Christian politicians in Iraq are trying to overturn a ruling prohibiting the import and export of alcohol. Customs officials were issued orders on Saturday to implement the ban. It became law last month despite opposition. The group, which has five seats in Iraq’s parliament, filed a case, saying it was undemocratic.
Public alcohol consumption is frowned upon in Iraq, a primarily Muslim country, but it can be bought at liquor shops or authorized bars. The law, originally passed by parliament in 2016, charges a fine of up to 25m IQD ($17,170).
It bans the sale, import, or production of alcohol and only became official last month, seven years since it was passed, after emerging in the official gazette. It remains unclear how strictly the law could be enforced, and whether the country’s Federal Supreme Court will knock it back.
In their request to the court, members of the Babylon Movement urged the ruling was unconstitutional because it ignores the freedoms of minorities and restricts freedom. It also rejects a government regulation, adopted less than a week before the gazette was published on 20 February, charging duty at 200% on all imported alcoholic drinks for the next four years, they say.
Sarmad Abbas, an estate agent based in Iraq’s capital Baghdad, told the AFP news agency that the ban would only push alcohol sales onto the black market. He admitted that Muslim teachings prohibit the consumption of alcohol. “But these are personal freedoms that you cannot forbid citizens from practising,” he said.
According to reports at the time, the bill was originally proposed by Mahmoud al-Hassan, then a judge and lawmaker for Iraq’s State of Law Coalition. He said it was in keeping with Article 2 of Iraq’s 2005 constitution, which prohibits any legislation that goes against Islam, the AP news agency wrote.
