The Personal Status Controversy Continues... The Framework Insists on Amending the Law Despite Objec

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[size=52]The Personal Status Controversy Continues... The Framework Insists on Amending the Law Despite Objections[/size]

[size=45]Controversy continues to swirl around the “Personal Status” law, as Iraqi MPs revealed international objections and interventions to prevent the passage of the amendment to the law, while political parties within the country’s ruling coalition, the “Coordination Framework,” and religious groups insist on passing it, after Parliament postponed discussing the amendments that were included on the agenda of a session scheduled for July 24, under pressure from activists and politicians who rejected them, while observers did not rule out the influence of external pressures in preventing its passage.[/size]
[size=45]Abbas al-Jubouri, a member of the Foreign Relations Committee in the House of Representatives, said, “Real threatening messages have reached Iraq from various parties in the European Union, threatening to lower the level of diplomatic relations and other relations with Iraq, if the amendment to the Personal Status Law is passed by the Iraqi Parliament.”[/size]
[size=45]Al-Jubouri explained that “the external threats were even to impose some sanctions on Iraq,” stressing that “those pressures and threats are completely unacceptable, as we cannot accept any external interference in any Iraqi file, and this law is Iraqi and the Iraqis are the ones who determine what its form and content will be.”[/size]
[size=45]He added, "Most of the representatives are determined to amend this law, and there is a clear parliamentary majority supporting this amendment, and all international pressures and interventions have not and will not prevent the House of Representatives from making this amendment."[/size]
[size=45]The US Ambassador to Baghdad, Alina Romanowski, had previously expressed her concern about the law, saying in a post on “X”, “We are concerned about the proposed amendments to the Iraqi Personal Status Law that would undermine the rights of women and children, and we urge Iraqis to engage in a civil dialogue that fully respects freedom of religion or belief and the rights of women and children.”[/size]
[size=45]For his part, the MP who is part of the “Coordination Framework”, Mukhtar al-Moussawi, said, “The international pressures and threats rejecting the amendment of the Personal Status Law are not new, as they have been ongoing for a very long time, and perhaps these pressures and interventions have prevented this amendment throughout the past years.”[/size]
[size=45]Al-Moussawi explained that “all international pressures and interventions are rejected and will not affect the legislation to amend the law, and this matter is supported by the majority of the representatives, who are legitimate representatives of the Iraqi people, and most Iraqis are in favor of this amendment, and the minority rejects the amendment, because they do not know anything about it.”[/size]
[size=45]In contrast, political analyst Mohammed Ali Al-Hakim did not rule out responding to these pressures and preventing the passage of the law, saying, “International pressures and interventions may produce results and obstruct the amendment of the Personal Status Law, especially since there is an undeclared governmental objection to this amendment, for fear of international reactions towards Iraq and that this may affect relations with countries.”[/size]
[size=45]He pointed out that “amending this law has been postponed for many years, and this postponement was due to international objection, and this objection has increased now, especially after the amendment was read in the first reading in the Iraqi parliament, and that real warning messages reached governmental and parliamentary parties, and for this reason we expect that the law will not see the light, and will be postponed again, for fear of international reactions towards Iraq.”[/size]
[size=45]He stressed that “the government cannot ignore international warnings and concerns, especially since it (the government) seeks to strengthen its foreign relations due to its need for those countries, whether the United States of America or the European Union in general, and for this reason we expect that there will be internal governmental and other pressures on the House of Representatives to prevent the legislation of this amendment at the present time, and to postpone it again to the next parliamentary sessions.”[/size]
[size=45]Legal expert Walid Mohammed Al-Shabibi explained that “the Iraqi Personal Status Law No. (188) of 1959 is considered one of the best legislations in the Arab region, as it was drafted in a revolutionary spirit after the overthrow of the monarchy in Iraq. It was a progressive step, but the amendments that were made to it later raised many problems. The first of these amendments was issued during the Iran-Iraq war and had objective and legal justifications, as it was necessary for the wife of a war victim or missing person to retain the right to custody of her children without competition from the husband’s family.”[/size]
[size=45]Al-Shabibi pointed out that the Iraqi Civil Law No. (40) of 1951 in Article Four of the second paragraph stipulates that “if the obstacle is removed, the prohibited returns,” meaning that with the end of the war, rights must return to their original owners, including the right to custody.[/size]
[size=45]Article (75), which deals with custody, became the focus of controversy after it was subjected to amendments in 1978, 1986 and 1987, all of which were in the mother’s interest, which led to the marginalization of the role of the grandmother and aunt, as they cannot meet the grandchild or nephew until after 15 years have passed. This long interruption may lead to distorting the image of the child’s family members on the father’s or mother’s side, which raises questions about the psychological and social impact on the child who grows up in an environment of conflict between the parents.[/size]
[size=45]In light of the inability of the fathers to amend Article (75), the ceiling of their demands rose according to Article (41), which provides several options, including not requiring the registration of the marriage contract according to any sect. He stressed, “I do not express here any support or rejection of this amendment, but I confirm that the issue of underage marriage has existed since the era of the previous regime, especially in poor rural areas where marriages were made to girls under the age of 14, and the previous regime was unable to stop this phenomenon because it did not violate Islamic law. The current demand is to keep the law as it is, but it must be noted that the law was amended 17 times until 1999, and it has not been amended during the last 25 years.”[/size]
[size=45]Al-Shabibi concluded, “From my point of view, the 1978 amendments should be abolished because they distorted the law from the original philosophy of the legislator, which made it the best and most prominent. Despite these amendments, the law remains one of the best legislations in Iraq, but there is no sacred law and it must be subject to amendment and updating in line with the needs of society. It is not permissible for someone who is ignorant of the law to speak about it emotionally, and decisions concerning the family and household should not be taken based on provocation or stirring up the emotions of others. Discussions about this law must be logical and thoughtful, far from emotional influences.”[/size]
[size=45]The arena of human and legal rejection in Iraq has not calmed down for days, following the Iraqi parliament’s intention to approve a draft amendment to the Personal Status Law in Iraq, which has been in effect since 1959. It is a comprehensive civil law, and which contained paragraphs and clauses that were considered religious interpretations that do not suit the country’s culturally, religiously and sectarianly diverse nature. It also included paragraphs that were considered to be a limit or deprivation of the rights of the mother and wife, and a bias towards men.[/size]
[size=45]The new amendments to the law include the inclusion of Sunni and Shiite endowments in divorce and separation cases, which opponents of the law consider to be a consolidation of sectarianism in state administration and the judiciary, and a departure from the constitution that stipulates the civil nature of the Iraqi state. The amendments also ignore cases in which spouses refuse to enter into a marriage contract according to Sunni or Shiite schools of jurisprudence, a growing phenomenon in Iraqi society that is witnessing mixed marriages between religions and sects, while the law in effect since 1959 grants the civil judiciary the right to conclude marriages and separations according to the law and not according to sects or religions.[/size]
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