Young couple forced to stay in Chile

An English immigration law designed to combat forced marriages has wrecked havoc on a British teen and her Chilean husband.

18-year-old Amber Aguilar married 19-year-old Diego Andres Aguilar Quila last year. His visa expired in August and faced with the choice of advancing her career in her native Britain or live with her husband in Chile she choose to cross the Atlantic with him. Yet when they wanted to legally return to Britain, the couple where rejected by immigration authorities. A change in immigration law only five days after they wed will force them to stay in Chile until both are 21-years-old.

Earlier today the court’s decided against the couple, a decision that their family viewed as unfair:

Her mother Helen Jeffery, a 57-year-old head teacher, said both families were angered by the ruling...

“The cruel irony is that the actual effect of the rule is to force my daughter to live thousands of miles from her family and prevent her going to university in the UK, despite the fact nobody would ever suggest her marriage was anything but genuine.”

Image- Guardian UK

Online Sources- The Telegraph, The Press Association