This is probably because her parents were first cousins. In 2019 she had an arranged marriage and was given a British Spouse’s Immigration Visa. She previously lived in Somalia. She lives with her husband’s parents and their extended family. Mariam recently became a young mother.

We met her at an Advice Clinic we arrange at the Dudley Road Eye Infirmary in Birmingham where she had gone for an appointment. She asked for our advice regarding family planning as she didn’t want more children soon. However, her husband and his family were expecting her to conceive again in the near future.

We received a telephone call from Nazia’s sister. Nazia was a 24 years old severely visually impaired British Pakistani women who lived in Belfast. Nazia spoke English as a second language and had moved to Northern Ireland from Leicester following (an arranged) marriage in 2009.

Very few Pakistani people lived in the same part of Belfast where Nazia did. Her husband employed a Fijian housemaid to help Nazia but she didn’t have any family living in Ulster. One of her sisters normally travelled to Belfast to see her each month and she had regular holidays in Leicester.