ERBIL, Kurdistan Region—The government in the Kurdistan Region does not allow itself to be sidetracked from its determination to fight for women’s rights and providing a safe and equal environment for them in society, said Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani on Monday, who also urged juridical and police authorities to do their best to ensure justice for women.
“Despite the terrible incidents of recent we at the government alongside local and international organizations repeat our political determination to provide peace and stability in the Kurdistan Region and we’ll intensify our efforts to eliminate domestic violence and violence against women nationally and the entire region,” Barzani said at a conference on the day of combating violence against women.
“Here I would reiterate the determination of the people of Kurdistan for peace, freedom, equality and stability,” he added.
The Kurdish prime minister said that the people of Kurdistan as a whole do not believe in violence as a means towards “political, civil and human rights. People here want to meet the aspirations they have striven for through peace and democracy.”
Barzani said that women are often the first victims of conflict and that his government will make sure this does not happen to women in the Kurdistan Region.
“All over the globe women always pay a heavy price for the deterioration of political and economic situation,” he said. “Not only do they become the main victims of war, the rights they win through hard work also get trampled.”
“We will not let you become victims of war and conflict,”
Barzani mentioned a series of laws passed in defense of women’s rights as progressive achievements the Kurdistan Region has made in contrast to Iraqi laws that further victimize women.
“We promise that the progress we have achieved in the past twenty five years will only keep going forward and the KRG will always be your closest ally,” he told an audience of women activists, government officials and representatives of civil society organizations.
“We have spared no effort in the past twenty five years for women’s rights because we believe that security, equality and justice should be the bedrock of our work.”
He said that the Kurdistan Region has “amended Iraq’s penal code and civil status laws.”
“And our parliament has through consultation with women from political parties and organizations passed a series of modern and civilized laws.”
Barzani said that the KRG has zero tolerance for the killing of women.
“From 2001 the killing of a woman regardless of the reason will be treated by the court of law as all other killings, unlike how it was handled under Iraqi penal code which allowed killers of women to get away with the light sentencing.”
“Polygamy has been on the retreat and limited thanks to punishments and laws introduced against it.” PM Barzani added.
At a time when the Iraqi parliament ponders a bill that will legalize the marriage of girls as young as nine years old, Barzani praised the Kurdistan Region for raising “The age of marriage for women to 18 in order to allow for women to pursue education and growth in all fields they wish as one of their basic human rights.”
“We have shown and proven in practice our commitment against domestic violence by establishing organizations and shelters across the country for women at risk.” Barzani said.
“We have done these to eliminate violence against women and improve their social atmosphere.”
The Kurdish Prime Minister said that “The global outcry against sexual harassment has energized the government and NGO here to multiply their efforts for women’s rights and combat violence.”
I ask the police and judicial authorities to heed to stories and complaints of women and their plight and through the application of justice reduce their worries and injustice done to them and become a model for the prevention of such heinous acts.”
