As conditions for women and girls in Iraq deteriorate following the passage of a new law that enables girls as young as nine to be married, SAT-7 is supporting viewers in the country by giving a voice to Iraqi women and providing encouragement to individuals in distress.
Iraq’s parliament passed amendments to the country’s personal status law last month, giving religious leaders the power to rule on family matters, including marriage, divorce, and the care of children.1 Iraqi law previously set 18 as the minimum age for marriage in most cases, though in practice many girls were married at a younger age.
“We Will Raise Our Voices”
The SAT-7 ARABIC program You Are Not Alone heard from Iraqi journalist and human rights advocate Banin Elias about the plight of women and girls in Iraq, which has been cemented by the new law.
“I have been following this for a long time,” Banin explained. “This is not new. It has roots. It is a topic that goes back many years. Religious elders marry off girls as young as ten years old and even nine years old… [and] Iraqi courts are forced to register these marriages.”
Finding accurate up-to-date figures on child marriages in Iraq is difficult, but research from 2018 highlighted that nearly one million girls under the age of 15 and over three million under the age of 18 were married.2
Banin explained how this is one of many ways that Iraqi women and girls are mistreated and abused. “Iraqi women are living in emotional, social, and economic crises,” she said. “The Iraqi woman suffers from her family and from society. She has to fight… [just] to stand on her feet. It is the most terrible situation. Women are being sexually harassed. A woman cannot go to the police station to file a sexual harassment or rape report because they will harass her there too.”
Women in Iraq often do not have rights over their own children, and have very limited employment opportunities. Banin, who now lives in Türkiye, is hoping for radical change in her home country, taking encouragement from what she has witnessed and achieved in her own life.
“I am an example of a woman who fought to have her voice heard,” she said. She encourages women to remember their strength and to not be afraid.
“Thank You for Your Constant Encouragement”
As well as highlighting the issues facing Iraqi women in our programs, SAT-7 is providing emotional and spiritual support to individuals through our Viewer Support Team.
Meelad,* a woman in her 30s from Iraq who currently lives in Jordan, reached out for support over the pain and discouragement she was feeling over not being able to complete her studies. A member of the Viewer Support Team empathized with Meelad, and spent time talking, praying, and encouraging her with God’s Word.
“Thank you for your prayers. I thank God; I felt a big difference, and I am doing much better,” she later told us. “I prayed for the Lord to grant me grace, wisdom, and ideas… You have no idea how I feel inside and how much joy and comfort I experience when you connect with me. I feel like I have a sister who is physically far but spiritually close and always cares to check on me.”
Nawal, an Iraqi woman in her 20s, is a university student who connected with our team via Facebook. “I am a Christian woman, and I live in an environment that despises women,” she explained to us. “This has caused me severe psychological problems. I feel wounded and continue to struggle with feelings of rejection.”
A Viewer Support Team member listened to Nawal’s life story, which involved incidents of abuse, encouraged her, and prayed for her. Nawal contacted us again later to share some of the changes that had occurred in her life.
“Thank you for listening to me and thank you for your constant encouragement,” she said. “You are a true blessing in my life, and I thank the Lord for having you in my life. Do you remember a year ago, I hated myself? I always felt bitter… But now, everything has changed. I’ve started to love myself. I’m praying for the right man and for a marriage according to God’s heart… I don’t know how this transformation happened in my life – it’s been an incredible change.”
*Viewer names have been changed for security.
Sources
1 The Guardian
2 UNICEF
