Iraq decided to introduce Jafarifah in January, which means girls can be married based on their perceived “maturity and physical ability.”
Baghdad’s bridal industry has seen a huge boom since child marriage was legalized in Iraq, a Sunday Times investigation showed on Saturday, with rights groups warning that young girls are being auctioned off to older men on the black market.
Relatives of Armani, a 12-year-old girl who is about to marry a 17-year-old girl she has never met, told The Sunday Times the ceremony will take place “without her permission”.
A local priest confirmed that Armani could get married because she had reached puberty.
Iraq decided to introduce Jafarifah in January, which means girls can be married based on their perceived “maturity and physical ability.”
One of Armani’s relatives admitted that four of her cousins married older men soon after the amendment was passed for “financial reasons.”
On July 28, 2024, in Tahrir Square in central Baghdad, a girl held a placard to protest against child marriage of girls during the parliamentary discussion of proposed amendments to Iraq’s personal status law. Human rights advocates are alarmed by a bill introduced to the Iraqi parliament (Photo: Ahmad al-Rubaye/AFP via Getty Images)
One activist told the newspaper that under the new law, “parents can trade their daughters for money or status” and that the legislation amounted to “decriminalizing child rape”.
A 2023 United Nations report showed that even before the law was passed, 28% of girls in Iraq were married before turning 18, and another 22% of unregistered marriages involved girls under 14.
Gezi, who oversees a shelter for girls fleeing forced marriages under the Organization for Women’s Freedom in Iraq (OWFI) in Baghdad, confirmed to the newspaper, “We are seeing a growing black market in Iraq where fathers are selling their daughters and leaving them without access to education, mainly because of poverty… but they are encouraged by some.” [clerics] Who might benefit. “
Ghazi added, “These children do not know that their husbands can use the Jafarifah to deprive them of their rights – that they can divorce them, marry a second wife and take away their children without dispute.”
Who profits from child marriage in Iraq?
Religious officials in Kadhimiya confirmed that clerics often charge a fee for blessing marriages. An official admitted to persuading a 15-year-old girl not to divorce her husband, adding that he would only discuss the topic “with her father’s permission.”
Dozens of businesses confirmed to British media that their sales had increased since the passage of Jafari’s law.
Baraa Macer, an influencer and bridal makeup artist, admits that many of her clients are now under 10 years old.
A video shared on Macer’s page purporting to show an 11-year-old girl wearing a white cloak has been viewed more than 250,000 times. Macer declined to confirm whether the content had been monetized.
Another Iraqi makeup artist, Zainab Saleem, aka Makera Dobaa, claims she doesn’t agree with child marriage but shares videos of underage clients because “younger brides get more views” and people ask about age in the comments.
Saleem said her youngest client this year is 14 years old, but she confirmed this year’s clientele is younger than in previous years.
Ruweida, a bridal makeup artist in Sadr City, also said that her clients this year are “almost all children.”
Ruweida described a “10-year-old girl who was crying with her hair and makeup on, but her family was still proud to say she was married to an older man. She tried to fight, but I could see bruises all over her head… which is very common.”