Iraq to Lower Age of Consent to 9

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Facts

  • The Iraqi parliament is set to lower the legal marriage age from 18 to nine by amending a bill from 1959 called Law 188, which had established the current age of consent alongside other protections for women and girls.[1]
  • The amendment, which is being pushed by conservative Shiite parties, will also strip women's right to divorce their husbands, have custody of their children, and collect inheritance.[2][3][4]
  • Law 188 did allow marriage at 15 years old, but only with a judge and legal guardian's approval. However, unregistered religious marriages, according to the UN, have led to 22% of current marriages in Iraq being under the age of 14.[3][5]
  • Shiite parties previously tried and failed to amend Law 188 in 2014 and 2017, being rejected largely by women. The influence of Shiite factions, who believe in Islamic law, began to grow following the 2003 US invasion of Iraq and toppling of Saddam Hussein.[1][5]
  • According to activists critical of the amendment, the new law would give Iraqis the option to either follow the secular law or live the rules of their religious sect, which they say could lead to some women having more rights than others.[1]

Sources: [1]The Telegraph, [2]The Mirror, [3]Iraqi, [4]PassBlue and [5]HealthTimes

Narratives

  • Pro-establishment narrative, as provided by Amnesty International. This amendment flagrantly undermines women’s and girls’ rights by not only pushing nine-year-old children into marriages, but also by removing protections in divorce and weakening inheritance rights. If passed, Iraq will have breached its obligations under international human rights treaties, such as the Convention on the Rights of the Child. The government must reconsider this alarming idea.
  • Establishment-critical narrative, as provided by The Guardian. What makes this so tragic is that Iraq, while not perfect, was not like this before the 2003 US invasion: neighborhoods were vibrant, families were together, and both boys and girls went to school. Unfortunately, in its arrogant pursuit of killing Saddam Hussein, the US government ripped Iraq apart, leaving it open for radical factions to take over the government.