In a move that has stunned rights activists and elicited a wave of international censure, Iraq’s parliament has ratified sweeping amendments to its anti-prostitution legislation to criminalize same-sex relations and the advocacy of LGBTQ rights, marking a distressing escalation in the persecution of the LGBTQ community within the country.
The recently passed anti-LGBTQ law, which modifies a 1988 anti-prostitution statute, hands down sentences of 10 to 15 years for those partaking in same-sex relationships, and a prison term of one to three years for individuals undergoing or performing gender-transition surgeries. This has ignited significant alarm among human rights groups and foreign diplomats, who have been quick to voice their objections. The U.S. State Department, in a stark rebuke, warned of the law’s potential to “hamper free speech and expression,” and raised concerns about its impact on Iraq’s economic prospects, with spokesperson Matthew Miller stating, “International business coalitions have already indicated that such discrimination in Iraq will harm business and economic growth in the country.”
The Iraqi parliament’s decision has also met with stringent criticism from the British Foreign Secretary David Cameron, who termed the law “dangerous and worrying,” and further condemnation from the United Nations. The UN’s statement stressed that the law contravenes “several human rights treaties and conventions ratified by Iraq,” advocating for its repeal.
The new legislation further criminalizes the “intentional practice of effeminacy” and outlaws any organization that promotes “sexual deviancy,” enforcing a minimum sentence of seven years and a heavy fine. The language of the law has been criticized for being dangerously vague, allowing for broad interpretations that could lead to further crackdowns on personal freedoms.
The passage of the law has emboldened conservatives in Iraq. Lawmaker Raed al-Maliki, who shepherded the bill, defended it as “a preventive measure to protect society.”
Rights advocates, however, paint a dismal picture of the repercussions this law may have for the LGBTQ community in Iraq. Rasha Younes, LGBTQ rights researcher at Human Rights Watch, pointed out that the law “adds insult to injury for Iraqi LGBT people already facing cyclical violence and threats to their lives by armed groups.” The dire circumstances are echoed in the words of Saif Ali, a founder of an LGBTQ group, who lamented, “I believe the next period will be very dark.”
Relevant articles:
– Under anti-gay law Iraq hunts down LGBTQ people, imprisons anyone who ‘behaves like a woman’, ynetnews.com, 05/01/2024
– Passage of harsh anti-LGBTQ+ law in Iraq draws diplomatic backlash, The Associated Press, 04/28/2024
– Rights groups alarmed about new anti-LGBTQ+ law in Iraq, Voice of America – VOA News, 04/29/2024
– Gays in Iraq Can Now Be Jailed for 15 Years, Metro Weekly, 04/30/2024
– Iraq’s parliament passes harsh anti, Windy City Times, 04/30/2024