Anyone who enters into consensual homosexual relationships can therefore be imprisoned for a minimum of 10 and a maximum of 15 years. Anyone who promotes homosexuality “in any way” faces at least seven years in prison and a fine of the equivalent of around 7,000 to 10,000 euros.
Activities by organizations that promote homosexuality will also be banned in Iraq in the future. An older amendment proposed the death penalty for same-sex sex.
“Defend moral values”
The acting speaker of parliament, Mohsen al-Mandalaui, defended the law in its new version. It is a crucial step to “defend the structure of moral values in society,” said al-Mandalaui. The aim is also to “protect our children from the reputations of moral corruption and homosexuality”.
Parliament in Baghdad (archive photo) The MPs also had a paper before them that proposed the death penalty for same-sex sexImage: IRAQI PARLIAMENT MEDIA OFFICE/REUTERS
Same-sex sex was not previously explicitly punished in Iraq. However, the authorities used vague moral laws to prosecute members of the LGBTQ community. In August, when the amendment was introduced in parliament, the organization Human Rights Watch complained about “hostile rhetoric” towards sexual minorities from members of the government and a suppression of the work of human rights organizations in the country.
“We are moving into a world where being your true self is a crime,” said IraQueer, one of the few LGBTQ organizations in Iraq. “Passing this law will ruin the lives of many now and in the future. Young Iraqis will be hunted down and the government will throw them in prison or worse without any basis.”
Iraq expert Ras Salaji from the human rights organization Amnesty International spoke of an “absolutely appalling” development. The change to the more than 30-year-old so-called prostitution law is a “vehement attack on fundamental human rights.”
Criticism also from the USA and Germany
The US State Department said it was “deeply concerned” about the tightening of the law. Ministry spokesman Matthew Miller said the law threatened the most vulnerable members of Iraqi society and “undermined the government’s efforts at economic and political reform.”
The Federal Government’s Human Rights Commissioner, Luise Amtberg (archive image)Image: Christoph Soeder/dpa/picture alliance
The Federal Government’s human rights commissioner, Luise Amtberg (Greens), also condemned the tightening of the law decided by the Iraqi parliament. This would “legally legitimize serious human rights violations,” said Amtberg. “The penalties provided for in the law endanger the already most vulnerable groups within Iraqi society,” she added.
haz/AR (dpa, afp)