- What happened this month is the bloodiest during 2019 so far
- More than (220) martyrs and more than 10 thousand injured, some critically injured
- The events witnessed the burning and destruction of government Institutions and party headquarters
- Hammurabi Human Rights Organization registers on political entities, and the House of Representatives and some government bodies, is still governed by quotas and attempts to throw charges on others
- Hammurabi Human Rights Organization note a slow movement in tackling the problem of corruption
- In order to continue with its documentary human rights responsibilities, Hammurabi Human Rights Organization monitored the situation in Iraq during the month of October 2019 and concluded the following results confirming that what the country considered during this was the bloodiest in the last nine months of the same year.
We can add here that the Organization followed these events through field monitoring and documenting reports and information from several sources after comparing them in order to achieve the necessary credibility on this information.
- The outcome of events on the first day of the month of October to the eighth day according to reports of the Iraqi Ministry of Health the total number of wounded and martyrs is (6545) and some wounds were critical and serious, while the number of dead is (157) civilians and military as (25) of them are under 20 years of age. Buildings and real estate were also burned and destroyed. It was found that there was an excessive use of live bullets by unknown parties and some government forces against the demonstrators. This information was confirmed in the report issued by the investigative committee, which was ordered by Prime Minister Adil Abdul-Mahdi.
-It was also found that numbers of snipers were on the roofs of some buildings facing the gathering of demonstrations in Baghdad and the provinces.
-Restriction of freedom of expression, restrictions and pressure on the media, at the same time, journalists and satellite channels in Baghdad have been exposed to blatant attacks, a number of journalists and media workers who were covering the events of the demonstrations were injured, and the Dijlah and NRT satellite channels were exposed to an attack that included destruction and tampering with the assets of the satellite. As well as the closure of the offices of Al-Hadath and Al-Arabiya Al-Hadath Tv. Channels and the descent of an armed force in the Al-Nahrain Tv. Channel.
- Hammurabi Organization noted the excessive use of some explosives as well as water cannons, and in another context, the Organizing Committee for the demonstrations issued a report that documented what took place from 1/10/2019 to 8/10/2019, which stated:
The death toll reached (220) martyr, and the government continues to follow the same methods of dealing with peaceful protesters, instead of listening to protesters dilemmas and providing guarantees and responding to legitimate demands, they have used live weapons to respond to protesters, as well as arrests and enforced disappearances of a large number of demonstrators, activists were prosecuted, killed, banditry and internet were cut off, causing a lack of facts and continued violations against civilians.
- Hammurabi followed what was posted on social media pages where there were videos documenting the killings of peaceful demonstrators, the killing was by direct injury in the head and there are videos documenting these cases, and it is also interesting to land heavily armed forces in black uniform with masks hiding the face, and some members of those forces do not carry any symbol representing the party to which he belongs. The protesters also documented the presence of a number of snipers belonging to the security forces and militias in some high buildings, causing direct head injuries and the immediate killing of the protesters.
- Hammurabi found that there is no unified leadership for the demonstrations launched in Baghdad and in the provinces of Najaf, Wasit, Diwaniya, Muthanna, Thi Qar, Missan and Basra.
- Issued by the provinces of Najaf ,Basra and Thi Qar, they arrested two of the demonstrators who have been vandalized and destroyed, but the organization did not see any details issued by the government authorities on these arrest procedures.
- The ministerial committee ordered by the Prime Minister issued its report on the investigation of the bloody events that accompanied the demonstrations, noting that there were field actions of some military personnel in the armed response to the demonstrators, and that the main military field commanders were not successful in controlling the movements of the security forces. A number of security leaders in Baghdad and the provinces have been exempted and transfers have taken place between these command centers. The Prime Minister also ordered the results of the investigations to be referred to the judiciary, which in turn issued a statement calling on the parties with the public and personal right to submit applications in order to prosecute the perpetrators of these bloody events.
- Hammurabi found that the results of the events witnessed on 25/10/2019 in Baghdad and the provinces was as follows, the number of dead (30) and the number of injured demonstrators and security forces (2312) as in Baghdad province (1493) injured and (50) injured in Karbala, (90) injured in Thi Qar province, (10) injured in Wasit province, (151) wounded in Muthanna province, (301) injured in Basra province, (112) injured in Diwaniyah province, and (105) injured. Maysan province, and most of the injuries were gunshot, tear gas, rubber bullets, burning and damaging (50) government building and party headquarters in the provinces of Diwaniya, Missan, Wasit, Thi Qar ,Basra and Babil as well as setting up tents of sit in the provinces of Babil, Karbala, Najaf and curfew imposed in Thi Qar, Basra and Muthanna provinces.
- Hammurabi monitored a clear discrepancy between the reports issued by the Ministry of Health and the civil authorities concerned with the demonstrations on the number of dead and wounded and the chaos that prevailed in some squares.
- Hammurabi monitored the effort of more than one religious political party to be interested on the events and try to communicate with the demonstrators and that one of these organizations sought to set up a platform in Tahrir Square in central Baghdad, but the demonstrators prevented them from completing this platform.
