Monday, May 21, 2007
Arests made in connection with honor killing of Yezidi girl
Crime
(Al Jazeera) - Iraqi authorities are reported to have arrested four people in connection with the death by stoning of a Kurdish teenager, which was filmed and posted on the internet. Two of those arrested in Nineveh province, in northern Iraq are said to be members of the girl's immediate family, said reports on Saturday. Du'a Khalil Aswad, who was 17-years-old, was stoned to death on April 7, allegedly by members of her family during an "honour killing", according to local officials. She was dragged half-naked into the street where a crowd gathered and a number of people filmed her death on mobile phones. Footage of Aswad's death was later posted on the internet, where the videos showed what appeared to be uniformed members of a security force among the crowd.
Authorities have said Aswad was attacked and killed because members of her community believed she had run off to marry a Sunni Muslim man. Aswad was a member of the Yazidi sect, a religious group, incorporating a number of ancient beliefs that does not allow marriage outside the faith.
"They [the crowd] brutally killed a young Yazidi girl in pursuit of out-of-date tribal rites," the AFP news agency quoted Tahsin Saeed Ali, the Yazidi religious leader known as the emir of the Yazidis in Iraq as saying. The Kurdish Regional Government later condemned the killing and called for Aswad's killers to be brought to justice.
CNN and the Malaysia Sun reported the arrests, with CNN quoting local officials as saying they were looking for four more suspects, including one of Aswad's cousins. Amnesty International, the human rights group, said it welcomed the Kurdish government's condmenation of the killing. A spokesmen said Amnesty had requested "concrete measures to protect all those at risk of becoming victims of 'honour crimes".
Authorities have said Aswad was attacked and killed because members of her community believed she had run off to marry a Sunni Muslim man. Aswad was a member of the Yazidi sect, a religious group, incorporating a number of ancient beliefs that does not allow marriage outside the faith.
"They [the crowd] brutally killed a young Yazidi girl in pursuit of out-of-date tribal rites," the AFP news agency quoted Tahsin Saeed Ali, the Yazidi religious leader known as the emir of the Yazidis in Iraq as saying. The Kurdish Regional Government later condemned the killing and called for Aswad's killers to be brought to justice.
CNN and the Malaysia Sun reported the arrests, with CNN quoting local officials as saying they were looking for four more suspects, including one of Aswad's cousins. Amnesty International, the human rights group, said it welcomed the Kurdish government's condmenation of the killing. A spokesmen said Amnesty had requested "concrete measures to protect all those at risk of becoming victims of 'honour crimes".
Labels: arrests, Du'a Khalil Aswad, emir of the Yazidis, honour killings, Tahsin Saeed Ali, Yezidis
Tuesday, May 08, 2007
UNAMI Kurdistan human rights report sparks controversy
Human Rights
(IPS) - A United Nations report on Iraq's human rights situation has provoked mixed reactions in the northern Kurdistan region. Officials accuse the UN of "exaggeration and inaccuracy" while human rights activists say the "actual extent of violations has been understated by the UN." The report by the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) covering the first three months of this year has a substantial section on human rights in the Kurdish- controlled north.
The UNAMI report released in late April voiced "serious concern" over freedom of expression, detentions, and the conditions in which women live in Kurdistan. Kurdish authorities say the UN report lacks first-hand information on many alleged cases of violation. "This report is not precise in its investigations because in some cases it has relied on media reports or on reports released by other organisations," Dindar Zebari, Kurdistan Regional Government's coordinator for UN Affairs told IPS.
Zebari said his government has passed new laws and implemented reforms in government institutions in order to improve human rights conditions in the three provinces of Arbil, Sulaimaniya and Dohuk under its control. "We have exerted a lot of efforts to stop violence against women. For example, people convicted of honour killing will not be eligible for general amnesties," Zebari said.
But rights activists in Kurdistan hold quite contrary views. Rebin Rasul Ismael, a human rights activist from Arbil, believes the UN report is inaccurate because "it has failed to mention all the violations in Kurdistan, and has only mentioned the prominent and outstanding ones. "The current reality shows that human rights conditions (here) are very bad, and I am not optimistic about the future of human rights in Kurdistan and Iraq," Ismael told IPS.
Honour killings, he said, are no longer a few isolated incidents, "but have reached a level that now women are generally under a big threat in Kurdistan." The UN figures warn of deteriorating living conditions for women in the north. In Arbil province alone 358 women have burnt themselves to death since 2003. Another 218 have tried to do so. The prime reason is increasing pressure from male members of the family, the report says.
Another cause for concern given in the report is the conditions of prisoners, especially those arrested on suspicion of terrorism. Several journalists have been arrested by security services over the past few years. Others have been threatened or beaten by unknown persons.
The UNAMI report released in late April voiced "serious concern" over freedom of expression, detentions, and the conditions in which women live in Kurdistan. Kurdish authorities say the UN report lacks first-hand information on many alleged cases of violation. "This report is not precise in its investigations because in some cases it has relied on media reports or on reports released by other organisations," Dindar Zebari, Kurdistan Regional Government's coordinator for UN Affairs told IPS.
Zebari said his government has passed new laws and implemented reforms in government institutions in order to improve human rights conditions in the three provinces of Arbil, Sulaimaniya and Dohuk under its control. "We have exerted a lot of efforts to stop violence against women. For example, people convicted of honour killing will not be eligible for general amnesties," Zebari said.
But rights activists in Kurdistan hold quite contrary views. Rebin Rasul Ismael, a human rights activist from Arbil, believes the UN report is inaccurate because "it has failed to mention all the violations in Kurdistan, and has only mentioned the prominent and outstanding ones. "The current reality shows that human rights conditions (here) are very bad, and I am not optimistic about the future of human rights in Kurdistan and Iraq," Ismael told IPS.
Honour killings, he said, are no longer a few isolated incidents, "but have reached a level that now women are generally under a big threat in Kurdistan." The UN figures warn of deteriorating living conditions for women in the north. In Arbil province alone 358 women have burnt themselves to death since 2003. Another 218 have tried to do so. The prime reason is increasing pressure from male members of the family, the report says.
Another cause for concern given in the report is the conditions of prisoners, especially those arrested on suspicion of terrorism. Several journalists have been arrested by security services over the past few years. Others have been threatened or beaten by unknown persons.
Labels: Dindar Zebari, honour killings, human rights violation, KRG, Kurdistan, UNAMI
