to deal with the new responsibilities after the criminalisation of forced marriage.
  • sheds light on the difficulties in challenging the patriarchal mindsets within communities.
  • how women become the embodiment of concepts of HONOUR and SHAME in some communities.
  • how in 99% cases it is fear that a rebellious girl might bring (DIS)HONOUR & SHAME to the family, that that girl is forced into a marriage.
  • how important it is to EDUCATE & EMPOWER women.
    • Sameem Ali
  • Sameem's has a short important message for you, if you or someone you know is being forced into marriage:
  • SPEAK UP
  • SPEAK OUT
  • SPEAK LOUD

    • Sameem Ali | Interview Part 1

    We asked Sameem Ali what she thought of 'Honour', the ITV docu-drama about the police's failure to protect Banaz Mahmod, which led to her murder by her father and members of her community.

  • Sameem Ali tells us why she didn't watch the docu-drama. She talks about her mental health and how hearing such stories makes her re-live her trauma.
  • Sameem highlights the importance of counselling and therapy to enable survivors of forced marriage and abuse to rebuild their lives.

    • Sameem Ali | Interview Part 2

  • Sameem shares her experience and tells us how important it is for:
  • social workers, social care and health professionals to understand how to risk asses and look out for forced marriage and domestic abuse.

    • Sameem Ali | Interview Part 3

  • Sameem Ali discusses the importance of children being in schools and for forced marriage to be able to be recognised

    • Sameem Ali | Interview Part 4

    Accounts of the tragic deaths of victims of forced marriage and the testimonies of survivors highlight the importance of proper risk assessment training.

  • We know a child is missing from school can be a signal for child abuse, coercive control, so-called honour-based abuse, and the possibility of a forced marriage and FGM.
  • Councillor Sameem Ali discusses with us the importance of a named child protection officer in schools.
  • She tells us why it is important to let the children know that their school has a child protection officer.

    • Sameem Ali | Interview Part 5

    Married at 13 and a mother at 14, Sameem was pulled out of school. Nobody asked why she was missing from school. We ask her to talk to us about the risks attached to children missing from school because of COVID 19.

    Sameem highlights the possible problems to risk asses and therefore to safeguard children who face dangers of forced marriage, so-called honour-based abuse; fgm, coercive control and other forms of domestic abuse.

    Sameem Ali | Interview Part 6

    Sameem discusses the difficulties of raising awareness and discussing forced marriage within the Brtitish Pakistani community into which she was born. ...


  • She says, 'You are told it doesn't happen in our community.
  • She talks of how it's the male who comes home and says, 'You girl or woman, you are the honour of the family.'
  • The women and girls are taught how to act; how to sit; how to eat; how to go out; how to not raise their eyes when they are talking; how to behave because the men think how the 'honour of their community' should act.'
  • Because of the power of the male hierarchy, women take on those values. Sameem tells us how it was her mother who forced her into marriage.
  • She tells us that 99% of the men and women who force their girls into marriage, do so because they detect signs of 'westernisation', and 'rebellion', in that girl, and fear that she will bring SHAME to the family in some years.

    • You can read an article from the BBC about mothers' roles in forced marriage here and read about a mother being convicted for forced marriage of her daughter here

    Sameem Ali | Interview Part 7

    Sameem discusses what it means to be a part of a community.
  • She tells us how you belong to the community into which you were born, but as you grow up, you connect and become a part of different communities.

    • Sameem Ali | Interview Part 8

    Sameem Ali shares her single most important wish in the tool kit for stopping forced marriage.

  • EDUCATE THE WOMEN
  • EMPOWER THE WOMEN
  • STOP WOMEN FROM ACTING AS AGENTS OF PATRIARCHY
  • WOMEN SHOULD EDUCATE THEIR SONS; CHANGE THE WAY THEIR BROTHER'S THINK.
  • WOMEN SHOULD CHANGE THE WAY THEY BRING UP THEIR SONS.