2.6 Women and girls

2.6 Women and girls

Women in Iraq are reported to face multiple challenges including violence, poverty, financial exclusion745 and societal stigma.⁷⁴⁶ Women also face limited access to the labour market747 political marginalisation and limited representation in decision-making bodies.748 Women and girls continued to struggle against patriarchal norms embedded in Iraq’s legal system.749 Despite continued activism by civil society groups, federal Iraq has still not passed a law against domestic violence, stalled in the parliament for over a decade,750 while a corresponding law was passed in KRI in 2011.751 The penal code that is applicable in both territories criminalises physical assaults, but it doesn’t mention domestic violence.752 Domestic violence is on the rise and cases are underreported and inadequately investigated.753