(Photo by MOHAMMED SAWAF/AFP via Getty Images)
(Photo by MOHAMMED SAWAF/AFP via Getty Images)OAN’s Abril Elfi
6:12 PM – Wednesday, August 9, 2023
Iraq issued an order telling all national media outlets and social media sites to stop using the word “homosexuality” and start using the term “sexual deviancy.”
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On Tuesday, the Iraqi Communications and Media Commission released a statement regarding the ban of the words “homosexual” and “homosexuality.”
The use of the word “gender” was also prohibited. This ban forbids the use of the phrases in any of the mobile applications of all phone and internet providers that it had granted licenses to.
According to a government representative, even though no repercussions have yet been established for those who break the rule, fines could eventually be put in place.
Although homosexuality is not expressly criminalized in Iraq’s national penal code, the country’s judicial authorities frequently use provisions in other laws relating to the upkeep of “public morals” to bring charges against same-sex offenders. Such charges are common against Iraq’s LGBTQ community.
Every nation has a different level of homosexuality punishment. Homosexual activities are still capital crimes in several countries, including Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Iran, Mauritania, and the United Arab Emirates.
Iraqi Shiite protestors frequently set LGBTQ flags on fire during their demonstrations. Reportedly, some Muslims have taken offense at the fact that while burning the Quran is not a “hate crime” in Europe, burning the LGBTQ flags is.
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