This was the question that immediately came to my mind. What is "forced" marriage? Is there a legal definition? If not, is there a commonly accepted practical definition? I'm not sure I see how "forced" marriage is different than "arranged" marriage, but that is perhaps merely because of my own ignorance on the subject.
Absolutely! Same here. Made me think about it quite a bit. Not being from a culture that practises arranged marriage, it's quite difficult. They'd need to get those definitions nailed down in order to legislate effectively.
Interesting. I admit, I haven't thought much about the topic, so I'm not even confident I have a very strong position. But just off the cuff, I
think this is basically where I would stand on the issue: If we are talking about arranged marriages, and the families exert pressure by the actual or implied threat of violence, I think the ban makes sense (although I would think that the legal system would basically already cover this under other similar laws, such as rules prohibiting assault [which is the
threat of physical violence], extortion, etc., making a new law redundant and unnecessary). On the other hand, I think coercion in the form of threats of shunning by the family, religious or cultural group, etc., shouldn't really be criminalized. I mean, I have a
really hard time saying that type of thing is okay. But then again, I'm not from a culture that would really do that sort of thing, so it's hard for me to relate to it. As much as I think that type of thing goes against what I think is the best way to approach marriage, I also the government should mostly stay out of these kids of things.
But, again, all that being said, I am perfectly prepared to accept others trying to change my views on the subject.