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"WE REALIZE THE IMPORTANCE OF OUR VOICES ONLY WHEN WE ARE SILENCED." - MALALA YOUSAFZAI
This quote perfectly captures the critical need for women's voices to be heard. It also highlights the devastating impact of oppression that seeks to silence them.
Illustration by The Geostrata
THE SITUATION IN IRAQ: FORCES OF LEGISLATION WENT BACKWARDS
Iraq is on the verge of enacting a controversial amendment to its personal status law that would allow men to marry girls as young as nine. This has sparked outrage and demonstrations against the practice by human rights organizations around the world.
The current personal status law No. 188, which was adopted in 1959, is progressive and protects the rights of women irrespective of their religion. Even if, due to the previous war in Iraq, these rights have survived in the Constitution, family law is intentionally made to match with the most radical version of Islam by the members of conservative Shia parties in power.
Statistics from UNICEF show that 28% of girls in Iraq are married before the age of 18, which contributes to the crisis that would worsen with these proposed amendments. The new legislation also threatens to legitimize child marriage, seeking to rob women of basic rights such as free access to divorce, inheritance, and custody of children.
The activists have also indicated that such changes will make them easy prey for domestic violence and sexual abuse while, denying girls of very young age education and jobs.
THE LEGAL LOOPHOLE
Among the many factors that facilitate child marriages in Iraq is the loophole in the current personal status law that allows religious leaders to officiate marriages without court registration.
This is common among impoverished Shia communities, where they use early marriages as a means of economic survival. As noted by Human Rights Watch, 22% of unregistered marriages show a trend of girls below age 14, which calls for the urgent need to reform the existing legal processes on marriage in Iraq.
Living together without any form of legal registration carries considerable risks; it denies women and children the most basic services, such as health and educational services. For instance, 35% of Iraqi women who married before the age of 18 have either only completed pre-primary education or even lack formal education altogether. This educational deprivation perpetuates cycles of poverty and reinforces gender inequality.
AFGHANISTAN: A HARROWING REALITY
The status of women in Afghanistan is deteriorating greatly under the renewed rule of the Taliban. The heightened conditions are characterized by a range of oppressive laws, which symbolically restrict women of freedom and liberty.
The Taliban has recently issued another decree that bans women's voices in public spaces, cementing the country's system of gender apartheid. UN women reports suggest that more than 1 million girls have been denied basic access to schooling and education after the resurgence of the Taliban.
The Taliban have also recently added another ‘morality law’ that came with even more drastic measures on how women are to behave, for example, ensuring that every inch of their bodies is covered and forbidding them from traveling on public transport unaccompanied or speaking to any males who are not relatives. It promotes a violent atmosphere where women are particularly susceptible to sexual violence.
Women must now cover their bodies completely with a burqa, and they are not permitted to speak even among themselves. This pronouncement adds to the concept that a woman's voice is awrah; that is, it should not be heard in public, reflecting a tragic interpretation of Islamic law that objectifies women and undermines their autonomy.
Such a multilayered decline of conditions has not stopped at just ban on girls' secondary education, since August 2021, but has included, the prohibition of women from most jobs and public spaces.
Other than this, women's access to parks and gyms has also been barred. Such measures represent a wider scheme of persecution that attempts to erase women from public life. The Taliban regarded the insistence that women should not speak aloud, not even among themselves, as a source of fear and isolation.
In Afghanistan, child marriage is also widespread, with estimates indicating that 39% of girls marry before the age of 18. A combination of poverty, lack of education, and existing cultural patterns is behind this habit. Banning child marriage does not work on the level of depression, health issues, and high probability of early pregnancy.
Image Credits: Rightful Owner
This is more than just a cultural or religious issue: this is a gross human rights violation grounded in the impositions of international law. The consequences of this are rather grave, as women are being forced into silence, leading to significant mental health crises and a sense of hopelessness among women.
COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS: IMPACTS ON HEALTH AND EDUCATION
Child marriage has different meanings and purposes for different societies, but its implications go beyond individual cases; its influence on public health and societal development is grave.
Early marriage in both Iraq and Afghanistan is associated with increased maternal mortality and morbidity due to complications arising from pregnancies in adolescents.
According to UNFPA, deaths related to pregnancy and childbirth rank among the top five causes of deaths for 15-19-year-olds in low-income countries. In addition, such child brides are likely to experience educational challenges.
In Iraq, many married girls drop out of school due to familial obligations or societal stigma associated with being an unmarried girl attending school. Most young Afghan girls who marry at an early age are denied access to education, which adds to the cycle of poverty and blocks their chances at a better “tomorrow.”
A GLOBAL OUTLINE: CHILD MARRIAGE OBSERVED IN DIFFERENT PARTS OF THE WORLD
Child marriage is not an evil limited to Iraq but, rather a problem that affects millions of girls across the globe every single year. UNICEF estimates that approximately 12 million girl childs marry before the age of 18, which translates to approximately 28 girls every minute being forced into early marriages worldwide. Such statistics are not only alarming in terms of the breach of basic human rights but also an impediment to global development goals.
In many regions where child marriage still exists, such as sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia; cultural norms often dictate girls to be seen primarily as future wives rather than individuals who have their own aspirations and potential careers goals. As stated by Melinda Gates: “When we invest in women and girls, we are investing in the people who invest in everyone else.” As education plays a crucial role in breaking this cycle.
THE STRUGGLE IS ONGOING
The challenges facing women in Iraq and Afghanistan clearly indicate that these issues must be dealt with as a matter of urgency. In both nations, the legislative shifts, cultural attitudes, and socio-political environments are adversely affecting even the growing population of women and young girls. But the struggle is far from being over.
As a society, we have to keep on sustaining women and girls, promoting their fight against child marriage, contributing to education, and protecting their rights. Otherwise, the quest for equality between men and women will take ages to achieve.
BY ISHITA SHARMA
TEAM GEOSTRATA
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