ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – In the latest twist to the sad tale of one of Halabja’s lost children, a Sulaimani court ruled that Maryam Barootchian had been misidentified as Hawnaz Ahmed, but found that evidence indicates she is from Halabja.
As a result of the court decision, she risks lose the legal status in the Kurdistan Region she had gained when she had been misidentified. The court, however, will try to get her Iraqi citizenship as a native of Halabja.
"This case is a sensitive case. This is a purely scientific task. Maryam will remain as one of the lost children,” Berivan Hamdi, an official from KRG’s Ministry of Martyrs and Anfal Affairs, told Rudaw.
“We do not have a national laboratory” that is capable of advanced DNA testing, Hamdi explained, adding that this is a problem. “If there are funds, we need to have a national centre to conclude these cases.”
Seventy-three families have filed reports of children missing as a result of the chemical attack on Halabja. They report 179 missing children. Through DNA testing, nine families have been reunited with their children, according to Hamdi.
Three years ago, Maryam, who had grown up in Iran, thought she was one of those families, discovering her true identity and reuniting her with a mother and brother. But the DNA test results were later found to be mistaken.
She has said she will not take another DNA test.
“I am not Maryam Barootchian. I am Maryam of Halabja. I am Maryam of all of Kurdistan. It is saddening that the judge made such a decision in Sulaimani. I had no authority, but I consider myself the daughter of all of Kurdistan,” she told Rudaw after the court ruling.
Those who took her case upon themselves never followed up with her, she said. She has been asking for a meeting with the Minister of Martyrs for three years, she explained, adding that her biggest complaints about the whole situation are directed at the ministry.
“Legally, we can have Maryam obtain a birth certificate based on these documents. It is necessary that the committee work better, to prevent the errors that occurred in Maryam's case from occurring again,” Ayad Kakayi, Maryam’s lawyer, told Rudaw.
The KRG is working with a British university and international agencies for future testing, Hamdi said.
As a result of the court decision, she risks lose the legal status in the Kurdistan Region she had gained when she had been misidentified. The court, however, will try to get her Iraqi citizenship as a native of Halabja.
"This case is a sensitive case. This is a purely scientific task. Maryam will remain as one of the lost children,” Berivan Hamdi, an official from KRG’s Ministry of Martyrs and Anfal Affairs, told Rudaw.
“We do not have a national laboratory” that is capable of advanced DNA testing, Hamdi explained, adding that this is a problem. “If there are funds, we need to have a national centre to conclude these cases.”
Seventy-three families have filed reports of children missing as a result of the chemical attack on Halabja. They report 179 missing children. Through DNA testing, nine families have been reunited with their children, according to Hamdi.
Three years ago, Maryam, who had grown up in Iran, thought she was one of those families, discovering her true identity and reuniting her with a mother and brother. But the DNA test results were later found to be mistaken.
She has said she will not take another DNA test.
“I am not Maryam Barootchian. I am Maryam of Halabja. I am Maryam of all of Kurdistan. It is saddening that the judge made such a decision in Sulaimani. I had no authority, but I consider myself the daughter of all of Kurdistan,” she told Rudaw after the court ruling.
Those who took her case upon themselves never followed up with her, she said. She has been asking for a meeting with the Minister of Martyrs for three years, she explained, adding that her biggest complaints about the whole situation are directed at the ministry.
“Legally, we can have Maryam obtain a birth certificate based on these documents. It is necessary that the committee work better, to prevent the errors that occurred in Maryam's case from occurring again,” Ayad Kakayi, Maryam’s lawyer, told Rudaw.
The KRG is working with a British university and international agencies for future testing, Hamdi said.
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