ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Women lawmakers are leading an effort in the Iraqi parliament to block a proposed amendment to the personal status law that could legalize child marriage and grant religious authorities increased power over family law. The amendment has drawn fierce criticism from activists and the public. “The signature collection began today and several women MPs are overseeing the process. Some of the men MPs have signed. To my knowledge, the total has reached over 85 signatures.” Srwa Mohammed, deputy head of the women, family, and childhood committee of the Iraqi parliament, told Rudaw on Sunday. Mohammed noted that they are collecting signatures aiming to “permanently withdraw the proposed amendment” from the parliament’s agenda. Rights activists have strongly protested the bill to amend the 1959 Personal Status Law (Number 188), which would effectively legalize child marriage and grant religious authorities regulatory power over inheritance and marriage. The Iraqi parliament conducted the first reading of the bill on August 4 but has yet to vote on the amendment. If passed, the proposed amendment would allow Iraqis the choice to follow religious rules to govern matters in their marriage. For Shiites, the bill specifies following the provisions of the Jaafari school of jurisprudence, which permits marriage for girls as young as nine and boys at fifteen. Demonstrations against the controversial bill have taken place across Iraq and the Kurdistan Region over the past month. On Saturday, an Iraqi coalition of NGOs, activists, and legislators opposing the amendment released a statement, saying that “certain parties within the house of representatives are trying to pressure to pass the amendment of the current personal conditions law, which has faced great rejection and concern in Iraqi public opinion… which affects the interests of all citizens, women, and men.” Many marriages in Iraq are unregistered, conducted by religious leaders, and not legally valid. The proposed amendment calls for legitimizing marriages authorized by religious leaders. The amendment was demanded by over 100 Shiite members of parliament but has faced backlash from the rest of the legislature. In August, around 130 lawmakers signed a petition against its passage, according to MP Kurdo Mohammed. The bill was introduced by independent MP Raed al-Maliki, who also proposed controversial amendments to the country’s anti-prostitution law earlier this year, criminalizing any practice of homosexuality and sex-reassignment surgeries. Hastyar Qadir contributed to this report.
