Keighley has never faltered when tackling delicate issues which concern the community. Its reputation for introducing pioneering initiatives, such as those to deal with domestic violence, is recognised world wide.

The time has now come to place another issue firmly in the public arena - forced marriages.

MP Ann Cryer is a fierce opponent of forced marriages and has made herself distinctly unpopular with some people. But it is a good and just cause.

A working party is due to publish a report later this month which is expected to argue that forced marriages are on the same footing as domestic violence and child abuse. Laws are already in place to deal with the issues including kidnap, rape and assault - but are rarely used mainly because of the reluctance of victims to come forward. In our midst at the moment are two girls who, aged just 14, were taken to Pakistan, sat in front of a man and had a gun put next to their heads while they went through a forced marriage.

Mrs Cryer says the situation is intolerable and the practice of forced marriages must stop.

Her views are know to have offended a number of people within the Asian community, with some leaders saying it isn't a problem.

It is a problem, and it is now well beyond reasonable time limits for community leaders to admit it is happening and outline a strategy for ending this breach of basic human rights.

More and more girls are openly saying they don't share the views of their mothers and older sisters - a fact which the community has to come to terms with.

Evidence of change can be seen through the increasing numbers of women having the courage to go to organisations such as the Keighley Domestic Violence Forum.

It is a complex issue and will take delicate handling.

The most acceptable way of bringing it to a conclusion is for the community to act and curb the practice. The alternative is to introduce new legislation

Those who can bring about change should give Mrs Cryer's campaign all the support possible.

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.