31 Organizations Join Hardwired In Petition To Iraqi Legislature: Amend Law Threatening Minority Rights
Washington, D.C. (June 16, 2016) - On Tuesday, Hardwired and 31 diverse national organizations wrote to Lukman Faily, Ambassador for the Government of Iraq in Washington, D.C., to address concern with the National Identity Card bill under consideration in Iraqi Legislature. A similar letter was also sent to U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, calling upon the Administration to discuss the proposed bill and its negative impact on religious freedom with the Government of Iraq.
The letters express the alarm of several organizations that in the midst of a genocide, (Iraqi National Legislature is considering measures that would further erase the culture and identity of ancient faith communities).
The National Identity Card law was approved in late 2015 but the President sent it back to the Legislature for amendment due to controversy over one provision. Article 26 of the proposed law would force children with one Muslim parent to identify as Muslim. It would also reinforce existing restrictions that prevent Muslims from changing their religious affiliation on their identity cards.
According to Hardwired President, Tina Ramirez, (This new law is as archaic as the laws in ISIS controlled areas of Iraq - it would coerce minority communities to convert to Islam and prevent many communities who were forced to identify as Muslim under Saddam-era laws from changing their affiliations) . Hardwired met with U.S. officials in April 2016 about the proposed law and its implications on sectarian conflict in Iraq.
Ramirez stated, (It is time that Iraqis are identified as equal human beings regardless of what they believe or there will be no place for minorities in the nations future - with or without ISIS. Laws like this will only embolden the sectarian conflict destroying Iraq and destroy the freedom that Americans and Iraqis fought so hard to secure in the past decade).
Hardwired was joined by the 21st Century Wilberforce Initiative, the Nineveh Council of America, the Knights of Columbus, Yazda, Mandaean World Congress, Center for Inquiry, the American Islamic Forum for Democracy, Alliance Defending Freedom, In Defense of Christians, and the American Islamic Congress among many others. You can see the copy of the letter to Ambassador Faily in the link below: https://gallery.mailchimp.com/61aea03a5b7c951e46ab4fb3b/files/Ambassador_Faily_re_Article_26_6_14.pdf
and also see the copy to Secretary Kerry in the following link:
https://gallery.mailchimp.com/61aea03a5b7c951e46ab4fb3b/files/Secretary_Kerry_re_Article_26_Iraq_6_14.pdf