Iraq is closer to amending its marriage laws which would lower the legal age of consent from 18 to nine, allowing old men to marry young girls, according to a report in The Telegraph. Dominant Shia Muslim parties in the Iraqi Parliament have proposed an amendment to the country's "personal status law" that could see a Taliban-style rollback of all women's rights. If passed, the legal changes will deprive the Iraqi women of rights to divorce, child custody and inheritance as well.

"It's the closest it's ever been. It has more momentum than it's ever had, primarily because of the Shia parties," Dr Renad Mansour, a senior research fellow at Chatham House was quoted as saying by the publication.

"It's not all Shia parties, it's just the specific ones that are empowered and are really pushing it. 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."

The proposed changes would mark a shift from the 1959 legislation, also known as Law 188, which was introduced after the fall of the Iraqi monarchy. The law transferred family law authority from religious figures to the state judiciary. The coalition of Shia Muslim parties claims that the proposed move aligns with a strict interpretation of Islamic law and protects young girls from 'immoral relationships'.

While attempts have been made in the past to amend the law, this is the first time it seems that the Iraqi lawmakers might be able to see it through. A second reading of the amendment to the law was passed in September earlier this year.

Opponents of the move have slammed the government and MPs for attempting to diminish women's rights. Meanwhile, human rights groups stated that the new law effectively puts young girls at risk of sexual and physical violence.

According to the United Nations children's agency, UNICEF, despite outlawing child marriages in the 1950s, 28 per cent of girls in Iraq are already married before the age of 18. A loophole in the law where religious leaders officiate these marriages, instead of the courts, allows underage girls to be married to older men with permission from the father.

Source: NDTV