- By Shivam Shandilya
- Sun, 10 Nov 2024 08:06 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
Iran is all set to slash the legal age of consent from 18 to nine for females. It will allow men to marry young children. According to a report by the Telegraph, the proposed legal change also deprives women of rights to divorce, child custody, and inheritance.
According to the report, the parliament of Iraq, dominated by a coalition of conservative Shia Muslim parties, is preparing to vote via an amendment that would overturn the country’s “personal status law”. Also known as Law 188, the legislation 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.
Bringing down the legal age, the amendment would also remove the rights of women to divorce, child custody, and inheritance. The coalition says that the move aligns with a strict interpretation of Islamic law and is intended to protect young girls from immoral relationships.
On September 16, the second reading of the amendment to Law 188 was passed. This is not the first time that the Shia parties in Iraq have tried to amend the personal status law. Earlier, in 2014 and 2017, the attempts to change it failed due to a heavy backlash from the Iraqi women.
Speaking to the Telegraph, a senior research fellow at Chatham House, Renad Mansour, said that the coalition now has a large parliamentary majority and is on the brink of pushing the amendment over the line.
“It’s the closest it’s ever been,” he told The Telegraph. “It has more momentum than it’s ever had, primarily because of the Shia parties,” he said.
“It’s not all Shia parties, it’s just the specific ones that are empowered and are really pushing it.”
He also added that the amendment proposed was part of a wider political move by the Shia Islamist groups to “consolidate their power” and regain legitimacy.
“Stressing the religious side is a way for them to try and regain some of the ideological legitimacy that has been waning over the last few years,” he told The Telegraph.
He also said that it is not clear if the amendment will go before the parliament for a vote, but it could come up at any time.