Iraq's latest proposal to revise its Personal Status Law, possibly even lowering the minimum marriage age for girls to nine years, has seen no less intense disapproval from various human rights organizations and activists.

If signed into law, this would mean substituting the current minimum of 18 years of age, which already permits marriage at 15 under certain judicial circumstances, with marriage legalization following specific religious dictates.

This could, in turn, mean that religious authorities can solemnize marriages, even for very young girls, a move that certainly raises serious human rights concerns. Human rights advocates argue such a move will violate international conventions, including the Convention on the Rights of the Child and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women, both of which Iraq has ratified.

It views the reduction of the marriage age as a retrogressive step that would only increase the rate of child marriage, already at an alarming 28% of girls under the age of 18 in Iraq.

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Besides, early child marriage exposes girls to risks from early pregnancy health complications and higher risks of abuse and denial of education.

Other proposed amendments also include provisions weakening the hard-won protections of women regarding divorce and inheritance rights, which increase gender inequality and leave many of the most vulnerable women and children in precarious situations.

Human rights advocates, including Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, have called on the Iraqi parliament to reject this amendment and embrace more reforms aimed at upholding women's and girls' rights because these amendments would erode legal protection currently enshrined in Iraqi civil law.