CAMPAIGN TO SUPPORT FREEDOM OF PRESS AND FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION IN IRAQ

The Iraqi Civil Society solidarity Initiative (ICSSI), invite you to Support the lawsuit before the Iraqi Federal Court to abolish "The Journalists Rights law" recently passed. This lawsuit had been presented by : The Society for Defending Press Freedom, an Iraqi Non-governmental Organisation, and supported by number of iraqi journalists and media activists (see the names below).
The campaign aim to collect as much as possible supporters and signatures within one week starting from the date of publishing this campaign. Signatures will be present to Mr. Midhat Almahmud (chairman of the Iraqi Federal Supreme Court) to accept the legal claim presented by the Society for Defending Press Freedom. Below you find the call by iraqi partners and names of persons that joined the campaign till now:

Journalists and media declare their support for the lawsuit appeal of the "The Journalists Rights law"

We, journalists, media professionals and civic activists undersigned, declare our support for the lawsuit so-called "The Journalists Rights law" presented by the Association for Defense the Freedom of the Press to the Federal Court. The signatories call the President of the Federal Supreme Court, Mr. Medhat al-Mahmoud to accept a lawsuit and compel the Iraqi parliament to take the necessary procedures to repeal it, due to what this law is an explicit violation of the articles of the Iraqi constitution, "13, 14, 38 and 46", but it is clearly incompatible with Iraq s international obligations, particularly Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and freedoms, signed by the Iraqi State. The law will confiscate in case of applied the freedom of the press and media through the activation of all the laws inherited from the previous era, which re-production of media of power and stifles the freedom of the press acquired after 2003. The law also distinguishes social group over other groups to prejudice the principle of equality and citizenship constitutionally guaranteed, and this is why we rejected the law because it describes the journalists and the media that they are a bribed looking for access to benefits and privileges of the illegal and illegitimate, as it undermines public confidence in media because it would depicts the journalists that they work for the government authorities and their work is limited to promotion only.

Signatories:

1- Uday Hatem / writer and journalist
2- Jwad Alkhfaji / media
3- Hewa Uthman / writer and journalist
4- Dhia Alsaray / writer and journalist
5- Mustafa nassir / writer and journalist
6- Mushriq Abbass / writer and journalist
7- Shamkhi jabr / writer and journalist
8- Sattar Al –haji / journalist
9- Ahmed Abdlkarim / Jurnalist
10- Dhia Rehima / Media
11- Dr. Sami Shati / Civic activist
12- Hussam Al-haj / Media
13- Fadhil nashmi / Media
14- Hana Edwar / civic activist
15- Saad Salum / Chirman of Masarat Associeation for cultural and media development
16- Dr. Hassan Abd Radi / writer and media
17- Samar Al- ali / media
18- Emad Al-abadi / writer and media
19- Najim Alhmdani / Jurnalist
20- Ala Almefraji / writer and journalist
21- Hussein Alfartusi / media
22- Sali Aljabali / journalist
23- Abeer Al-hendawi / writer and civic activist
24- Talib Al-wahili / legal consultant and civic activist
25- Ferman Abdlrahman / Media
26- Dana Assad / journalist
27- Adrees Jwad / media
28- Hussein Assad / media
29- Heidar Tweige / journalist photographer
30- Firas Aljeburi / Jurnalist
31- Ismaeel Dawood / Human Rights activist

To sign the Arabic related campaign , please click

http://www.ahewar.org/camp/i.asp?id=333

Signatories
ismaeel.dawood@unponteper.it
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