Iraq Mulls Law To Let Man Marry Girls Of 8-Year-Old

A contentious draft law being considered in Iraq
could open the door to girls as young as nine getting married and would require wives to submit to sex on their husband's whim.

The draft law does not set a minimum age for
marriage. Instead, it mentions an age in a section on
divorce, setting rules for divorces of girls who have
reached the age of 9 years in the lunar Islamic
calendar. It also says it's the age girls reach puberty.

Also under the proposed measure, a husband can have sex with his wife regardless of her consent. The bill also prevents women from leaving the house without their husband's permission and would restrict women's rights in matters of parental custody after divorce and make it easier for men to take multiple wives.

Already, government statistics show that nearly 25
percent of marriages in Iraq involved someone under
the age of 18 in 2011.

The bill has provoked outrage from rights activists
and many Iraqis who see it as a step backward for
women's rights.

A prominent Iraqi human rights activist Hana Adwar
told The Associated Press that, ''The law represents a crime against humanity and childhood. Married
underage girls will be subjected to physical and
psychological suffering,'' he said.

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