Taking note of the latest peaceful demonstrations of the Iraqi people since the beginning of October 2019, who are calling for a new general election under UN supervision and an end to the unprecedented corruption, unlawful killing, disappearances, torture, detention without trials and calling for the punishment criminals after fair trials;
Noting that these demonstrations are large and peaceful and that their demands are not merely for economic reforms but for increasing the space of democracy;
Noting that the Government of Iraq continues to ignore these lawful and legitimate demands by making promises which it is incapable of fulfilling,
Noting that the Iraqi Parliament issued so-called “orders,” to deal with some of the demands when in fact neither law nor constitution provide for such orders, which shows total disregard of the demands and intelligence;
Aware of the high level of pilferage and corruption that puts Iraq at the bottom of the list of Transparency International while children are eating from rubbish bins in an otherwise a wealthy country;
And further aware of the full responsibility of the United States and Western powers for this situation as a whole, including the destruction of Iraq’s infrastructure, the killing of its people, the occupation of Iraqi land, the confiscation and plunder of its resources and the promotion of sectarianism and division in Iraq;
Extremely concerned at the high level of casualties that have reached hundreds of deaths and thousands of injured; and
Disturbed by the subdued international response;
The International Association of Democratic Lawyers (IADL):
Strongly condemns, in the name of its members in 80 countries, the use of brutal force by the Government of Iraq against the Iraqi civilian population;
Considers any use of force by the Government, the militias or any armed group is the responsibility of the Government.
Expresses its serious concern about the abuse of the human rights of the Iraqi people to participate in demonstrations and calls on the Government to fully respect the wishes of the people of Iraq expressed by the demonstrators;
Calls on the UN to use its authority to make clear that the use of force against civilians is contrary to the UN Charter and requests that the UN Secretary General bring this matter to the attention of the Security Council;
Calls for the urgent establishment of a UN investigating commission in respect of the killing of civilians;
Calls on all governments, particularly the U.S., UK and other countries that took part in the destruction of Iraq, to carry out their legal obligations towards their victims, namely, the people of Iraq, by paying the reparations and damages that they owe to the people of Iraq to the suffering they have caused and ending their occupation of Iraq;
Further demands that the U.S., U.K. and other countries that took part in the destruction of Iraq to fully and completely withdraw from Iraq and respect the right of the Iraqi people to self-determination as they are obliged to do under the UN Charter. This is their obligation not only in Iraq but in order to achieve just and lasting peace throughout the region and the world;
Notes that these countries are complicit in the Iraqi government’s use of force against the people of Iraq and that they have a legal obligation to desist from that complicity;
Calls on the European Community countries to abide by their obligations to refrain from the arms trade or weapons trade that contributes to the violation of human rights.
International Association of Democratic Lawyers
Brussels
10 November 2019