RORD: Most of Violations Against Journalists were in Erbil

Reports 01:15 PM - 2024-06-25

RORD's logo.

The frequency of violations against journalists in the Kurdistan Region is steadily rising, so casting doubt on the future of press freedom. Based on a research by the Reporters Organisation for Rights & Developments (RORD) that examines the first half of this year, more than 50% of the instances of violence against journalists in the Kurdistan Region occurred in Erbil province, with Duhok province coming in second.

145 journalists have been violated

Hozan Qadir, the head of the RORD, told PUKMEDIA that their organisation has documented 78 instances of violence towards 145 journalists in the Kurdistan Region over the last six months. 

"The majority of these incidents occurred in Erbil province, while no acts of violence were reported in Halabja province," Qadir said.

"As per our  report, there were 46 instances of violations in Erbil, 21 in Duhok, and 11 in Sulaymaniyah, with no recorded cases in Halabja," he stated.

There were 78 cases of violence against journalists in the first six months

As per the report from the RORD, which was also shared with PUKMEDIA, the violations against journalists consisted of 2 instances of detention, 57 cases of press coverage prevention, and 19 incidents of property confiscation and attacks.

RORD is a non-governmental organisation that supports and promotes the rights of journalists in the Kurdistan Region. It regularly releases reports every six months, focusing on incidents of violence against journalists in the Region. Based on its previous two reports, Erbil province has recorded the highest number of violations against journalists, whereas Sulaymaniyah and Halabja provinces have reported the lowest number of violations.

 

 

PUKMEDIA