Iraq: Forced Marriage

(asked on 21st November 2024) - View Source

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government what discussions they have had, if any, with the government of Iraq about the proposed legislation to reduce the age of child marriage.


Answered by
Lord Collins of Highbury Portrait
Lord Collins of Highbury
Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
This question was answered on 4th December 2024

The UK is analysing the proposed amendments to Iraq's Personal Status Law and its implications for women and children's rights. As we privately engage with a range of Iraqi interlocutors to discuss this, we are emphasising the importance of any amendments' compatibility with Iraq's international obligations.

We would condemn any legislative change that would violate international norms, including the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948), the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (1966), the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (1976) and the Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989).

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