The story: Amid the revival of a proposed amendment to Iraq’s personal status legislation, activists have raised alarm that it would fundamentally undermine the rule of law. The changes would in effect shift regulatory power over inheritance and marriage to Iraq’s religious authorities. While touted by the Shiite political establishment as giving Iraqis freedom of choice, critics charge that the amendment will create separate legal and judicial systems, sanction child marriage, and undermine women’s autonomy.

The coverage: The proposed amendment to Iraq’s 1959 Personal Status Law No. 188 would allow people to decide that all...