'You can marry a woman for half an hour, and as soon as it's over, straight away you can marry another one.' Via BBCWorld
A BBC investigation has uncovered a secret world of sexual exploitation of children and young women by religious figures.
It wasn't the teenager's first marriage. It wasn't even her second, third or fourth. In fact she's been married too many times for her to count.She would watch as girls not much older than her in tight clothing and bright make-up came in to wait expectantly. Older men would soon come in to pick them up.
Despite her initial vow to remain independent, she found herself dreaming of a husband - one who would take care of them both. Within minutes of the cleric's blessing, her new husband had taken her to a nearby apartment in an apparent rush to consummate their marriage. Although Rusul was nervous, she was looking forward to finally having a proper home for her and her sister. She followed her husband into the bedroom and, as she closed the door behind her, prayed that this man would treat her well, that their life together would last. “I felt like a weight had been lifted off my shoulders.
Mutaa marriages are not permitted under Sunni Islam. But some Sunni clerics sanction alternative variants of marriage, such as “misyar”, which some experts say performs a similar function to mutaa marriage and has also been criticised as exploitative of women. She won't go into details about how much she earns, but says the cleric takes a fee from the client and then pays her the dowry. She says the length of her contracts have varied from a few hours to several weeks. Rusul has by now slept with dozens of men - so many that she has lost count - in the course of these mutaa marriages.“This is something that is very widespread. There are many girls like me.”Kadhimiya is the location of one of Shia Islam's most important pilgrimage sites.
Ghaith Tamimi, a former senior Shia cleric from Karbala, said he witnessed thousands of mutaa marriages but none with children. He acknowledged that Sunnis also enter into informal marriages, but said the fact that the Shia clerics are closer to those in power means they can act with impunity. In the marriage offices in Kadhimiya, clerics approached by the BBC undercover reporter elaborated on their practice.
Instead he just advises against taking the girl's virginity. He suggests anal sex as an alternative. And he is happy to conduct the ceremony over the phone, with the girl not even present. He even agrees to procure our reporter another girl for a later date. In Karbala, a Shia holy city 120km [75 miles] south of Baghdad, the BBC asks Sheikh Emad Alassady, the most senior cleric in the city's Sharia marriage office in Karbala mosque, whether he approves of the practice of mutaa marriage. He says although allowed in Sharia he would never officiate one. But in the streets around the shrine, some clerics are giving very different advice.
“They won't send photos but when you see them face to face, they're good girls, beautiful girls. If you don't like her, there will be a second and a third and so on.” “If these practices are happening in the way you are saying then we condemn them unreservedly,” his office says in a statement. “Temporary marriage is not allowed as a tool to sell sex in a way that belittles the dignity and humanity of women.
Ali, a professional man in his 40s, is one of those who uses clerics to source him women and girls for mutaa marriages. “It doesn't count as a sin. It is available and it is cheap and it's fine to do it,” he says. Mona was just 14 when she was persuaded into a mutaa marriage with an older man who followed her home from school.
“We had three of the happiest days of my life - ordering food. He cherished me. When you're broken, and someone comes and gives you hope, it's very precious.”When her family discovered that her marriage had only been temporary, they rejected her. Although mutaa marriages are sanctioned by Shia clerics, it's seen as dishonourable - essentially prostitution - by many sectors of Iraqi society, both Shia and Sunni.
An Iraqi government spokesman told the corporation that it is difficult for the authorities to act “if women don’t go to the police with their complaints against clerics”. Though it isn't possible to verify all the details of Rusul's story, sources have confirmed that many elements of her account are similar to those of other girls who have been exploited by clerics in this way. Other girls, for example, have spoken of being given contraceptive injections. “The moment a girl starts doing this, her life is ruined.
In addition, many conservative parents marry off their girls early to safeguard or protect their reputation, by ensuring they do not mix with men or take boyfriends - which in conservative communities jeopardises the honour of the girl and her family.
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