SULAIMANI (ESTA) — The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) said on Friday it cannot interfere in the court’s proceedings as the judiciary is independent in the Region, one day after the court of appeals upheld convictions of five journalists and activists sentenced to jail.
the KRG said the Kurdistan Region remained committed to freedom of expression, independent media and to the rule of law.
“The KRG reiterates that the judiciary in the Kurdistan Region is independent of the government,” the KRG said in a statement. “There is no way that the government can or would interfere in its proceedings.”
On Thursday, the court of appeals in Erbil approved convictions of five journalists and activists who were sentenced to six years in jail in February.
On February 16, Erbil criminal court-2 sentenced journalists Sherwan Sherwani, Guhdar Zebrai and Ayaz Karam as well as activists Shvan Omer and Hariwan Issa to six years each in jail on national security charges.
The journalists and activists were detained in Duhok province in October 2020 over allegedly undermining national security in the Region.
In its decision, the court of appeal alleged that the defendants “contacted the U.S. and German consulates and received money,” without giving further details.
It also alleged that “the defendants confessed that they had met with the German consul in one of the hotels in Erbil and they sent him [the consul] to Dora area twice, directed by the head of the group defendant Shirwan Amina Na’oo.”
The KRG said in its statement that the safety and protection of the Region’s citizens and diplomatic missions is “our priority”.
“We strongly value our robust partnerships with our allies in the diplomatic and international community, especially in the fight against ISIS,” the KRG added, using an acronym for Islamic State.
In response to the allegation, the U.S. consulate general in Erbil said the United States expected the KRG to respect the work of its diplomats as it does so for the KRG representatives working in the U.S.
“We expect host governments all around the world to respect the work of U.S. diplomats, who—much like journalists—meet with a variety of people in order to do their jobs. We extend this same courtesy to foreign diplomats working in the United States, including to representatives of the KRG,” it told Esta Media Network.
Similarly, the German consulate general in Erbil said the court’s reference to its diplomats was absurd.
“Free exchanges with journalists & activists are part and parcel of diplomats’ daily work, also of @GermanyInKRI. The Court’s reference today is absurd & goes against the spirit of our close and friendly relations between Germany and #KRI,” it said in a tweet.
