At the same symposium, Rahman Gharib, who coordinates the activities of the Kurdish media rights watchdog, Metro Centre, stressed that even though the law had passed, it was now the responsibility of the next regional government to ensure it was implemented and abided by. Iraqi Kurdistan has just held regional elections and will see the government change hands, once senior positions have been agreed upon.
One of the things that was pointed out by speakers at the symposium was the fact that, despite the existence of the law, no journalists had yet used it. In fact, another former MP, Srour Abdul-Rahman, who had also been on the parliamentary committee for culture and media, said that journalists needed to take some responsibility for the use and application of the law themselves.
“If there is a delay in the implementation of this law then it is the journalists themselves who should be blamed,” Abdul-Rahmen said. Despite several journalists making complaints about how they had not received information, Abdul-Rahmen told the crowd that: “I have yet to see any official complaints made by journalists even though they have the right to complain.”
Some of the biggest sticking points between assembled journalists and politicians were the exemptions in the law. These were far too broad, many said. Exemptions include intelligence and military information as well as information that could be part of negotiations between two parties. Journalists were quick to jump on the negotiations paragraph, saying this could mean any number of things, including, potentially, secret deals done between Baghdad and Iraqi Kurdistan.
Many of those attending felt that the exemptions needed to be re-formulated by the new government because they gave local authorities too many easy excuses not to hand out requested information.
Disclaimer: NIQASH and the Media Academy Iraq are both projects run by the German NGO, MICT, in Iraq.
(Flag image via Shutterstock)
Comments are closed.