MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION on Iraq, notably the situation of women’s rights and the recent proposal to amend the Personal Status Law

B10‑0089/2024

Motion for a European Parliament resolution on Iraq, notably the situation of women’s rights and the recent proposal to amend the Personal Status Law

(2024/2858(RSP))

The European Parliament,

– having regard to Rule 150,

A. whereas the Council of Representatives of Iraq is discussing amendments to the Personal Status Law of 1959, which aim to legalise child marriage by lowering the minimum age for marriage for women from 18 to 9 years old and for men from 18 to 15 years old; whereas this draft proposal aims to give religious institutions six months to develop a "code of Islamic law rulings on personal status matters", bypassing any public review further weakening the legal protection for women regarding divorce and inheritance rights, among other issues;

B. whereas the Iraqi constitution prohibits gender-based discrimination; whereas Iraq has signed and ratified key international human rights instruments, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), the Convention on Rights of the Child and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW);

C. whereas Iraqi women and girls have faced particular challenges stemming from years of conflict and displacement and the lack of appropriate legal frameworks and services, paired with conservative social norms;

D. whereas human rights constitute an essential element of the EU-Iraq Partnership and Cooperation Agreement;

1. Rejects the amendments proposed to the Personal Status Law, which contravene the Iraqi constitution and the international human rights obligations that Iraq has adhered to and calls on the Iraqi Council of Representatives to fully and immediately withdraw them;

2. Is deeply concerned about the potentially dramatic effects that the adoption of these amendments would have on women’s and girls’ rights in Iraq, which could result in a significant rollback compared to 1959, an increasingly negative reputation of the country and the withholding of some development aid and foreign assistance from bilateral and multilateral organisations, which would thus increase socioeconomic pressures;

3. Calls on Iraq to show a real commitment to protecting and upholding women’s rights by setting the minimum age of marriage at 18 years old without exceptions and by adopting an action plan aimed at eliminating child marriages and strengthening women's rights, in accordance with international standards;

4. Urges the Iraqi authorities to criminalise marital rape in all circumstances and to repeal discriminatory provisions against women in the Criminal Code that grant husbands a legal right to punish their wives and provide mitigated sentences for male perpetrators of honour killings against their espouses; calls on Iraq to adopt comprehensive legislation to combat domestic violence in line with its international obligations;

5. Calls on the EU and Iraq to hold regular human rights dialogues and to convene a Cooperation Committee to address topics related to human rights and gender equality; highlights the crucial role played by human rights defenders in Iraq and calls on the Commission and the Member States to increase their logistical and financial support to independent civil society organisations in Iraq, particularly those working on women’s rights;

6. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the HR/VP, the Council of Representatives of Iraq and the Government of Iraq.