MESOP SAD NEWS : KRG (DINDAR ZEBARI) CONTRA YAZIDI

Iraqi Kurdistan govt closes offices of Yazidi rights organization Yazda – Yazda, US-based Yazidi rights organization NGO

3 Jan 2017 – DUHOK, Iraq’s Kurdistan region,— Kurdish authorities in Iraq’s Kurdistan Region confirmed that they have closed the office of the U.S.-based non-profit organization YAZDA, which advocates on behalf of the Yazidi community, because it had been involved in political activities and did not abide by the terms and conditions of Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) in the Region, Rudaw reported.

On Monday evening, the most active NGO in Kurdistan Yazda said in a statement that their offices were “formally closed by the Security Forces ‘Assayesh’ for unknown reasons, this includes all Yazda’s humanitarian projects serving the Yazidi community.”

Dr. Dindar Zebari, head of the Kurdistan Regional Government’s High Committee to Evaluate and Respond to International Reports, told Rudaw English on Monday that the closure came after Yazda ignored a warning to abide by the rules of the Kurdistan Region regarding the work of NGOs.

Zebari added that Yazda had in some aspects overstepped the boundaries of NGO work.

In a statement on Monday Yazda said that security forces (Asayish) had shut down their Duhok office “for unknown reason,” and that “this includes all Yazda’s humanitarian projects serving the Yazidi community.”The director of Asayish in Duhok governorate, where Yazda office was closed, told Rudaw English Tuesday morning that he was not aware of the closure, but he did not deny it. He said he was away from the city and would be able to provide more details later.

Akram Jamo, director of the Kurdish Department of NGOs, told Rudaw English that he was not aware of a warning been given to Yazda before its closure, adding that it may have been issued by the local government in Duhok.

He added however that Yazda was involved in “political activities” which is outside the scope of NGOs, and that its license had expired.Jamo did not say what type of political activities the organization had been involved in, claiming that the security forces it had found some of their work political.Jamo explained that all NGOs have to renew their license every year and that his department shows flexibility for delays, Yazda however, he added, did not have any grounds for failing to renew its license on time. Yazda has provided emergency aid, including psychological care, to Yazidi women and girls upon their rescue. They also provide education and training to create opportunities for women and girls to build stable, self-sufficient futures.