UN envoy warns of threats to integrity of upcoming election in Iraq

Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, The Special Representative of the Secretary-General of the United Nations in Iraq. (Photo: Archive)
Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, The Special Representative of the Secretary-General of the United Nations in Iraq. (Photo: Archive)

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – The United Nations' envoy to Iraq, Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, focused on the importance of election integrity as she briefed the UN Security Council on the current status of the nation.

"Candidates, activists, the media, and voters should be free to exercise their democratic rights before, during, and after the elections," said Hennis-Plasschaert, the head of the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI).

She pointed out in her briefing that the legitimacy of elections scheduled for October was a central demand of an ongoing protest movement in Iraq, despite many of its members facing persecution or violence.

Her comments come following the killing of Ihab al-Wazni, a well-known protest leader in the central Iraqi city of Karbala on Sunday by gunmen riding a motorcycle past his home. In response, angry Iraqis poured onto the streets of Karbala.

Read More: Assassination of Iraqi activist sparks fresh protests in Karbala

"I reiterate my call to all Iraqi stakeholders to preserve the integrity of the electoral process,” she told the council, adding that “political pressure, interference, intimidation, and illicit financial flows all harm the credibility of the elections."

Hennis-Plasschaert emphasized that "continued impunity for serious crimes and human rights violations - such as targeted killing, kidnapping, and intimidation - can only encourage perpetrators, further erode trust in the state and raise serious concerns ahead of the October elections."

She indicated that the United Nations fully understands and supports Iraqi authorities' goal of ending mass displacement, most recently caused by the 2014 rise of ISIS in the embattled nation, but criticized its methods, arguing, “The focus should be on solving the displacement problem rather than closing the camps.”

Hennis-Plasschaert also noted that the relationship between Baghdad and the autonomous Kurdistan Region "urgently requires sustainable strategic dialogue and clear implementation mechanisms."

Editing by John J. Catherine