ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Medical interns and unemployed doctors gathered outside Sulaimani’s general health directorate on Wednesday, calling for job opportunities and the lifting of penalties imposed on dissenting doctors in Erbil.
“We demand that the penalties imposed on resident doctors in Erbil be lifted,” Rawa Qurbani, a representative of unemployed doctors, told Rudaw, adding that they are also calling for employment.
Daro Hadi, representing the intern doctors, said they have yet to receive an official response regarding the employment of recent graduates or the promotion process of resident doctors.
On Saturday, intern doctors in Erbil launched a boycott over delayed promotions and the unemployment of new graduates.
In response, Erbil’s general health directorate issued an order later in the day, deducting one day’s salary from striking doctors and marking them absent. A separate order, seen by Rudaw, warned private hospitals against employing doctors who “did not commit to work,” stating that violators would be “held accountable and closed.”
Alliance 19, a Sulaimani-based human rights monitor made up of advocates and civil society organizations, in a statement that said late Tuesday that “Sanctioning a striker is an undemocratic practice.” It also called for the decision to be revoked.
The organization said the decision has affected 13 resident doctors at Erbil’s Rizgary Teaching Hospital and seven doctors at Raparin Teaching Hospital.
Alliance 19, which is affiliated with Metro Center for Journalists’ Rights and Advocacy, expressed concern that the penalties against the Erbil doctors could set a precedent for punishing other groups who demand their rights through civil action.
It cited Law No. 11 of 2010 - the Law for organizing demonstrations in the Kurdistan Region - and Article 8 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, which Iraq has ratified, as legal grounds protecting the right to strike.
“Most doctors were notified by phone to end the boycott and return to work,” said Shko Sherko, a representative of the striking doctors in Erbil. He said several doctors have since returned to work, but many remain dissatisfied with employment delays and the new promotion system, though he did not elaborate on the latter.
Medical graduates must complete a two-year internship involving clinical rotations in general hospitals and emergency departments before becoming eligible for promotion. However, the lack of employment for the class of 2024 has created a bottleneck, preventing resident doctors from advancing due to the absence of replacements.
According to information obtained by Rudaw, 778 medical graduates from the class of 2024 have not yet been employed.
