BY THE WAY: Iraq Sparks Global Outrage as Parliament Approves Law Allowing Child Marriage at Age Nine

The mounting domestic protests and international pressure suggest this issue will remain a flashpoint in Iraq’s politics and global relations.

Dr Noour Ali Zehgeer

In a move that has triggered global condemnation, Iraq’s Parliament has approved controversial amendments allowing the marriage of girls as young as nine years old, rolling back decades of legal protection and women’s rights. The decision dismantles crucial provisions of the landmark 1959 Personal Status Law, which had set the legal marriage age at 18 and became a cornerstone of women’s equality in the country. Most of the progressive countries will oppose and stage protest against this bill, but we should not forget the Sharia Law and how Muslim countries follow the law over all.

I wonder what was an impact if Taliban government in Afghanistan would have passed this kind of bill and what would America term this as, and actions which will follow. Iraq was always seen westernised country as compared to Afghanistan, Iran, Libya and Lebanon. I wonder why country like Iraq will take a back step toward stone age. West will not like this idea and they will take it to UN and other international forums where women and child protection programs are taken as a serious matter.

CRC (1989) defines children under 18; calls to abolish harmful practices like child marriage

Convention (1962) Requires full consent; mandates minimum age for marriage

CEDAW (1979) Declares child marriages legally void; mandates age limits

UDHR & ICCPR Right to marriage with full consent

UN Resolutions / SDGs call for ending child, early, and forced marriage; tie into gender equality and children’s rights

Law change: Iraq’s parliament approved amendments to the 1959 Personal Status Law, lowering the marriage age from 18 to as young as 9.

• Impact on rights: The 1959 law had been a cornerstone of women’s equality, granting protections in divorce, custody, and inheritance. These safeguards are now weakened.
• Global reaction:
  o Human rights groups call the law “dangerous and irreversible,” warning it normalizes child marriage.
  o Diplomats caution Iraq risks violating international commitments under the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) and CEDAW.
  o Activists in Iraq are staging protests, describing the move as a “national crisis.”
• Social consequences: Experts highlight risks of exploitation, early pregnancy, interrupted education, and entrenched poverty cycles.
• Statistics: Even before the law, child marriage was widespread—28% of Iraqi girls were married before 18, according to a 2023 UN survey.
  “Iraq’s parliament has indeed passed amendments allowing child marriage at age nine, sparking widespread condemnation from rights groups, diplomats, and activists who warn this is a major rollback of women’s and children’s protections”

UN frameworks universally define child marriage as any union involving persons under 18, incompatible with full consent, and often legally void. States are compelled to enact and enforce a minimum marriage age (usually 18) with no exceptions that undermine children’s rights. These commitments are reinforced through multiple UN treaties, resolutions, and development agenda items.

(Let me know if you’d like the exact text references, implementation examples, or national law comparisons.)

The newly passed amendments have alarmed international organisations, human rights bodies, foreign diplomats, and child protection advocates, who describe the law as a severe regression that threatens to normalise child marriage. Experts warn that the legislation exposes young girls to a lifetime of exploitation, physical harm, interrupted education, and social marginalisation.

Under the 1959 law—long regarded as a regional model for progressive family legislation—Iraqi women gained stronger rights in divorce, child custody, inheritance, and marital protections. The reversal of these provisions is being viewed as a direct assault on women’s autonomy and dignity, worsened by a troubling justification rooted in conservative interpretations of religious jurisprudence.

Human rights organisations emphasise that child marriage is internationally recognised as a violation of fundamental human rights. It deprives children of their childhood, exposes them to early pregnancy risks, and limits opportunities for economic independence and social development. Global child protection agencies have already urged the Iraqi government to reconsider the amendments, calling them “dangerous and irreversible.”

Diplomats from multiple countries have also expressed deep concern, warning that the law could damage Iraq’s global standing and hinder its commitments under international conventions, including the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) and CEDAW, both of which obligate member states to protect children and uphold gender equality.

Iraqi activists are mobilising rapidly, staging protests and launching campaigns to demand the withdrawal of the legislation. They argue that the move endangers the future generations of Iraq, undermines national development, and threatens to entrench cycles of poverty and gender-based violence.

“This is not just a women’s rights issue—it is a national crisis,” said one activist from Baghdad. “Allowing child marriage is a step back into the darkest chapters of our history.”

As pressure mounts both domestically and internationally, the Iraqi government faces a crucial crossroad: whether to uphold global human rights standards or continue down a path critics say could unravel decades of progress and profoundly impact the lives of millions of young girls across the nation.
The mounting domestic protests and international pressure suggest this issue will remain a flashpoint in Iraq’s politics and global relations. The country needs progressive steps toward building a nation rather than allowing radicals to marry at early age and shower the atrocities on other gender and push the nation toward poverty and chaos.

(STRAIGHT TALK COMMUNICATIONS EXCLUSIVE)