A disturbing new proposal for an age of consent law in Iraq could permit elderly men to marry children as young as nine, effectively “legalising child rape,” according to activists.
Ultra-conservative Shia Muslim parties have initiated a move to pass a new law that would drastically reduce the current age of consent from 18 in the country. The proposed changes, put forward by the dominant Shia coalition, aim to dismantle the national “personal status law”.
The replacement of this significant legislation, also known as Law 188, would further erode women’s rights, stripping them of their ability to divorce, gain custody of their children, and claim inheritance. The latest proposals, first announced in August 2024, would completely repeal one of the most progressive laws in the Middle East, sparking outrage among women’s rights activists.
The controversial law passed its second reading in Iraq’s parliament on September 16, with the government asserting that the move would bring the country’s governance more in line with a strict interpretation of Islamic law. Astonishingly, the government has even claimed that it would protect young girls from “immoral relationships”.
Activists who successfully defeated attempts to pass similar laws in 2014 and 2017 are urgently trying to block this latest attempt. Raya Faiq, the coordinator for a coalition of groups opposing the potential law change, described the proposals as a “catastrophe for women,” and Iraqi MPs joined her efforts in August.
She told The Guardian about the new law, which she fears could allow her son-in-law to marry off a potential granddaughter as a child.
She said: “This is a catastrophe for women. 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.”
Despite previous successful opposition, the current attempt to pass the law looks likely to succeed due to the ruling coalition’s substantial majority in parliament.
Dr Renad Mansour, a senior research fellow at Chatham House, commented on the bill’s progress to the Telegraph: “It’s the closest it’s ever been. It has more momentum than it’s ever had, primarily because of the Shia parties.”
However, Dr Mansour also noted that not all Shia parties are eager to advance the legislation, clarifying that “specific ones” are “empowered and are really pushing it”.
He suggested that these parties’ religious factions are attempting “to try and regain some of the ideological legitimacy that has been waning over the last few years” in order to maintain their grip on power.
