The victims of divorce.. How does parental separation affect children's education in Iraq?

Shafaq News / "He appeared to be distracted, slow-witted, and filled with psychological traumas." This is how Khulood al-Shammari, an educator and social researcher, described her second-grader student who was three years behind his friends due to his parents' divorce.

"After his parents divorced and relocated to other Iraqi governorates to start a new life, the child and his five siblings started living with their grandparents."

"Family disintegration negatively affects children, who fall victim to marital disputes and become a tool for revenge, causing them psychological disorders, especially when they need their parents to teach them and help them do their homework," al-Shammari told Shafaq News Agency.

"The number of traumatized children has risen in tandem with the increase of divorce rates."

Regarding the influence of divorce on children's mental health, psychologist Shahrazad al-Abdali stated, "The children's psychological distress causes them to be distracted. It becomes worse when divorced parents quarrel in front of their children. This leaves them confused and unsure about whom they should please."

According to legal experts, unless there is a legal, religious, or other impediments, such as if she is married and fears for her daughters from her new husband, or if she has a bad reputation, the court automatically assigns custody to the wife.

Another difficulty that children may face after their parents' divorce, according to al-Abdali, is that "if they (the children) are used to their mother teaching them and end up with their father after the divorce, they will have to adapt to a new teaching method, which reflects negatively on their studies."

"When children see their colleagues with their parents, whether playing with them or bringing them to and from school, they feel left out. Also, if a stepmother abuses the children, punishes them harshly, and pays no attention to their studies, this will cause a drop in their educational level."

"The mother sometimes finds herself forced to stop her children from going to school after separation, being financially unable to cover the school costs, especially in the case of early marriage where the wife does not have the required educational level that allows her to work or does not have experience in life, so she is forced to rely on her children, especially the boys, to provide a living," Al-Abdali explained.

Although "education in Iraq is mandatory, no one is punished for not providing education to their children," according to legal expert Ahmed al-Abadi, "they are, however, forced in one way or another by the municipal council or the provincial council, where official books are brought in with the names of the dropping children, and their parents are told of the need to enroll them in schools."

Watheq al-Zubbar, a legal expert, criticized the Personal Status Law, saying it was "old, undeveloped, omitted many cases, and did not address modern issues, including the lack of researchers, psychologists, and counselors for children, and as a result, after the separation of their parents, most children develop intellectual and mental illnesses, and most of them resort to drugs or smoking."

Al-Zubbar stated, "Even if the father is disabled or has special needs, the court orders him to pay alimony to his wife and children, even if the mother is not in need. The father is obliged to provide for his children, with the money going to education and other expenses."

According to the Supreme Judicial Council's most recent monthly divorce statistics, the number of divorces in Iraq in September reached roughly 5569 cases, or more than 185 cases per day (nearly 7 cases per hour), with the capital Baghdad topping the list.