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Iraq

Historically, Iraqi women and girls have enjoyed relatively more rights than many of their counterparts in the Middle East. The Iraqi Provisional Constitution (drafted in 1970) formally guaranteed equal rights to women, and other laws specifically ensured their right to vote, attend school, run for political office, and own property. However, since the Gulf War in 1991, the position of women within Iraqi society has deteriorated very quickly. Women and girls were disproportionately affected by the economic consequences of the United Nations (UN) sanctions as well as Saddam Hussein's increase in power, and lacked access to food, health care, and education. These effects were compounded by changes in the law that restricted women's mobility and access to the formal sector in an effort to ensure jobs to men and appease religious and tribal groups.

Politics, Civil Rights, and Education

In politics, Iraq was the first Arab country ever to elect a woman to a parliamentary position. In order to further its program of economic development, the government passed a compulsory education law mandating that both girls and boys attend school through the primary level. Upper- and middle-class women had been attending universities since the 1920s, but rural women did not start until the early 1970s.

The Iraqi government passed labor and employment laws to ensure that women were granted equal opportunities in the civil service sector, maternity benefits, and freedom from harassment in the workplace. According to a report by the General Federation of Iraqi Women, female participation in the workforce increased from 2.5 percent of the total labor force in 1957 to 12 percent in 1977. Another study reports an increase from 12 percent in 1977 to 19 percent in 1980. The fact that the government (as opposed to the private sector) was hiring women contributed to the breakdown of the traditional reluctance to allow women to work outside the home. Until the 1990s, the number of women working outside the home continued to grow. During the Iran-Iraq War, women were required to donate one-third of their salary for the war effort. The federation supported large legislative steps, such as a 1977 law that allowed women to be appointed an officer in the military if she had a university degree in medicine, dentistry, or pharmacy. Women also attained the right to vote and run for office in 1980.

Maternity Leave and Divorce

Under the Maternal Law of 1971, women received six months' paid maternity leave and could take six additional months of unpaid leave. Iraq now provides 62 days of maternity leave, with the woman's wages paid 100 percent by the Social Security system. In the past, arranged marriages were common. However, this practice is becoming rarer. The Muslim majority traditionally views marriage as a contract between two families, as the family's needs are considered most important. Partners often come from the same kinship group, and though marriage between different ethnic groups is accepted, it is not very common. The ruling Baath regime considered marriage to be a national duty to be guided and encouraged. Beginning in 1982, women were forbidden to marry non-Iraqi men. Divorce is accepted, but usually is left solely as a decision of the husband. If the husband wishes to be divorced, it is normally without question, while it is close to impossible for a woman to initiate a divorce proceeding.

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