Iraqi law could lower girl's age of consent as an adult from 18 to 9: 'sanctions child rape'

Young girls in Iraq who are years away from becoming girls could be forced to become wives if a new Shia-backed law is passed. This new law will lower the age of consent for a girl from 18 to 9.

This includes allowing parents to arrange marriages for their young daughters.

Iraq does not have a male guardianship system that requires a woman to have the consent of her husband, father or other male guardian to make important life decisions – such as marriage. The law would also allow religious authorities to marry.

The proposed law, which is in the second phase of the parliamentary government, has been opposed by women members of parliament (MP) and activist groups, according to the Guardian.

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“This is a tragedy for women,” said Raya Faiq, coordinator of a coalition of groups opposed to the change of law, including some members of the Iraqi parliament.

“My husband and my family are against child marriage. But just imagine if my daughter gets married and my daughter's husband wants to marry my granddaughter when she is young. The new law will allow him. I will not be allowed to object. This law authorizes the rape of children.”

This new law will bring back the Taliban's way of limiting women's rights.

Young Iraqi girls have reached the age of wearing the hijab, wearing the head covering worn by many Muslim women for the first time in a ceremony held at the Basra International Stadium in the southern Iraqi city of Basra on February 21, 2024. (HUSSEIN FALEH/AFP via Getty Images)

Iraqi citizens protested in the streets of the country's capital, Baghdad, and in other cities across the country. These protests have been met with conflicting local laws.

Although marriage under the age of 18 has been a national law since the 1950s, a study by Unicef ​​found that 28% of girls in Iraq were married before they turned 18.

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Nadia Mahmood, founder of the Iraq-based Aman Women's Alliance, said Iraq's male-dominated parliament feels threatened by youth and women's movements.

“Following many young people demonstrations what happened in Iraq in 2019, these political players saw that the role of women has begun to strengthen in society,” said the Guardian report. the movement of activists, was a threat to their power and status … [and] he began to prevent and oppress them. “

Young Iraqi girls have reached the age of wearing the hijab, wearing the head covering worn by many Muslim women for the first time in a ceremony held at the Basra International Stadium in the southern Iraqi city of Basra on February 21, 2024. (HUSSEIN FALEH/AFP via Getty Images)

There were 25 female members of the Iraqi government who tried to stop the proposed law from being voted on for a second time, but they said strong opposition from their male counterparts in Parliament made it almost impossible.

“The sad thing is that the male members of Parliament who support this law speak in the manner of men, asking what is going on with marrying a young child?” Its thinking is small. They don't care that they are the legislators who decide the fate of the people … their masculine thinking approves all this,” said Alia Nassif, a member of the Iraqi Parliament.

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Protesters fear that their children may face a more difficult future than their own if the law is passed.

“I have one daughter, I don't want her to be forced to marry like me,” said Azhar Jassim, who had to leave school to get married at the age of 16.