The UAE’s Federal National Council passed a clause in the Child Rights law on Jan. 26 that requires mothers to breastfeed their children for two years. Declaring breastfeeding a right of every child, the clause aims to make breastfeeding “a duty and not an option” for UAE mothers. Social Affairs Minister Mariam al-Roumi has said husbands could be able to sue their wives if they do not breastfeed their children under the new law.

It is an admirable aim to promote breastfeeding among UAE mothers, many of whom discontinue it by the time their child is six months old. The benefits of breastfeeding are great, including the reduction of certain illnesses and allergies and enhancing cognitive development in children. It also reduces mothers’ risk of premenopausal breast and ovarian cancers.

Nonetheless, the mandatory breastfeeding clause is not the right way to change people’s behavior. By passing this law, the FNC infringes on parents’ rights to raise their child in the way they deem best. Furthermore, it violates mothers’ agency over their own bodies. It is paternalistic and degrading for the government to assume it knows better on such a personal issue.

Beyond the moral argument, there are logistical challenges of instating the law. It’s unclear how it will be enforced and how it will affect working women. Mandatory breastfeeding would require the mother to bring her child to work with her to feed them or to pump at work. If her workplace doesn't allow for these, then she may have no choice but to leave the workforce in order to comply with the law. Currently, government offices must provide a nursery for breastfeeding mothers, and the FNC may soon vote on a bill that would put nurseries in every workplace. Until such a law is passed, a critical question remains: Will the new clause then force women to leave the workforce?

For children whose mothers have died or are unable to breastfeed, the council proposed that wet nurses be provided. This is impractical and an undue imposition on a family, since nothing has been said about where these wet nurses would come from or what would happen to their own babies. It is also uncertain whether formula will still be available in the country for the children and mothers who rely on it.