ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The Kurdistan Region’s authorities used “vaguely worded laws” to suppress dissent and target those who expressed divergent viewpoints, arresting dozens of activists and journalists along the way, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said in their annual report on Thursday.
“In Erbil, Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) authorities continued to threaten basic human rights and targeted civil society actors despite announcing a new five-year plan to address human rights issues in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI),” the US-based rights monitor said in World Report 2023, decrying a lack of progress by KRG authorities towards the treatment of journalists and activists.
HRW blamed Kurdish authorities for utilizing “vaguely worded laws to target critics for expressing criticism and opinions they object to,” referring to the arrests of journalists and activists during antigovernment protests called for by an opposition party in the Kurdistan Region’s cities, mainly Sulaimani.
The KRG issued a response to the HRW report later on Thursday saying it was a “a regional exemplar for essential democratic elements, including the right of freedom of expression and media.”
With regards to the cases used as examples in the report, it said that arrest warrants were issued based on the judiciary and laws of the Kurdistan Region and Iraq, adding that “it is worthy to note that the pressed charges have had nothing to do with journalism and activism.”
The protests on August 5 and 6 followed calls from New Generation Movement leader Shaswar Abdulwahid and resulted in the arrests of dozens of politicians, journalists, as well as three members of the Iraqi parliament after security forces used tear gas to quell the protests.
Abdulwahid’s party at the time claimed over 40 of its members were arrested while Rahman Gharib, head of Metro Center for defending journalists, told HRW that at least 26 journalists were detained following 78 rights violations by security forces.
The KRG in 2021 labeled HRW’s criticism of its treatment of protestors and journalists as misrepresentative, with KRG Coordinator for International Advocacy Dindar Zebari claiming that HRW has “generalized” the situation in the Region despite being given explanations by the government.
“We ask the HRW - if they are going to accuse the KRG, we want them to be specific and not to generalize. We have opened our doors to the HRW – in Iraq they do not have the freedom to come and go like they do here,” Zebari said at the time.
International diplomatic missions, including the US Embassy in Baghdad, voiced concerns over the Sulaimani protests, with the embassy calling for “universal human rights and freedoms” to be protected, including the right to peaceful assembly, and urged KRG authorities to review their dealings with protestors.
The use of tear gas, water cannons, rubber bullets, and even live ammunition by security forces to disperse protestors is not an uncommon occurrence in the Kurdistan Region.
Thousands of students took to the streets across the Kurdistan Region in November 2021 demanding restoration of a living allowance. The students were confronted by security forces and were dispersed with tear gas and water cannons.
The Kurdistan Region's law for organizing protests requires written permission from the interior minister or the local administrative unit. Protesting without permission can lead to criminal charges.
Rudaw Media Network and several other outlets in late 2020 were issued a warning from the KRG’s Ministry of Youth and Culture, which asked the channels to refrain from broadcasting “violent scenes” amid ongoing protests across the Kurdistan Region.
“Severe legal action" will be taken against outlets broadcasting "scenes of violence" and the "burning down of political party offices and government buildings," or material that incites "violence or sabotage or the disturbing of social cohesion," read the order sent to Rudaw.
Updated at 6:10pm with KRG response
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