Speaker Dr. Rewaz Faiq meets with Rahman Gharib head of Metro Center press freedom watchdog

Kurdistan Parliament Speaker Dr. Rewaz Faiq on 7 February welcomed Rahman Gharib, the head of Metro Center, a media freedom watchdog based in Slemani, and his colleagues.

Speaker Faiq and Mr. Gharib discussed the current state of journalism, the rapid pace of change ofmedia technology, the adversity that journalists face and press freedom. On the relevant laws in Kurdistan Region, Mr. Gharib said that the Journalism Law (No. 35 of 2007) is good but currently the courts are applying the law on misuse of communications devices to question journalists in some cases.

The Speaker of Parliament said, “Journalism has its own legal framework and journalists and media organisations have a code of ethics that they should follow in carrying out their work, and at the same time it is the Kurdistan Regional Government’s duty to protect journalists from any violations. On digital and electronic media, the Kurdistan Parliament has a responsibility to work on any area that needs to be regulated by law, without undoing previous legislative milestones on journalism and its regulation.

Mr Gharib thanked Speaker Faiq for attending the presentation of the report on violations against journalists in 2020, and hoped that violations against journalists will stop.