The Federal Government’s Commissioner for Human Rights, Luise Amtsberg (Greens), has expressed significant concerns about a decision by the Iraqi Parliament that could facilitate child marriages.
“I share the concern that with this step, the rights of women and children in marriage, divorce, care and inheritance will be strongly restricted”Amtsberg told the “Redaktionsnetzwerk Deutschland”. “For human rights, this would be a clear step backward.”
Many in Iraq had also spoken out against the reform bill, which would allow Shia citizens to decide on personal status issues such as marriage, divorce, or inheritance based on religious criteria. “We need to examine exactly what elements the final draft of the law contains and what interpretation criteria will be applied”Amtsberg said.
The Iraqi Parliament had adopted a contentious bill on Tuesday, which would amend the Iraqi Civil Status Law of 1959. This would enable Iraqis, who are followers of the Islamic Shi’ite stream, to choose whether to regulate their personal status issues according to religious or civil law criteria.
According to the conviction of some Islamic scholars, it is permissible to marry off girls in their teenage years or even at the age of nine. The previously applicable civil status law had established a minimum age of 18 years. The reform of the law is controversial and formal correctness of its adoption is disputed. Lawsuits against the law have already been announced.