The amendments to the country’s legislation are a long-standing demand of Shiite blocs and would potentially legalize child marriage
Iraq’s parliament approved three controversial laws on Tuesday, including amendments to the Personal Status Law which would allow girls to marry before the age of 15, Shafaq News has reported. Opponents have raised concerns that the move could effectively legalize child marriage and deprive women and girls of basic rights.
The changed legislation will allow clerics to rule based on their reading of Islamic law. Some interpretations of the law followed by many Shiite religious authorities in Iraq permit the marriage of girls as young as nine.
Current Iraqi law sets the legal age for marriage for both men and women at 18, but allows men and women to be married at age 15 with the permission of a judge and their legal guardian.
The proposed amendments, a long-standing demand of Shiite blocs which currently dominate the chamber, have ignited heated debates within the parliament and among civil society organizations.
Supporters of the changes, primarily conservative Shiite lawmakers, argue the amendments align the law with Islamic principles and counter Western cultural influences on the Middle Eastern nation.
Human rights campaigners, however, argue that the bill undermines Iraq’s 1959 Personal Status Law, which unified family law and established protections for women.
The parliament also passed a general amnesty law, seen as benefiting Sunni detainees, and a land restitution law addressing Kurdish territorial claims. However, opponents reportedly alleged the amnesty law could also pardon individuals involved in corruption and embezzlement.
The parliamentary session ended in chaos and accusations of procedural violations.
Independent MP Saad Al-Toubi condemned the session as politically biased, claiming that the “voting process was driven by political whims, and passing three laws in a single basket is illegal,” according to Shafaq News.
He told the outlet that the number of MPs voting on the laws fell short of the legal quorum, yet the parliamentary leadership hastily announced their approval.