- Hammurabi followed the positions of political parties and components of the demonstrations and the positions of the government and the measures taken by them. These positions were mixed and overshadowed by the nature of the rapid changes witnessed in Iraq during this month, and in general the government hastened to take number of measures described as reform, especially the reduction of salaries to half of Employers of the first and fourth degree, as well as take the procedures to recruit graduates of masters and doctoral degrees as well as the appointment of more than 1500 engineers to the Ministry of Defense and the Ministry of Transport and distribution to other government departments, and accommodate some owners of contracts on permanent staffing, has also been arranged to transfer the daily wage in many ministries to contract employees, as the Interior and Defense ministries opened their doors to return employers of the dismissed contracts to service and the total number is estimated more than 50,000 employees in the two ministries as well as the government submitted draft laws for amendment including the retirement law by reducing the retirement age to 60 years and the possibility of retirement from the age of 45 years in the event of perfection 15 years of service, this will provide, according to specialists estimates more than 300 thousand functional degrees and the project to establish a social security fund for the poor who do not have a fixed income and allocations is by the state's contribution and money outcome from reducing the salaries of employers of the First degree.
- On the level of fighting corruption, the government position is still vague and the procedures are slow, while the Commission of Integrity says it has completed many files and transferred some of them to the judiciary, and there are political tensions over the lifting of immunity from deputies accused of corruption cases, while the Commission has laid down procedures for the dismissal of more than 1000 employees accused in multi corruption cases .On the other hand, Hammurabi Organization believes that the mechanisms adopted so far in dealing with corruption are still slow and target only the category of junior civil servants, but not adults, and this is a negative discrimination in achieving justice?
On the other hand, Hammurabi believes in the decision taken by the parliament to suspend the work of the provincial councils as an important step to stop the phenomena of corruption and idleness and conflicts in these councils, but Hammurabi believes on the other hand that the House of Representatives did not have as much responsibility as it represents the Iraqi public opinion, especially On the level of hosting number of representatives of the demonstrations to know their demands as if the parliament delegation came from outside Iraq to investigate the facts, and the organization believes that what the presidency of the House of Representatives was naive behavior does not cover the magnitude of the event in the country, especially since the Council failed more than once to hold a session for the lack of quorum, which has so far delayed the vote on new ministers as the Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi had promised them.
- Hammurabi monitored a clear discontent among citizens in Baghdad because of the size of social networking sites (Facebook, Twitter and other applications) and the difficulty of access to the Internet, in addition to the closure of a number of streets near the Green Zone, and the interruption of traffic on the bridges of Jamhuriya and Sinek in Baghdad that affected the movement of people, and the organization noted that many families are buying food and household requirements too much on the back of rumors that the government may issue curfew orders similar to what happened in the first week of the month for two days leeding to stop the many business got infringed with other rights.
- Hammurabi Human Rights Organization believes that Iraq's loss of its seat in the Human Rights Council is the result of serious violations of human rights in many government practices, including repressive measures against demonstrators, the use of excessive violence and deliberate killing of demonstrators, according to the report of the Commission of Inquiry on Government events approximately 70% of fatal injuries were in the head and chest.
- Hammurabi Human Rights Organization sees the role of the UN Special Representative as weak and deficient in its essential role in protecting and caring for human rights in Iraq in the face of the serious violations that occurred and occur in suppressing the demonstrations from 1st to 31/10/2019, despite issuing a statement on 26/10 / 2019 expressed its concern and deep regret for the loss of lives and injuries.
Hammurabi Human Rights Organization does not see the functions of the UN Representative not only in expressing concern and regret, but also in providing advice and assistance to the Government and people of Iraq within the framework of the comprehensive political dialogue and national reconciliation, assisting in the electoral process, planning the national census, facilitating the regional dialogue between Iraq and its neighbours, Human rights protection and judicial and legal reform but in reality the mission in Iraq is closer to supporting the government than it is to supporting and protecting the people. Morally important step.
- Hammurabi Human Rights Organization believes in the interpretation of the Federal Court issued on 14/10/2019 regarding the unconstitutionality of the resolution 44 for the year 2018 issued by the Iraqi Council of Representatives a luminous sign and his qualitative transition in the work of the Federal Court binding decisions in the quota and justice. At the same time, however, it registers its reservation to the late response to the unconstitutionality of the resolution, which has lasted more than 10 years since its issuance and caused social and financial harm.
-It was confirmed the use of tear gas by the riot police in a manner contrary to the method and method of firing, where they were used directly to kill demonstrators and not disperse them, by directing them to the heads of demonstrators.
-Hammurabi Organization appreciates the positions of Iraqi citizens for the initiatives they have taken to serve the citizens and demonstrators and the transfer of the wounded or those who have been stranded, especially the owners of the wheels of the so-called touk-touk, it was and still their distinguished role in rescuing the injured and transporting the wounded and martyrs to hospitals.
- Hammurabi Human Rights Organization calls on the authorities of all kinds to stand by the perpetrators of the deliberate killing of demonstrators and call for legal punishment, and to preserve the constitutionality and protection of demonstrations without prejudice to the lives of participants in accordance with Article 38 the 3rd of the Constitution says, the state guarantees freedom of assembly and peaceful demonstration. . What is required in the framework of preserving democracy is to achieve, through institutional work, a fair response to the demands of the demonstrators and not suppress them, in accordance with the constitutional article.