The rulers in Hewlêr target the opposition and the independent media, in order to silence them, said the Community Peacemaker Teams (CPT) spokesperson Julian Floyd in Sulaymaniyah on Saturday. The organization had called a press conference about journalist Sherwan Sherwani's trial.

Investigative journalist Sherwan Sherwani was sentenced to four years in prison by a criminal court in Hewlêr this week for alleged forgery. The reporter, who has been imprisoned for three years and has already been convicted of “undermining national security”, has been in the permanent sight of the judiciary and authorities since he uncovered corruption in the Kurdistan Regional government and human rights violations against political prisoners by the domestic secret service Asayîş. His release was scheduled for September, on the basis of a decree by the President of the Kurdistan Regional government that reduced Sherwani's prison sentence by half. But nothing will come of it with the verdict pronounced last Thursday. In addition, at least one other case against the journalist is pending – on charges of defamation of the Asayîş.

Floyd said the recent trial of Sherwani was "consistently unfair," and added: "The judiciary is increasingly subject to the executive and is used to persecute critical voices and suppress freedom of expression." This has been observed in various trials against the "Behdînan prisoners" - activists from civil society and press people from critical media who were arrested in 2020 in the course of protests against corruption and nepotism in South Kurdistan. The arrest of journalist Omed Baroshki a few days ago at his home in Dihok for criticizing Sherwani's conviction also shows the absence of an independent judiciary. "This is sobering news for all independent press and human rights activists in KRI," Floyd said. Baroshki was released on Friday.

"We are also concerned about the treatment of prisoners in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, which undermines human rights," Floyd said. Prisoners are increasingly the victims of violence and ill-treatment, which amounts to torture. This included measures such as denial of access to medical care and lack of access to legal remedies. "Many prisoners are deprived of the protection of the law. Contact with legal counsel is arbitrarily denied," Floyd said. The Kurdistan Region of Iraq is not a safe place for activists and journalists speaking out against injustice, said Floyd, adding: "We call for the release of Sherwan Sherwani and all other Behdînan prisoners."

Floyd appealed to the international community, embassies and members of parliament to use their diplomatic channels to put pressure on the Kurdistan Regional government. "Political interference in the judiciary is a clear violation of the rule of law. It must end to protect basic human rights."