ERBIL, Kurdistan Region — Erbil's appeal court will announce a final decision on the sentences of Duhok journalists and activists on Wednesday, a lawyer for several of the jailed told Rudaw English, as unconfirmed reports of the court approving their sentences circulate on social media. “The decision has been made, however, even we do not know the final decision as it has to be typed up and officially announced tomorrow,” Bashdar Hassan, a lawyer for a number of the defendants, told Rudaw English on Tuesday. “Until then, we cannot make any judgments on whether the decision is approved or not,” he added. In February, seven people, including two journalists, were put on trial for “endangering the national security of the Kurdistan Region.” Five of the defendants - Sherwan Sherwani, Shvan Saeed, Ayaz Karam, Hariwan Issa, and Guhdar Zebari – were found guilty and sentenced to six years in jail. The men were arrested in Duhok province last year after anti-government protests over unpaid wages. Kurdish security forces, known as Asayish, detained over two dozen people. On Tuesday, several reports of the appeal court approving the sentencing of the detained men circulated on social media. “The decision is not typed up yet, however close sources to the case have told me that it has been approved,” Kurdistan Parliament Member Ali Hama Saleh told Rudaw English. “The parliament cannot do anything about the court’s ruling, however once the decision is out, we will ask the President of the Kurdistan Region to announce a pardon to release them,” he added. Former Gorran MP in Iraqi parliament Latif Mustafa also expressed his concern on Facebook. “A dark day and dangerous development in using the court to make political decisions, this will defame the Kurdistan Region’s reputation,” he said. “The only way left is for the President of the Region to live up to his words and issue a special pardon, for it is not expected for the appeal court board to change their decision even if a revision is requested,” he added. Unconfirmed reports about the appeal decision come on the anniversary of the seizure of freelance journalist Sardasht Osman from his university campus in 2010. He was found dead in Mosul the following day. The court’s ruling in February caused outrage in the Kurdistan Region and abroad. An international press freedom monitor condemned the sentences as “unfair and disproportionate”. Deputy Prime Minister of the Kurdistan Region Qubad Talabani said at the time that the concerns raised about the trial are damaging to the reputation of the Kurdistan Region. Human Rights Watch (HRW) has also condemned the ruling. Kurdistan Region Prime Minister Masrour Barzani had claimed the detainees were “spies” and saboteurs plotting terror attacks against foreign missions, and abductions and assassinations, prior to their sentencing. The news of the appeal court decision comes a day after a media watchdog reported 49 violations committed against journalists in the Kurdistan Region in the first four months of this year, on World Press Freedom day. President Barzani on Monday expressed his support for press freedom saying, “On World Press Freedom Day, I reiterate my full support to freedom of press and expression in the Kurdistan Region. We will continue to work towards building a free, professional and ethical journalism, as it is a strong pillar of our democracy,” in a tweet.
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