Dashty Jamal speech on the eve of International Human Rights Day in the Houses of Parliament

Monday 9^th December 2013

On behalf of the International Federation of the Iraqi Refugees I welcome everyone here I would like to thank Jeremy Corbin for arranging this important meeting. I am sure you all know Jeremy Corbin very well, but I would like to say that Jeremy is a socialist parliamentarian who has always defended freedom. He stood firmly against the war on Iraq and he has strongly defended the refugees, the Iraqi and Kurdish refugees in particular. We highly appreciate all his stances and efforts. I would like to draw your attention today to two important issues on International Human Rights Day. Unfortunately, Kurdistan Regional Government has not taken any steps to answer or find a solution to the two vital issues of women and refugee rights.

Whilst tens of letters, drafts and projects in different ways have been written in protest of this by figures and organizations, regrettably without success. The improvement of women’s rights in Iraqi Kurdistan is one of the most important issues. No day passes in Kurdistan without at least one woman being threatened in the name of honour. During the last 22 years of rule by the Regional Government of Kurdistan, women remain unequal.

Thousands of women have been murdered under the pretext of honour. Many more have set themselves on fire and or suffer violence of some kind every day.

Women are on the front line of all these incidents: murder, self-immolation, self-killing, rape, sexual harassment. Unfortunately the culture of killing women and violence against women has been passed to the Kurdish ethnic groups outside Kurdistan, and killers of women abroad have found Kurdistan a safe refuge.

According to Warvin website statistics, in one month in Kurdistan there were 1715 cases were recorded where 76 cases of self-immolation, 19 cases of self- killing, 1507 complaints, and 49 cases of sexual harassment.

In Arbil city where most of the governmental agencies and offices are there, in one month 607 case of violence against women were recorded this is while the UN resolution No 48 and 64 passed on 22 Feb 1994: ‘Violence against women is the main infringement of human rights and basic freedom in the society’.

   Therefore, it is the right place to express our support in this meeting to the following demands and to force the next cabinet of the Regional Government of Kurdistan to implement them:

1-Passing a law to punish those who are killing women and commit violence against women in Kurdistan.

2- Releasing the women who have been imprisoned for adultery.

3- Abolishing Personal Status Law and polygamy of Kurdistan Parliament and setting aside the Sharia as source of laws.

4- Abolishing the adultery article in the Iraqi Criminal Law.