A draft law in Iraq that would allow the marriage of girls as young as nine has provoked protests across the country, with women’s rights activists saying it would “legalise child rape”.
The Shia religious groups that dominate the political system in Iraq have been pushing to erode women’s rights in the country for more than a decade.
Unlike neighbouring Saudi Arabia, Iraq does not have a system of male guardianship requiring women to have the permission of a husband, father or male guardian to make crucial life choices such as marriage.
However, a new proposal, which passed its first reading in the Iraqi parliament this week, would give religious authorities the power to decide on family affairs, including marriage, divorce and the care of children
“This is a catastrophe for women,” said Raya Faiq, who is the coordinator for a coalition of groups which are opposing the law change. The group includes some Iraqi MPs.
“My husband and my family oppose child marriage. But imagine if my daughter gets married and my daughter’s husband wants to marry off my granddaughter as a child. The new law would allow him to do so. I would not be allowed to object. This law legalises child rape.”
During protests organised by the coalition this week in the capital, Baghdad, and in several other cities in Iraq, supporters of the new law confronted opponents and accused them of “moral decadence” and “following western agendas”.