Women Committee Established For the Labor Unions of the Kurdistan Region
Kurdistan United Workers Union (KUWU) has formally established a women’s committee, with an office in the building of KUWU Erbil. Several women activists from Erbil and Sulaymaniyah were invited to be part of the committee, which will be supported by unionists local NGOs. The aim is to support gender equality and to connect the committee...
Kahramana Week for Women Across Baghdad
From 21-28 March Baghdad was the location for a week full of women’s rights campaigning, organized by Kahramana, the Women’s Rights path of the Iraqi Social Forum, run by Tammuz Organisation. The week kicked off with a Newroz picnic in celebration of the start of spring in the gardens of Abu Nawas near the statue...
Guarantee Me a Safe Environment, I Will Protect Your Rights and Secure Your Freedoms
A summary of recommendations of the paper prepared by Shahrazad activists, on the protection of Women Human Rights Defenders in Iraq. In 2017, Iraq weathered trying social and security conditions that left their traces on efforts to secure the freedoms and security of citizens in general, and this goes in particular for Women and Men...
The Final Conference of the Shahrazad Project: Past Accomplishments and Future Goals
By Iraqi Civil Society Solidarity Initiative – December 2017 After nine months of continuous work, including holding seminars, focus groups and providing legal advice to women human rights defenders through the legal clinic in the Shahrazad Center, the activities of the Shahrazad Project concluded with the Shahrazad Conference on 16 December 2017 at the Oil...
The Digital Clinic: A New Resource to Protect Women Activists on Social Media!
By ICSSI Secretariat – November 2017 Women journalists, activists and human rights defenders tend to minimize the importance of protection for their devices and the digital content they use. Hence, most of them currently lack a clear strategy to protect their devices and information. This is a widespread problem and, in a country like Iraq...
The Media’s Role in Electing Women Candidates and Increasing Voter Turnout
By ICSSI Secretariat – November 2017 On 23 October in Baghdad, IWJF held a seminar on the role of the media in supporting women candidates and mobilizing public opinion for their success in elections. With elections coming up soon, alerting voters to those women who are running for office is urgent. The seminar was...
Women are Critical Peacebuilding Actors: Implementing UNSCR-1325 in Iraq
More than 3 years ago, in February 2014, the Government of Iraq launched its National Action Plan on UN Securitiy Council Resolution 1325 (2014-2018). It was the first country in the MENA Region to launch such a program. The Resolution concerns the important role of women in the prevention and resoltion of conflicts, peace negotiationsm...
Civil Society Enabling Women’s Participation in Provincial and District Councils in Iraq
In light of the recent adoption of the new law for provincial and district council elections, the Iraqi Women Journalists Forum held a seminar to discuss how best to ensure effective representation of women in these councils given that the new law stipulates that women should make up no less than 25% of the seats...
The Iraqi Women Journalists Forum Reviews the Draft Law of Social Insurance
By ICSSI Secretariat – September 2017 On 9th of September, the Iraqi Women Journalists Forum held a seminar in Baghdad to discuss the draft law of social insurance in Iraq, recently submitted to parliament and currently still under discussion. The seminar revealed two distinct responses to the draft law: there is the positive view of...
New Draft Law Threatens Freedom of Expression on the Internet
Iraqi Women Journalist Forum and Iraqi Civil Society Solidarity Initiative – 28 August 2017 On 26 August 2017, the Iraqi Women Journalist Forum held a seminar in Baghdad on the draft law on internet censorship. Though no precise date has been announced, this proposed law, the ‘Informatics Crime Law’, is set to be delivered to...
Freedom of Expression and Access to Information: The Iraqi Women Journalists Forum Works to Promote Essential Rights
The Iraqi Women Journalists Forum (IWJF) organized a legal seminar as a part of the Shahrazad project on Saturday, 15 July. The seminar centered on the most recent drafts of two laws now being discussed in parliament: the Right of Access to Information law and the Freedom of Expression and Peaceful Demonstration law. The seminar drew...
Powerful Tools: Meeting Diwaniya’s Only Female Furniture Maker
Manar al-Zubaidi, NIQASH 20.07.2017 | Diwaniya In Iraq, working on furniture is typically a man’s job. But one independent woman in Diwaniya is reupholstering and sandpapering her way through that wooden ceiling. When Janat Mohammed’s mother died around seven months ago, she was depressed for a long time. In trying to fill up her spare time and...
