The United Nations Deputy Secretary- General, Amina J. Mohammed has rejected the Iraqi Parliament’s proposal to lower the legal marriage age for girls from 18 to 9 years old, describing it as an “assault on childhood”.
Mohammed, while reacting to this proposal took to her social media platform on Monday to express her dissatisfaction said, girls are not spouses but are children who deserve their right to grow up with protection and dignity.
Report has it that Iraq is poised to slash the legal girls age of consent from 18 to to nine, allowing men to marry young children.
Iraq’s parliament, which is dominated by a coalition of conservative Shia Muslim parties, is preparing to vote through an amendment that would overturn the country’s “personal status law”.
The legislation, also known as Law 188, was heralded as one of the most progressive in the Middle East when it was introduced in 1959 and provides an overarching set of rules governing the affairs of Iraqi families, regardless of their religious sect.
The governing coalition says the move aligns with a strict interpretation of Islamic law and is intended to protect young girls from “immoral relationships”.
The second reading of the amendment to Law 188 was passed on September 16. It isn’t the first time Shia parties in Iraq have tried to amend the personal status law – attempts to change it failed in 2014 and 2017, largely due to a backlash from Iraqi women.