Iraq proposes bill to lower marriage age for girls to 9, sparks concerns

A proposed bill in Iraq has sparked widespread concern and panic among citizens, particularly activists, as it aims to “lower the legal marriage age for girls” potentially to as young as “nine years,” news agency AFP reported. Rights advocates are alarmed, warning that this change could undermine women's rights and lead to an increase in child marriages in the country’s deeply patriarchal society.

The contentious bill, put forward by Iraq's justice ministry, seeks “to revise the nation's Personal Status Law", which currently establishes 18 as the minimum legal age for marriage.

In response, activists have already staged protests against the proposed legislation and planned further demonstrations in Baghdad.

“Passing this law would show a country moving backwards, not forwards,” Human Rights Watch (HRW) researcher Sarah Sanbar was quoted as saying by AFP. Amal Kabashi, a member of the Iraq Women's Network advocacy group, emphasised that the amendment “provides huge leeway for male dominance over family issues” in a society that is already deeply conservative.

Raed al-Maliki, the lawmaker who introduced the amendment and who also supported an anti-LGBTQ bill in parliament earlier this year, refuted claims that the new changes would permit the marriage of minors.

What more is expected to change regarding marriage in Iraq?

According to the proposed changes, as reported by AFP, "Muslims of age" seeking marriage would have to decide whether they want family matters governed by the 1959 Personal Status Law or by Sharia Islamic rules.

The bill would permit citizens to choose between religious authorities or the civil judiciary to resolve family issues. Critics are concerned that this could erode rights in areas such as inheritance, divorce, and child custody.

The 1959 law is expected to be weakened by the amendment, which has the backing of conservative Shiite Muslim lawmakers and would permit the enforcement of religious rules, specifically those of Shiite and Sunni Islam.

The proposal does not address other religions or sects within Iraq's diverse population. It remains uncertain whether this latest effort to amend the law will succeed where previous attempts have fallen short, according to AFP.

Under the new bill, Shiite and Sunni institutions are given six months to submit a set of rules for each sect to parliament for approval.

What does the 1959 law say?

Activists are particularly concerned that the amendment could effectively eliminate the minimum marriage age for Muslim girls, currently set at 18 by the 1959 Personal Status Law—a claim that supporting lawmakers have denied.

The 1959 law, enacted shortly after the Iraqi monarchy's fall, shifted the authority to decide family matters from religious figures to the state and its judiciary.

United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) said that 28 per cent of girls in Iraq are already married before reaching 18.

In late July, parliament withdrew the proposed changes due to widespread objections from lawmakers. However, the bill reappeared in a session on August 4 after gaining support from influential Shiite blocs that hold significant sway in the chamber.

(With AFP inputs)

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