SULAIMANI (ESTA) — The Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) faction in the Kurdistan Region Parliament on Saturday said that it stands firm to combat violence against women as the parliament prepared a controversial bill about family violence to vote for but Islamic factions oppose it.
The Kurdistan Region parliament has an agenda to legislate family law in which one of its articles prohibits “forced sexual intercourse” with wives, the bill deems it as domestic violence against women unless they agree to do so.
The bill triggered quarrels between the factions in the parliament, pro-Islamic factions strongly opposed it, saying that the bill contradicts Islamic customs.
On Friday, the Islamic Scholars’ Union of Kurdistan in a statement said that the bill completely contradicts the society’s customs and Islamic sharia.
“The bill is not convenient with Islamic Sharia and contradicting custom, the reality of the Kurdish society and social peace,” the Union said in the statement.
PUK faction in a statement reiterated that it insists on combating family violence against women in the meantime it would never support any policies or laws that are against the principles of the Islamic religion.
“We are against femicide by all manners, and fully believe in family’s security and stability, it’s one of our fundamental principles that we struggle for,” the PUK faction in a statement expressed its stance regarding the bill.
“There is no honor in killing women. Violence against women is a crime and it contradicts the Kurdish authentic culture. The bill must serve this direction,” it said. But also mentioned that “it would never support policies or laws that are going against the Islamic religion.”
