‘We Do Not Celebrate a Homeland That Oppresses Half Its People’: Objections to Iraq’s Jaafari Code

A call to refrain from celebrating Iraq’s National Day has drawn attention to objections to the Jaafari personal status code, placing concerns over women’s rights at the centre of the debate.

The message, “We do not celebrate a homeland that oppresses half its people,” links the national occasion to questions about women’s status and legal protections in Iraq.

Objections to the code focus on its implications for personal status matters, with child custody and the marriage of underage girls among the concerns raised.

The call frames those issues as a matter of national importance, challenging the meaning of celebration while fears over women’s and children’s rights remain unresolved.