CIVICUS welcomes the establishment of this Special Session and applauds the Council’s proactivity in promptly addressing the grave human rights violation committed by the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) and associated groups.
However, while we the agree that actions taken by these groups warrant further examination by the Council and a concerted response by the international community, we also urge the Council to utilize this occasion to ensure that the underlying tensions and root causes of the conflict are also duly addressed.
We would like to reiterate the statement made by the UN Special Rapporteur on human rights and counterterrorism, Ben Emerson, in his annual report to the Council at the 20th Session, that countries must tackle not only “the manifestations of terrorism, but its causes.”
Mr. President, the most effective means of eradicating terrorism is to ensure that the conditions which provide fertile breeding ground for terrorist groups such as political exclusion, socio-economic marginalization, suppression of dissent and lack of accountability for human rights violations, are addressed.
The emergence of ISIL in Iraq cannot be separated from the lack of accountable and transparent governance in the country, including the government’s brutal crackdown on protests urging an end to systemic marginalization of the minority Sunni community.
On a number of occasions Iraqi security forces have committed atrocities against dissenters, including on 23 April 2013 when the army and federal police killed nearly 50 predominantly Sunni protestors in Haweeja.
Mr. President, CIVICUS urges the Council to ensure that any investigation into the current conflict in Iraq also considers the government’s responsibility to protect and promote the fundamental rights, including the rights to freedom of assembly, expression and association, of all citizens regardless of religious or political affiliation. We therefore call on the government of Iraq to support civil society in paving the way for a constructive and inclusive dialogue in the country.
Thank you Mr. President