MURDER & CORRUPTION IN KURDISTAN : Anti-corruption Kurdish journalist Kawa Garmyani killed

06  Dec 2013 – Kurdistan Tribune – South Kurdistan journalist Kawa Garmyani was shot dead outside his house in Kalar last night. 

Three days ago Kawa had announced on his Facebook page that he had documents relating to a corruption case that he was planning to write about in ‘Rayal’ magazine. Kawa was the editor of ‘Rayal’ and a correspondent for ‘Awene’ newspaper, whose editor Asos Hardi last night described the killing as a “grave political crime”. Kawa had been involved in disputes with local Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) leaders because of his investigative reporting and recently he registered a complaint with Garmyan police against one PUK official. Previously he had appeared in court for publishing the photo of an official in a report on corruption. Following the murders of Sorrani Mama Hama in 2008 and Sardasht Osman in May 2010, this is another stark example of the dangers facing independent journalists in the region.Shaswar Abdulwahi, owner of the independent NRT TV, survived an assassination attempt last month and is still recovering.

Born in 1982, Kawa Garmyani was last night killed in front of his mother by a hail of bullets.