Kurdish female Peshmerga award recipient says independence is "real reward"

“Our fight against IS was not only to protect the people in Kurdistan Region but also to defend humanity and religious freedom. A large number of Peshmerga sacrificed their lives to protect ethnic and religious minorities from the brutality of IS.”

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region (Kurdistan 24) – On Tuesday, at a UNESCO event held in New York, Peshmerga Lieutenant Kochar Saleh Haji was recognized as a ‘Hero of the Global Campaign Against Extremism and Intolerance.’

Haji is one of the thousands of Peshmerga fighters who have fought on the front lines of the Kurdistan Region against the Islamic State (IS).

“Our fight against IS was not only to protect the people in Kurdistan Region but also to defend humanity and religious freedom. A large number of Peshmerga sacrificed their lives to protect ethnic and religious minorities from the brutality of IS,” she said during her acceptance of the award.

“The genocide committed against Yezidis, Christians, and others will never be forgotten,” she said after receiving the award from President of Bulgaria Rumen Radev.

Many officials and leading figures attended the event, including the President of Mali, Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta, the President of Ghana Nana Akufo-Addo, the President of Malta Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca, Royal Prince Moulay Rachid of Morocco, Director-General of UNESCO Irina Bokova, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Iraq Ibrahim al-Jafaari, former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, former First Lady of the United States Laura Bush, and UNESCO Special Envoy Forest Whitaker.

The head of the Kurdistan Region's Department of Foreign Relations, Falah Mustafa, attended the event as the representative for the Kurdistan Region's President Masoud Barzani. The Kurdistan Regional Government's (KRG) Representative to the US, Bayan Sami Abdul Rahman, also joined the event as the representative for the KRG.

During his speech, Haji called on the international community to respect and recognize the will of the Kurdistan Region's people and support negotiations between Erbil and Baghdad regarding future relations.

She dedicated her award to the 1,800 Peshmerga fighters who fell while fighting the jihadist group, as well as all freedom fighters defending justice, humanity, and civilization against tyranny and extremism.

“I am very pleased not for the award, but to see that the world has recognized the sacrifices of the Peshmerga forces in defending humanity and fighting on behalf of the world,” Haji told Kurdistan 24.

Regarding the upcoming vote on independence for the Kurdistan Region scheduled for Sep. 25, she noted that the referendum alone is not enough to make up for the sacrifices of people in the Kurdistan Region and that the real reward is independence.

Former US Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter in 2015 called the Peshmerga one of the most effective ground forces in the fight against IS.

According to Peshmerga Ministry, since 2014, over 12,000 Peshmerga have been injured while battling the jihadist group.

 

Editing by G.H. Renaud