Iraq – Yesterday, the Iraqi Parliament approved a law criminalizing same-sex relations and sexual transformation with a penalty of up to 15 years in prison, following the first version provided for the death penalty.
In response, Amnesty International, in a statement to Agence France-Presse, criticized the “violation of basic human rights,” considering that the amendments adopted on Saturday “pose a danger to Iraqis who are already exposed to harassment on a daily basis,” in a conservative country where minorities practice… Her nationality is hidden.
This text, which represents an amendment to the Anti-Prostitution Law of 1988, was approved during a session attended by 170 deputies out of 329, according to a statement issued by the Parliament’s Information Department.
The new provisions stipulate a prison sentence of between 10 and 15 years for same-sex relations, as well as the exchange of wives, according to the text published by the Iraqi “Al-Sumaria” agency.
The law also prohibits “the activity of any organization that promotes prostitution and homosexuality in Iraq,” and punishes it with seven years in prison for “promoting” same-sex relations.
It is prohibited to “change a person’s biological sex based on personal desires and inclinations,” under penalty of exposing anyone who is different from his gender and any doctor who performed the operation to a prison sentence for a period ranging between one and three years. A similar penalty is applied to any man who intentionally practices or promotes effeminacy.
Iraqi society rejects homosexuality, and the few members of the “LGBT” community are repeatedly subjected to “kidnapping, rape, torture, and assassination” at the hands of armed groups that enjoy “impunity,” according to what Human Rights Watch stated in a 2022 report.
Amnesty International researcher Razao Salehi told Agence France-Presse: “Iraq has already legalized discrimination and violence directed for years once morest members of society with complete impunity.”
Iraq relied on the Penal Code of 1969 to criminalize the LGBT community, relying on an article that stipulates “life imprisonment or several years” on charges of homosexuality.
Representative Raed al-Maliki, who proposed the amendments, acknowledged that the vote, which was scheduled to take place in mid-April, was postponed to avoid “influencing” Prime Minister Muhammad Shiaa al-Sudani’s visit to Washington.
He pointed out that there is “rejection by the European Union and the United States of such legislation,” stressing that the law is “an internal matter and we do not accept that there be interference from any party.”
He added: “The culture of Iraqi society rejects homosexuality, but there is a deliberate promotion of cultures that are not recognized, and therefore we fear for the future. This law comes as a matter of prevention, protecting society from such acts.”
Source: RT + agencies
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2024-04-29 01:20:42
