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One woman, who wishes to remain anonymous, describes her experience of being forced into marriage
Campaigners have welcomed a law coming into effect in England and Wales making it a criminal offence to force people into marriage as "a huge step forward".
Since 2008, courts have been able to issue civil orders to prevent victims being forced into marriage.
However, the new law makes forced marriage a criminal offence for the first time - punishable by up to seven years in prison.
Ministers say it will protect thousands of potential victims each year.
It will apply to people forced into marriage in England and Wales, as well as UK nationals who are at risk of being forced into marriage abroad.
Last year, the government's Forced Marriage Unit dealt with 1,302 cases.
Some 82% of victims were female and 18% male while 15% were under the age of 15.
The cases involved 74 different countries with 43% relating to Pakistan, 11% to India and 10% to Bangladesh.
'Psychological pressure'Home Secretary Theresa May said the practice was "a tragedy for each and every victim".
She said the criminalisation - under the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014 - was "a further move by the government to ensure victims are protected by the law and that they have the confidence, safety and the freedom to choose".
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A new NSPCC film highlights how young people can be forced into an unwanted marriage
Under the new law, breaching a forced marriage protection order - which can be issued by civil courts to prevent people being married against their will - has also been criminalised.
It now carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison.
Mak Chishty, from the Association of Chief Police Officers, said the new law would make the police's job easier.
"It's a very important step because for the first time it gives us a definition of what forced marriage is and gives us the ability to take people to court and get a criminal conviction and that is a very powerful message to deter people in the future," he said.
The Home Office says a forced marriage "is one in which one or both spouses do not consent to the marriage but are coerced into it" by means including "physical, psychological, financial, sexual and emotional pressure".
It says that "in the cases of vulnerable adults who lack the capacity to consent to marriage, coercion is not required for a marriage to be forced".
Case studiesOne woman, who wishes to remain anonymous, told the BBC she was duped into travelling to Pakistan to marry her first cousin. She escaped and her family have now disowned her.
"I was 17 years old. I was told we were going on a family holiday abroad. Two weeks into the holiday my family informed me that I wasn't going back to London and I was going to remain away to be forced into a marriage.
"I hadn't met him before. Didn't know him, didn't know his name or anything about him. I demanded that I come back and finish off my studies.
"I begged them and I begged them but they said no, I had to stay and be married off. Their view of it all was that they felt I was going to become far too Westernised and bring shame onto the family and therefore they felt, in their eyes, it was the best thing to do.
"The marriage was absolutely horrendous. All the types of abuse you can think of - sexual, verbal, physical. I wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy; it was quite vile.
"I wasn't allowed out at all, I was more or less a prisoner in their house. I was treated like a slave. I wasn't allowed to do anything, my ex-husband's mum used to say to me the only reason I was there was to cook and clean and be a slave for her son at night."
In another case, Alexander Khan said he was sent to get married by his step family who had received several thousands pounds and some land.
"When I was 13 they sent me to north-west Pakistan, and what they told me to do was sit beside this girl who was nine years old. Unbeknown to me, that was an arranged marriage and I didn't know what was happening."
'Domestic slaves'Last week, it emerged that the number of children who rang ChildLine worried they could be forced into marriage had nearly trebled in the last three years.
Aneeta Prem, founder of Freedom Charity, which educates young people about forced marriage, said the law sent out a "powerful message that this indefensible abuse of human rights will not be tolerated".
The new law will be introduced in Scotland at a later date after MSPs voted for legislation in January.
It will not apply to Northern Ireland but ministers there will be able to introduce their own legislation, the Home Office said.
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Sameem Ali was forced into marriage and pregnancy as a child
Jasvinder Sanghera, the founder of the charity Karma Nirvana which supports victims of forced marriages and honour crimes, said she was "extremely pleased it's finally here".
Ms Sanghera, a victim of forced marriage herself, told BBC Radio 4's Sunday programme: "I was 14 years old when my mother sat me down and presented me with a photograph of the man I was to learn I was promised to from the age of eight."
"My mother was a god-fearing Sikh woman; she also said it was part of my religion, part of my tradition to have to do this.
"Saying no meant my family took me out of education when I was 15-and-a-half and I was held a prisoner in my own home until I agreed to the marriage.
"I agreed, purely to plan my escape, and I ran away from home when I was 16 years old."
Have you been affected by the issues raised in this story. You can email haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk using 'forced marriage' in the subject.
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