BAGHDAD,
January 26 (IslamOnline.net) - The sudden decision, taken by the
U.S.-picked Interim Governing Council to annul the Iraqi Unified
Marital Status Law of 1959 and refer lawsuits pertaining to family
relations to religious scholars of each sect to be settled according
to its doctrine, has attracted severe criticism among Iraqi political
and human rights circles.
The
major criticism against the new law - yet to be effective - stems from
the fact that it virtually complicates matters in Iraq and encourages
sectarianism through “establishing a court for each and every
faction.” This is despite the fact that the law is based on the
Islamic Shari'a in general. The 1959 law, on the other hand, has been
in breach of some provisions of the Shari'a.
While
there has been no repercussions supporting such a law - that has only
been put into force by some Shiite sects so far, critics of Law No.
137 for 2003 think that it practically differentiates between sects,
disrupts Iraqi families, particularly those couples who belong to
diverse sects.
The
second article of the annulled law, passed in 1959 to regulate Iraqi
family affairs regardless of their factional affiliations, stipulated
that the law was to be applicable to all “Iraqis save those exempted
by a special law.”
The
law had been applicable to all Iraqi factions and to Muslim foreigners
residing in Iraq. Yet, it exempted Jews and Christians as they have
their own laws and regulations.
Shiites
Welcome
In
statements to the Saudi Al-Sharq Al-Awsat newspaper last week,
deputy chief of Shiite Waqfs Divan Galal Al-Saghir expressed his
strong support of the newly-approved Law.
“The
law is about referring each claimant in cases of marital affairs to
his own sect,” Al-Saghir said.
He
described the marital affairs law issued by former Iraqi President
Abdul-Karim Qassem as being “the worst of laws, as it gave women
free reign to divorce themselves and put them on an equal footing with
men with regard to inheritance,” in a clear breach of the Islamic
Shari'a, which is the main source of legislation.
Implicitly
denying reports alleging that the Shiites were behind that decision,
Al-Saghir emphasized that former head of the Governing Council
Abdel-Aziz Al-Hakim, who had passed the Law during his rotating
Presidency of the council in December 2003, did not consult with the
Sunnis or Shiite scholars before issuing the controversial law.
In
the meantime, some 500 women in An-Najaf town demonstrated Friday,
January 23 in support of the decision, which is yet to be passed into
law once approved by U.S. Overseer Paul Bremer, and carried
Al-Hakim’s photos.
Criticism
Inside IGC
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Talbani against it
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On
the other hand, Governing Council Sunni member Nusseir Al-gadergy has
critically criticized the decision.
“I’m
not for it, as it deprives women of their rights, for which they have
long been struggling. It virtually complicates matters in Iraq and
encourages sectarianism through “establishing a court for each
religious sect,” Al-Gadergy said.
“The
decision has been said to be based on Islamic Shari'a but what
provisions it has been based on? There are no specific articles. There
are four Sunni doctrines and I do not know the reasons behind it,”
the member of the Governing Council said.
Kurdish
leader and Governing Council member Galal Talbani has opposed the
decision and deemed it “invalid and illegitimate” for procedural
reasons, reiterating that it has not been approved by the majority of
two thirds of Council members, in conformity with the existing
regulations of the Governing Council.
“Some
members of the Council approved the decision without having the
consent of other members,” Talbani said in statements he made
following the issuance of decision 137, in an implicit swipe at the 13
Shiite members of the Council.
On
her part, Culture Ministry undersecretary Misoun Al-Damlougy, who
doubles as the head of the Independent Iraqi Female Association
emphasized that the decision of the Governing Council “affects the
Iraqi community.”
“The
Iraqi judiciary and courts have great history extending for more than
80 years. An Iraqi judge is civilly rather than religiously trained.
Such a decision deprives judges from their roles to be substituted by
religious scholars,” she added.
Iraq
& Lebanon
In
statements to IslamOnline.net, political analysts deem the decision as
being a step “to lebanize Iraq” (To turn it into another Lebanon),
as it does not only affect the Iraqi family file but it hits at the
Iraqi public interests and encourages sectarianism.
Some
sources said that the Lebanese example does not have a unified
personal law, as each religious sect organizes its family affairs,
reducing the possibility of marriages among different sects. Such
Lebanese method was a factor in the build up to factional wars that
lasted for 15 years.
Head
of Iraqi Human Rights Association told IslamOnline.net Sunday, January
25, that such a decision would deepen sectarianism in the Iraqi
community that currently suffers from several problems.
“The
decision means forming Sunni and Shiite institutions to look into
lawsuits, which means that their decisions will be based on sectarian
preferences,” he added.
