U.S. concerned about violations of minorities' rights in Kurdistan Parliament

Kurdistan 09:30 AM - 2023-02-20

Irvin Hicks, the US Consul General

The United States (U.S.) is concerned about the infringement of minorities' rights in the Kurdistan Region, and the U.S. Consul General in Erbil has warned that minorities' rights have regressed in certain regions of the Kurdistan Region.

The U.S. Consulate General in Erbil posted on Facebook an interview in which U.S. Consul General Irvin Hicks stated that the U.S. is concerned about the regress of minorities' rights in certain regions of the Kurdistan Region and is prepared to assist the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) in protecting the rights of minorities.

He also emphasized that the U.S. has voiced similar concerns during meetings with KRG representatives.

Minorities are persecuted in the legislature

Minorities are respected outside of parliament, and there are demands to restore their parliamentary rights.

Dr. Sarwar Abdulrahman, President of the Pay Institute for Education and Development, stated to PUKMEDIA: "Minorities have no actual representatives in parliament, and their rights are infringed in parliament."

"The Turkmen and other minorities themselves declare that those in parliament are not our true representatives, and that party nominates candidates for them," said Dr. Abdulrahman. "The protest occurs within the parliament and not outside because minorities in the Kurdistan Region are highly valued and have no issues outside the parliament."

Deprivation of the Christian people's will

By using Christian seats in the Kurdistan Parliament, a certain party is disregarding minorities and undermining the importance of genuine Christian representation.

Yonadam Kanna, Secretary General of the Assyrian Democratic Movement, told PUKMEDIA: "Chaldeans, Syriacs, and Assyrians have been warned that they must have a special list for voters who fall within the quota category so that we can vote for our own candidates, as we did in the 1992 elections."

"The candidates for the quota seats should be elected by the Christian people, not by the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), which imposes its party candidates and strips our community of its rights and votes," he continued. "In Kurdistan, the Christian community does not elect its actual representatives."

The United Nations has been notified

The United Nations (UN) has been notified about the violation of Christian rights in the Kurdistan Region, but the KDP doesn't seem to care that there is genuine Christian representation in the Kurdistan Parliament.

"We have deemed it important to have an electoral district for Christians in the Kurdistan Region for them to have true and transparent representation in the parliament," Kanna continued. "We have urged the UN to handle the issue of the quota seat in the Kurdistan Parliament, but the KDP has not yet agreed to the matter."

Turkmens are upset with their representatives as well

Turkmen in Erbil have expressed concern over the performance of Turkmen MPs in the Kurdistan Parliament and have said: "As the current Turkmen MPs in the Kurdistan Parliament were not chosen by the Turkmen nation, we do not consider them to be our representatives."

Abdulbasit Khalid, a political figure in the Turkmen community, stated in a news conference: "Those who were elected to the parliament in the name of the Turkmen do not represent the Turkmen people; rather, they were backed by the party in Erbil and abused the votes of the true Turkmen."

"The current lawmakers were not elected by the Turkmen people, so we must establish a council and a list for the upcoming parliamentary elections from the Turkmen community that is entirely reflective of the Turkmen population to represent the Turkmen in the Kurdistan Region."

The PUK supports minorities

The Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) condemns the representation of minorities in the Kurdistan Parliament and asks minorities to play their genuine role independent of political influence.

Hasiba Abdullah, a member of the PUK Leadership Council and the head of the PUK Communities Board, stated to PUKMEDIA: "We have comments on the geography of the minorities' seats in the Kurdistan Parliament as the PUK believes that they must have real representatives so that their seats cannot be utilized by another party for its purposes."

"The PUK encourages minorities to play their true role and to voice their demands, issues, and projects," she added.

In the 229-seat Iraqi legislature, nine seats are held by minorities. In the Kurdistan parliament, minorities hold 11 of the 111 original seats.

 

 

PUKMEDIA