Iraqi Parliament's proposed amendments to the Personal Status Law, which could legalize child marriages and strip women of key rights, have sparked widespread outrage and protests across the nation.
Protests are planned in at least seven provinces throughout Iraq on Thursday in response to proposed amendments to the Personal Status Law that could legalize child marriages, strip widows of their inheritance, and enable sex slavery. The Iraqi Parliament began debating these amendments on Sunday, raising significant concerns among human rights activists and citizens alike, Breitbart reported.
The amendments would allow men to opt for traditional Shiite or Sunni Islamic mandates over the country's existing legal standards for matters like marriage consent, alimony, and child custody. Currently, Iraqi law mandates that both men and women must be at least 18-years-old to marry and provides protections for widows and inter-religious marriages. The proposed changes could drastically alter these protections, potentially legalizing child marriages and giving fathers full custody rights in divorce cases unless they choose otherwise.
Notably, the amendments would require Shiites to follow the Ja'afari school of Islamic law, which permits girls to marry at the age of nine and boys at the age of 15. This legal code also includes provisions for "pleasure marriages," temporary arrangements that can last as little as an hour, which critics argue could be used to justify prostitution and sex slavery.
Lawmakers are reportedly under intense pressure from radical Shiite Islamist clerics and other influential figures to pass the law. Following the fall of Sunni dictator Saddam Hussein and the subsequent rise of Shiite influence backed by Iran, Shiite leaders have gained significant power, particularly through the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), a group of militias integrated into Iraq's armed forces during the fight against ISIS.
An anonymous parliamentary source revealed to the Media Line that Shiite powers are leveraging their influence to ensure the law's passage, stating, "They are now negotiating with us — either we pass the law or no other law proposed by the rest of the blocs will be passed, and since they are the majority, they may pass this law, but they need more votes."
The proposed amendments have faced strong opposition from human rights activists and a coalition of over 15 female lawmakers determined to block the changes.
"Our rejection is not based on emotional issues, as some might claim, nor is it driven by external motives, but rather based on legal, religious, professional, and social observations, and stems from a sincere concern to protect the Iraqi family," the lawmakers said in a statement translated by the Emirati newspaper The National.
Shiite clerics like Sheikh Mohammed Khalil Al-Sanjari and Sayed Jafar al-Mousawi maintain that Islamic law considers girls mature at nine and boys at 15, thus permitting marriage at those ages.
Human Rights Watch highlighted the prevalence of child marriages in Iraq, noting that despite the current law, the government does little to enforce it.
"According to the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), 28 percent of girls in Iraq are married before age 18," and the U.N. Assistance Mission in Iraq reports that "22 percent of unregistered marriages involve girls under age 14."
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