SULAIMANI (ESTA) — The Human Rights Watch said a draft law on information technology crimes threatens freedom of expression which is “already under attack in Iraq”.
Iraqi lawmakers discussed a cybercrimes bill on November 23 and they planned to hold a second reading on the bill during the week of November 29, the group said in a report on Wednesday (November 25).
The draft law “includes vague provisions that will allow Iraqi authorities to harshly punish expression they decide constitutes a threat to governmental, social, or religious interests,” the HRW stated.
“This law would give Iraqi authorities yet another tool to suppress dissent over the main medium that journalists, activists, and the general public rely on for information and open debate,” said Belkis Wille, senior crisis and conflict researcher at Human Rights Watch.
“If parliament passes the law, it will further undermine the already narrow field for free speech and stifle public discussion and debate online,” Wille added.
Iraqi Council of Ministers proposed “Information Technology Crimes Bill” in 2011 to the Council of Representatives but it was scrapped after widespread outcry.
The HRW said several articles in the current bill criminalize the use of computers in connection with a wide range of broadly defined activities.
“These articles appear to conflict with international law and the Iraqi constitution, and would seriously curtail the right to freedom of expression and association,” the group added.
“This parliament had an opportunity to use its term in office to improve the rights of Iraqis, but instead it seems willing to wield its power to give the government even more tools to suppress free speech,” the HRW researcher said.
