Iraq is poised to slash the legal age of consent from 18 to to nine, allowing men to marry young children.
The proposed legal change also deprives women of rights to divorce, child custody and inheritance.
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.
As well as bringing down the legal marriage age, the amendment would also remove women’s rights to divorce, child custody and inheritance.
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.
But the coalition now has a large parliamentary majority and is on the brink of pushing the amendment over the line, said Dr Renad Mansour, a senior research fellow at Chatham House.
“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.”
Dr Renad added that the proposed amendment was part of a wider political move by 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.
It is not yet clear exactly when the amendment will go before parliament for a vote, but it could come at any moment, he said.
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