This week, the European Parliament debated the proposed amendments to Iraq’s Personal Status Law, which pose a serious threat to women’s rights in allowing religious leaders to impose their interpretations of Sharia law on women, legalizing child marriage and stripping women of essential rights like divorce and inheritance. We call on the members of the Iraqi parliament to block these amendments and stand with all those who protest against this role-back of women’s rights in Iraq – and everywhere else.
My speech:
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More InformationResolution of the European Parliament:
This is why we initiated a debate and the European Parliament resolution and I am pleased that the resolution was adopted with strong support. It sends a strong and clear message: Legalizing child marriage is not tradition or religion — it is a crime. The resolution includes the following demands:
- Rejection of the amendments: It urges Iraq’s Parliament to reject the proposed amendments to Law 188/1959, as they would violate international women’s rights obligations Condemnation and a way forward: It calls on the HRVP and EU Member States to condemn the amendments, and urge Iraq to adopt a national action plan addressing child marriage, marital rape, and domestic violence.
- Support for defenders: It calls for increased support for women’s and children’s rights defenders in Iraq.
- Improve legal protections: It expresses concern about the lack of legal protection for domestic violence victims and calls for improvements.