6 January 2025
The Iraqi Observatory for Human Rights (IOHR), in its Policy Brief, examines the implications of the absence of human rights defenders from the newly elected Iraqi Council of Representatives, and the political and human rights consequences of this absence, which go beyond the election results themselves. The brief notes that the current parliament lacks the oversight voices that, despite their limited numerical presence in previous terms, were able to break institutional silence and raise sensitive issues related to freedom of expression, the rights of protesters, arbitrary detention, and impunity.
The brief situates this absence within a broader context marked by declining voter turnout, the withdrawal of protest movements from the electoral process, and the consolidation of influence by traditional forces and actors with a security-oriented discourse within parliament. This development coincides with the end of the mandate of the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI), and the resulting decline in direct international oversight. IOHR argues that this convergence creates a dual accountability gap—both domestic and international—heightening the risk that violations will be normalized and treated as internal matters shielded from scrutiny.
The brief also highlights the experience of former MP Sajjad Salem as an illustration of the limits of individual human rights advocacy within parliament. It concludes that the protection of rights and freedoms cannot be left to isolated individual initiatives, but requires broader political and institutional pathways. The absence of human rights defenders from the legislative institution, the brief asserts, constitutes a genuine test of the Iraqi state’s ability to uphold its constitutional and international obligations at a time when traditional safeguards are receding.
To read the full Policy Brief, click here.
