Penal Provisions for the Act of Forced Marriage

Abstract

Forced marriage is one of the marriage forms that take place despite the rejection of one or both of the parties to this marriage, and the matter may lead to its conclusion by force. There are legal treatments for the phenomenon, through declarations and agreements that Iraq has joined or ratified, such as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the Covenant on Civil, Political and Social Rights, the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Violence and Discrimination against Women, and the Convention on the Rights of the Child, all of which contain texts stating that no one is forced to marry. The problem lies in the fact that the perpetrators of forced marriages are not criminalized in the penal laws and legislation. The Iraqi Penal Code of 1969 did not include any criminalization of it, but the Personal Status Law No. 188 of 1959 mentioned the imprisonment penalty for the person who forces another to marry if he is a first-degree relative of the victim. Imprisonment for a period not exceeding 10 years.