I feared for my life

3:18pm Saturday 22nd September 2007

Comments (10)   Have your say »

A Muslim woman from Preston has spoken out against the culture of secrecy and honour crimes' in the community.

Ferzanna Riley, who grew up in Ribbleton, claims she suffered physical and emotional abuse at the hands of her father in the name of honour'.

It comes as a 70-year-old Sikh grandmother was jailed for life yesterday for arranging the "honour killing" of a daughter-in-law she blamed for bringing shame on the family name by seeking a divorce.

Bachan Athwal is the oldest woman in criminal history to be jailed for life following the murder of daughter-in-law Surjit Athwal, 26, in July.

Mrs Riley, who attended Ribbleton Avenue Methodist School and Ribbleton Hall High Secondary School (now City of Preston High), says she was tricked into going to Pakistan where she and her sister were held against their will and threatened with gang rape unless they agreed to marriage.

She said: "From the age of three I was subjected to beatings and my whole childhood became shrouded by this terror.

"This led to me becoming very withdrawn as a child and I started getting bullied at school meaning that there was no escape."

Now Mrs Riley, who has since moved away from the area, has penned her experiences in a book called, Unbroken Spirit.

The Pakistan-born mother of one, who now lives with her husband, Ion, 42 and daughter, Sophie, 11, said that writing the book had been a cathartic experience and had allowed her to exorcise many demons.

The former pupil of Lark Hill Lane Convent, Manchester Road, Preston, fled her family home at the age of 21, for a new life in London and was joined by her younger sister two years later.

But she said that through treachery and emotional blackmail, they were lured home and tricked into going to Pakistan.

"We fell for the emotional blackmail and then for 14 weeks we were held against our will and threatened with murder and gang rape unless we agreed to marriage but we held out and finally we were allowed to come back."

Mrs Riley, who is now a director and international representative of Roshni, a charity which raises awareness of child abuse in the black and ethnic minority communities, believes that her story is far from unique.

"This is not an unusual story and will continue to happen unless the culture is changed.

"I hope women will be inspired by my story and realise that the dream of living happily ever after can come true."

The book has been welcomed by many women's rights groups but it has received a mixed response from the Muslim community.

Abdul Qureshi, chairman of the Lancashire Council of Mosques, acknowledged that honour crimes occur but denied it was part of Islamic religious values.

He said: "These type of abuses tend to take place within families who have immigrated over here from tribal villages.

"This is not a problem with Islam it is a problem with culture and it is a very emotive issue for families when a girl is promiscuous and it is disliked because the Muslim culture encourages marriage.

"So sometimes and it is a sad fact abuse does take place, because families let emotions cloud their judgment.

"Although, I have to stress that honour crimes are not part of Islamic values and we strongly condemn any violence or abuse."

The book published by Hodder Stoughton, is available from local bookshops.