KRG responds to UK report on political freedoms
Shafaq News- Al-Sulaymaniyah
The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) takes international human rights assessments seriously but does not accept all their findings without scrutiny, Dindar Zebari, the KRG's coordinator for international recommendations, said on Thursday, responding to a recent UK Home Office report on political freedoms in Kurdistan.
Speaking at a press conference in Al-Sulaymaniyah, Zebari said the KRG considers international assessments of human rights, civil liberties and government performance important tools for improving governance and strengthening institutions, describing the British report as an advisory assessment based on multiple sources rather than a comprehensive statement of the UK government's position.
Zebari said the KRG had submitted observations and clarifications to the British Consulate in Erbil for transmission through diplomatic channels and had briefed its representative in London.
Addressing political freedoms, he acknowledged challenges facing democracy in the Kurdistan Region and Iraq, saying democratic transitions are complex processes that can take decades.
“Opposition parties operate legally both inside and outside parliament,” he continued, arguing that individual incidents should be assessed separately rather than treated as representative of the entire political system.
On press freedom, Zebari said the Kurdistan Region has an established press law but acknowledged the need to update it to reflect technological developments and the growing influence of social media.
“Kurdistan’s courts handled approximately 30 cases under the press law in 2025,” he said, stressing that decisions about which laws apply to journalists fall within judicial, rather than executive, authority.
According to Zebari, around 3,600 journalists are registered with the Kurdistan Journalists Syndicate, more than 1,500 of whom have received digital identification cards. He said the system aims to distinguish accredited journalists from others, particularly during protests and major public events.
Regarding the detention of journalists and political activists, Zebari said arrests must follow judicial orders per Iraqi law. He also said political parties cannot lawfully order media outlets to close without judicial authorization.
On international human rights commitments, Zebari said the KRG had implemented more than 63% of measures linked to recommendations under the United Nations Universal Periodic Review (UPR) process that fall within its executive powers.
He added that women account for approximately 30% of the Kurdistan Region's judiciary, describing the figure as an achievement of the ninth KRG cabinet.
Zebari said the presence of dozens of television channels, around 100 newspapers and thousands of journalists demonstrated that freedom of expression exists in the Kurdistan Region, while acknowledging that further improvements remain necessary.
