Iraq: Nov '07
European politician and leading NGO commend Iraqi Crisis Reports for highlighting problems faced by ethnic and religious minorities.
Iraq: Nov '07
European politician and leading NGO commend Iraqi Crisis Reports for highlighting problems faced by ethnic and religious minorities.
A member of the European parliament cited IWPR’s Iraqi Crisis Reports in November as evidence of the persecution of Iraqi religious minorities following a European parliamentary debate.
Although the debate centred largely on the persecution of Christians, Socialist Group MEP Paulo Casaca noted that “in Iraq, persecution of religious minorities is broader and it is not confined to the Christian communities”.
Asked to provide evidence to back his position, Casaca wrote to fellow MEPs.
“I could drown you with papers and testimonies to back my statement. I decided just to send you copies of two articles written by Sahar Al-Haideri, a journalist working for IWPR [Institute for War and Peace Reporting] in Mosul,” said his letter.
Casaca cited two stories written by Haideri, who was killed by Islamic militants in Mosul in June, Bleak Future for Nineweh Minorities and Mosul Christian Community Dwindles.
The MEP said Haideri was a “courageous journalist … [who] confronted the beast of fanaticism and intolerance, in face of the general indifference of the West”.
In November, Haideri was honoured with the Kurt Schork Award in International Journalism and the Canadian Journalists for Free Expression’s International Press Freedom Award.
In a statement, the Canadian Journalists for Free Expression said Haideri “was killed for reporting unflinchingly on humanitarian issues in Iraq, including the plight of women and minority groups. She wrote in the most dangerous circumstances, challenging and exposing the human rights violations of the extremist groups in her home town of Mosul”.
Separately, Casaca called IWPR’s work “absolutely remarkable” in supporting Iraqi journalists. He praised the Iraqi Crisis Reports for providing insight into the difficulties Iraqi religious and ethnic minorities face.
“Iraq is by far the most serious case of persecution of minorities in the Middle East,” he said. “There is nothing like Iraq.”
Michelle Zumofen, a researcher with the Swiss Refugee Council, is investigating the status of religious and ethnic minority groups in the Kurdistan Regional Government-controlled north.
The Swiss government wants to send Iraqi refugees from the KRG areas back home.
Zumofen reviewed several Iraqi Crisis Reports on Iraqi religious and ethnic minorities dating back to 2005 for her research in November, noting that “the mass media are not interested in these tiny minority groups”.
She praised the Iraqi Crisis Reports articles for providing substantial current information and figures about the status of Iraqi minorities. Zumofen said the articles provided in-depth reporting on an issue “that is not well covered in the daily news” and said they are “are very interesting because in these articles local concerned people give their voice”.
IWPR gave Zumofen several contacts within Iraqi Kurdistan and internationally to help her conduct research using primary sources. Zumofen said she “really appreciates … the work of IWPR”.
