Civil society organizations supports Iraqi people’s demands and urges the United Nations and the international community to protect the activists of civil society organizations and human rights, journalists and all demonstrators from oppression and violen

Fourth Statement  6/3/20011

Civil society organizations signed below express their pride in the Iraqi people who took to the streets in Baghdad and the Iraqi provinces in peaceful demonstrations to demand improvement of services, creating jobs for the unemployed, and find an end to corruption, tyranny and sectarian and partisan in the management of state affairs.

The demonstrations that began in Iraqi cities are part of the freedom of expression guaranteed by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, in addition to the text of the Iraqi constitution in force in the thirty-eighth article on this right.

The Iraqi people of all classes showed during the demonstrations through the provinces of Iraq a responsible model towards reform of a system mired in corruption and despotism and subservience, and proved to be capable of achieving national unity of one people struggling against tyranny and political despotism to end the reign of starvation and intimidation until true freedom is achieved, for the existing authoritarian tyranny is only a qualitative extension of the state of tyranny and oppression and repression in the former Iraq.

The repressive powers hostile to civil liberties and human rights used, in the central government in Baghdad and the authority of the Kurdistan region, violence and excessive force to disperse demonstrations, peaceful protests, which led during the past few days, from 25 / February 2011 until this moment, to the fall of more than (20) martyrs and more than two hundred wounded, and the arrest of hundreds of activists of human rights organizations and civil society, journalists, and authors and writers, in all governorates of Iraq and the authority of the Kurdistan region.

The undersigned affirm the legitimacy of the demands of the Iraqi people in various factions, for the salvation of the great suffering and of lack of essential services in all parts of Iraq, and the worsening of unemployment to the highest levels, the spread of the phenomenon of corruption, the spread of the suppression of freedoms, the violation of the Constitution and international conventions and to circumvent them, and adopt different sectarian and partisan forms in the division of wealth, away from the principles of equality and the right to build a decent life for the people.

The signatory organizations also condemn the repressive practices of the authorities in the governorates of Iraq and the Kurdistan region and demanded punishment of the people responsible for that, and the immediate release of all political prisoners and detainees because of the recent demonstrations and to respond to the demands of the people.

The undersigned organizations stress the following points:

1.  Prevent the use of all forms of violence and weapons in the face of marches and demonstrations of peaceful citizens.

2.  Release all political detainees and prisoners of conscience.

3.  Compensate all the victims who have been affected by events in the past and apologize to their families and the people by the authorities in Iraq and the Kurdistan region.

4.  Prosecute all perpetrators of the abuses that took place against the demonstrators and media.

5.  Amendment of national legislation in line with the international law of human rights and Respect the right of peaceful demonstration and listen to the demands of the people and implement them.

6.  Respect for academic freedom in the Iraqi universities.

7.  Achieve social justice and the separation of wealth and power on the one hand, and the separation between the three authorities on the other hand.

Signatories:

1-  The Arab Organization for Human Rights/ Egypt (included 22 organizations and 18 Arab countries)

2-  Arab’s coalition against death penalty (included 9 national’s coalitions and 9 Arab countries)

3-  Election network on the Arab regions (included 30 networks and organizations in 12 Arab countries)

4-  Human rights trainers’ networks in the Arab regions (included 170 trainers).

5-  Gulf Civil Society Forum (included more than 100 Academic, Jurist, Median and Thinker from the Gulf States).

6-  Arab network to protect the human rights defenders (included 18 organization from 9 Arab countries)

7-  The Arab Organization for Youth Lawyers.

8-  The Arab Group for Media Watch. (included 12 organization in 12 Arab countries)

9-  Arab society for Academic freedom

10-  The Arab Foundation for Supporting the Judiciary Reforms.

11-  The Center of Arab Women media Workers.

12-  Gulf coalition for International Criminal court.

13-  Amman Center for Human Rights Studies [ACHRS]

14-  Amnesty International/ the Jordan Group.

15-  The Arab Organization for Human Rights/ Jordan.

16-  Al-Badil Center for Studies and Training

17-  The Jordanian Network for Civil Society Organization (included 16 organizations).

18-  The Jordanian network for Human Rights Trainers (included 45 trainers)

19-  The Jordanian Association of Democratic Culture.

20-  The Society of Working Women.

21-  The Society of Arab Women.

22-  The Society for the Development of the Family.

23-  Mosawat Network (included 87 woman associations)

24-  The Palestinian NGO Network (PNGO) (Consists of 132 human rights organizations).

25-  Handicapped without Borders Organization.

26-  International Network for Palestine.

27-  Iraqi coalition for human rights organizations (included 30 human rights organizations)

28-  Freedom’s coalition in Iraq (included 72 organizations)

29-  Civic coalition for minorities in Iraq (included 12 organizations)

30-  Iraq’s Organization for Development and Peaceful Gathering.

31-  Iraqi Human Rights Foundation

32-  Human Rights Center in Iraq

33-  Youth Empowerment organization in Kurdistan.

34-  South youth organization.

35-  Kuvan Organization for Human Rights.

36-  AlMer’ah Center for Media Development and Monitoring.

37-  Bent Al-Rafedain Organization.

38-  Women for Justice.

39-  Islamic Team for Peace.

40-  Arab Organization for human rights in Syria

41-  National Organization for Human Rights in Syria

42-  Kurdish committee for human rights in Syria (AL Rassased)

43-  Committee for defending democratic freedom and human rights in Syria

44-  Kurdish  Organization  for defending  human rights and democratic freedom in Syria(DAD)

45-  Human Rights Organization in Syria(MAF)

46-  Committees For The Defense Of Democracy Freedoms And Human Rights In Syria

47-  Syrian Monitor for human rights.

48-  Lebanon Society for Human Rights.

49-  Palestinian Human Rights Foundation (Monitor)

50-  Yemen coalition for transparency  and anticorruption (included 50 organizations)

51-  Center  for human rights Information and rehabilitation

52-  Yemen organization defending rights and democratic freedom

53-  Yemen organization for development and rehabilitation

54-  Change organization for Defending  Rights and Freedom

55-  Yemen center for human rights

56-  Sister hoods for human rights

57-  Yemen Coalition for Civil society organizations (included 27 organizations)

58-  Yemen Network for human rights (7 organization).

59-  Civil forum in Sudan (include more than 54 organizations)

60-  Journalists for Human Rights.

61-  Bahrain Human Rights Society.

62-  Society Girl Reef Bahrain

63-  Bahrain Society for Transparency.

64-  Algerian League for  Defending  human rights

65-  Women Rights Association

66-  Moroccan League for  Defending  human rights

67-  Moroccan Center for Human Rights.

68-  Moroccan Monitor for  Defending  Voter rights

69-  Moroccan Foundation for Human Rights.

70-  Kuwait Coalition for International Criminal Court

71-  Libyan League for  Defending  human rights

72-  Al Kelmah Center for Human Rights.

73-  Maat Center.

74-  Gaby Center for Environment Rights.