Shafaq News/ The Iraqi Fiqh Council and the Sunni Endowment Office formally rejected proposed amendments to the Personal Status Law (PSL,) stressing that "there is no legitimate basis for replacing the law with separate Shiite and Sunni codes."
In a statement from a joint committee of the Iraqi Fiqh Council—the highest Sunni religious authority in Iraq—and the Sunni Endowment Office, the gathering, led by prominent scholar Ahmad Hasan al-Taha, and tasked with reviewing the proposed changes to the Personal Status Law, considered the existing Personal Status as “a critical foundation for the Iraqi family structure, covering 94 articles related to family jurisprudence such as marriage, divorce, spousal rights, waiting periods, lineage, custody, alimony, wills, and inheritance.” The law permits reference to Islamic jurisprudence for issues not explicitly addressed within its framework and recognizes sectarian-specific elements in marital contracts through provisions like deferred dowry.
The law, according to the statement, was crafted by selecting jurisprudential views suitable for Iraq’s diverse social landscape and conditions.
The committee specifically criticized sections (b) and (c) of Article I of the proposed amendments, which would allow decisions based on the Shiite Endowment's Scientific Council's opinions when Jaafari Shiite jurisprudence cannot be applied, while for Sunni cases, it only references the Sunni Endowment's Scientific and Fatwa Council, overlooking the authority of the Iraqi Fiqh Council of Senior Scholars.
“This approach,” the statement noted, “represents an unjustified exclusion of the Sunni Endowment’s authority, which is legally recognized.” This exclusion was described as a "double standard in handling laws related to the rights of Iraqi community components."
In addressing changes to Article 2 and the potential removal of Article 10, Paragraph 5, regarding marriage contracts, the statement warned that “expanding authorization for contract officiation through both the Shiite and Sunni Endowments could destabilize family structures, jeopardize the rights of wives and children, and put vulnerable groups at risk of exploitation.”
The committee further advocated for "adding legal provisions to address the use of modern communication means in contracting marriages or issuing divorces."
Should the parliament persist with these amendments, the statement recommended retaining the current Personal Status Law while introducing optional separate codes, allowing contracting parties to choose between the existing law or one of the sectarian-specific codes, “with no retroactive impact on previous contracts."
The statement concluded by affirming that the Iraqi Fiqh Council, with collaboration from the Scientific and Fatwa Council of the Sunni Endowment and legal experts, can draft a Sunni jurisprudential code that “reflects Islamic heritage while updating certain articles to ensure a balance in spousal rights, children’s welfare, and detailed provisions for inheritance and custody, which could aid judges in resolving family-related cases.”
Notably, the Iraqi Parliament was set to vote today on the amendments to the Personal Status Law (PSL), which are a key demand of the Shiite Coordination Framework. In Iraq, it is customary for laws to be passed in conjunction with others to ensure balance among different components. Today’s session was expected to include votes on several significant pieces of legislation: the Kurdish bloc’s Property Restitution Law, the Coordination Framework's Personal Status Law, and the Sunni blocs’ amendments to the Amnesty Law.
A source told Shafaq News Agency that parliament planned to vote on these laws as a package deal. “This means that if any law is rejected, all the proposed laws will be postponed to a later session.”
PSL Amendments Background
The Personal Status Law, enacted in 1959 is applied to all Iraqis without sectarian distinction. However, the proposed amendments include a provision allowing Iraqis to choose whether Shia or Sunni laws will govern their personal status matters at the time of marriage. Those who have not previously selected a specific sect's laws can request a personal status court to apply their chosen sect's religious laws, with the court required to comply.
The draft law also stipulates that if parties in a family case disagree on the applicable legal source, the religious opinion will prevail.
It further mandates that the Shia and Sunni Endowment Councils, in coordination with the State Council, draft a code of religious rulings on personal status issues and submit it to the Parliament for approval within six months of the Law's enactment.
Additionally, the amendment requires personal status courts to validate marriage contracts performed by Muslims before individuals authorized by religious or legal authorities, ensuring all contract elements and conditions are met.