Aman Women Alliance Calls for the Abolition of the Ja’fari Personal Status Code and Stands in Solidarity with Women’s Demands

Baghdad, Iraq | October 16, 2026

Aman Women Alliance expresses its full solidarity with the mothers, feminist activists, and women’s rights organizations who took to the streets on October 16, 2026, in Baghdad, Basra, and Karbala to protest the Ja’fari Personal Status Code, enacted under Law No. 1 of 2025. We stand firmly with their demands for justice, equality, and the protection of women’s and children’s rights, and we call for the abolition of this law.

The protests reflect growing concern among women, particularly divorced mothers, over provisions that undermine women’s rights and threaten the security and well-being of children. Of particular concern is the provision transferring custody from mothers to fathers when a child reaches the age of seven, without adequately safeguarding the child’s best interests or taking individual family circumstances into account.

Aman Women Alliance considers the best interests of the child to be the fundamental principle that must guide all custody decisions. Children must not be treated as instruments of pressure against their mothers, nor should custody arrangements be imposed through rules that disregard children’s emotional needs, family relationships, and individual circumstances.

We also support the protesters’ demand to repeal Article 93, which requires children to reach the age of 18 before they can choose which parent to live with. Children’s voices and evolving capacities must be respected, and their welfare must remain central to all decisions affecting their lives.

The Ja’fari Personal Status Code raises broader concerns about equality and the legal status of women, including provisions that place women at a disadvantage in relation to men. Aman Women Alliance rejects legal frameworks that undermine women’s equal rights, weaken their protection under the law, or compromise the rights and welfare of children.

Aman Women Alliance reaffirms its position:

We stand in solidarity with women and mothers demanding justice, equality, and the protection of their rights.
We call for the abolition of the Ja’fari Personal Status Code enacted under Law No. 1 of 2025 and for the adoption of a legal framework that safeguards women’s equality and children’s rights.
We demand the protection of children’s best interests in all custody decisions, without automatic transfers based solely on age or without consideration of individual circumstances.
We support the repeal of Article 93 and call for children’s views and welfare to be appropriately considered in decisions concerning their living arrangements.
We call on the relevant authorities to listen to women’s voices and ensure that personal status legislation protects, rather than undermines, the rights and dignity of women and children.
The struggle for women’s rights is inseparable from the struggle for children’s rights, equality, and justice. The voices of mothers and women right activists across Iraq must not be ignored. Their demands reflect fundamental questions of dignity, family security, and equal protection under the law.

Aman Women Alliance stands with these women and reiterates its call for the abolition of the Ja’fari Personal Status Code and for legislation grounded in equality, justice, and the best interests of every child.

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Aman Women Alliance
amanorgiq@gmail.com