Nadia's Initiative Signs Open Letter to the Holy See on the Visit of Pope Francis to Iraq

Photo credit: Vatican Media

March 5, 2021

 Your Eminence, 

As members of Iraqi civil society and international NGOs, we welcome the apostolic visit by His Holiness Pope Francis to Iraq in March 2021. At this critical moment in the country’s history, the visit represents an important opportunity to promote peace and tolerance by bringing together ethno-religious communities and inspiring collective action to prevent further atrocities of the kind that has caused so much suffering for generations. 

Over many centuries the rich tapestry of ethno-religious communities in the region has been woven in largely peaceful conditions, but in more recent times minority groups have faced increasing levels of persecution and violent attacks based on religious beliefs. Ongoing genocides have forced communities to flee their ancestral homelands, unravelling the ties that bind people together in this cradle of civilisation. 

The misuse of Sharia Law led to the institutionalized marginalization of non-Muslim minorities in Iraq, exacerbated by Saddam Hussein’s attempts to change the demography of the Iraqi state. The 2003 US-led intervention severely destabilized inter-communal relations, resulting in state collapse, sectarian warfare, and the proliferation of extremist ideologies and armed groups. The Christian population has been reduced to a mere 300,000 today. Other minority communities such as Yazidis, Sabean-Mandaeans, Turkmen, Kak’ais, and Shabaks have faced existential threats in recent years. 

From August 2014, the terrorist group Da’esh, also known as the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), exploited the lack of religious freedoms to launch a genocidal campaign against ethno-religious minorities in Iraq. The targeted violence sought to erase the presence of religious minorities in Iraq altogether, and particularly of the Yazidis, decried by ISIS as devil-worshippers. ISIS executed those who refused religious conversion, and destroyed countless shrines, churches, temples, and other cultural sites. 

The threat of future atrocities from Da’esh remains clear and present despite the terrorist group’s territorial defeat. We continue to see hate speech against minorities promulgated by extremist clerics across Iraq, and intolerance remains deep-rooted because of a lack of education on other religions and human rights. Recent demographic changes in the Nineveh plains have been accompanied by the increased presence of militia groups in the region. The inadequacy of basic services and infrastructure alongside the ongoing security threat leaves communities with a sense of hopelessness and despair. 

We welcome the efforts already taken to safeguard religious freedom in Iraq, such as the Interfaith Statement on the Victims of ISIL endorsed by religious leaders from the Christian, Sunni, Shia, and Yazidi communities, and supported by UNITAD and the UN Office on Genocide Prevention. However, without justice and accountability for past atrocities, religious communities will continue to face persecution and the threat of repeated violence. 

The visit of His Holiness Pope Francis to Iraq is an ideal opportunity to promote cooperation and unity of purpose among the Government of Iraq, the Kurdish Regional Government, religious leaders, and the wider international community in order to comprehensively address the needs of affected communities. We recommend that these stakeholders take the following steps: 

1) To provides reparations for survivors of the genocide by Da’esh and adopt legislation that delivers justice for victims. 

2) To put in place security and political arrangements that will protect ethno-religious communities in their historical homelands from future atrocities and demographic changes. In addition to reconstructing destroyed areas in Sinjar, Tel Afar and the Nineveh Plains, basic services and livelihood opportunities must be provided to encourage communities to return to their homes. 

3) To provide psychosocial therapy support for survivors, particularly women and children, to assist in social reintegration. 

4) To change laws that affect the religion and dignity of religious minorities, such as Article 26 of the unified national card Law No. 3 of 2016. 

5) To promote religious education across Iraq by means of cultural events and activities that inform the population about minority communities; integrate education about religious minorities in the Iraqi school curriculum to combat misinformation. 

6) For the United Nations to facilitate a follow-up conference to broaden the endorsement for the Interfaith Statement by other religious communities. 

Sincerely, 

The Undersigned: 

1. Air Bridge Iraq - Luftbrücke Irak 

2. American Islamic Congress 

3. Asia-Pacific Centre for the Responsibility to Protect ` 

4. Assyrian Policy Institute 

5. CAPNI Organization 

6. Center for Justice and Accountability 

7. Civil Development Organization 

8. Coalition for Genocide Response 

9. CSW 

10. Darfur Women Action Group 

11. EMMA Organization for Human Development 

12. European Federation for Freedom or Belief 

13. European Interreligious Forum for Religious Freedom 

14. Eyzidi Organization for Documentation 

15. Eziden Weltweit e. V. 

16. Freedom House 

17. Free Yezidi Foundation 

18. Genocide Watch 

19. Hammurabi Human Rights Organization 

20. Harikar 

21. Hawar.help 

22. International Christian Foundation for Democracy 

23. International Coalition for the Responsibility to Protect 

24. Iraqi Institution for Development 

25. Jiyan Foundation for Human Rights 

26. Joint Help for Kurdistan 

27. Masarat 

28. Middle East Concern 

29. Montreal Institute for Genocide and Human Rights Studies 

30. Mosaic Middle East 

31. Nadia’s Initiative 

32. Observer Human Rights Center 

33. PAX 

34. Project Abraham 

35. Religious Freedom Institute 

36. Refcemi 

37. Shlomo Organization for Documentation 

38. Springs of Hope Foundation 

39. Soteria International 

40. TAJDID Iraq Foundation for Economic Development 

41. Tuly NGO for Turkmen Affairs 

42. Turkmen Rescue Foundation 

43. World Federalist Movement/Institute for Global Policy 

44. Voice of Ezidis 

45. Yazda 

46. Yazidi Legal Network