The crises in Iraq extend beyond those with limited income to include individuals with degrees.

• Kirkuk Governorate demonstrations 05/6//03/2024.

One of the shop owners highlighted that District Attorney's vehicles demolished several houses and shops, citing trespassing as the pretext, without issuing any warning. This decision has resulted in significant financial losses for us, totaling hundreds of millions. We were not provided with any alternatives or compensation. Consequently, we blocked the road connecting the center of Kirkuk to the Laylan district, passing through the Benja Ali area, in protest of this decision. Additionally, we set up tents for a sit-in to express our grievances.

One of the demonstrators also said that dozens of residents of the Banja Ali and Al-Hurriya neighborhoods demonstrated this evening to protest the demolition of several homes that were built on land in the area. We reject this because the residents were not notified that the permits for these homes and shops were being lifted.

The monitoring team indicated that the demonstrators burned tires and blocked a main road downtown in protest the decision of the Committee to Lift Violations in Kirkuk.

Diwaniyah demonstration 03/06/2024

Many university graduates in Diwaniyah Governorate came out to demand the adoption of a “new standard” in appointments allocated to the governorate. While standards related to the year of graduation, grade point average, and other standards are applied, this segment demands that their “demonstrative struggle” during the past years be considered. In front of the Diwaniyah Governorate building, at the clock square, many graduates from various educational specialties, archaeology, and technical institutes gather, seeking "exceptional treatment" from the criteria set for employment requirements. While more than 5900 job grades have been allocated to Diwaniyah, this group demands 500 job grades, including those granted to them as graduates protesting for the past 3 years. One of the graduates said, "We have been protesting for three years, and even though the Directorate of Education in the province has repeatedly demanded the presence of a real shortage in staff, we have been suppressed and subjected to beatings." He pointed out that 5,902 job positions were included for the Diwaniyah province in the 2023 budget, and as protesters, we represent about 500 names that we want to be exempted from the regulations. On the other hand, another protester, who is also a graduate of education, said that they, as protesters, are requesting exemptions within the allocated job grades for the province.

Likewise, archaeology graduates express feeling "forgotten" and unfairly treated over the past decade. They demand that their protests from previous years be acknowledged and taken into consideration, according to Mansour Sami, one of the archaeology graduates.

Basra demonstrations 03/09/2024

Upon the arrival of the Sudanese Prime Minister in Basra, protests erupted outside the hotel where he was staying. His visit aimed to inaugurate several projects in the province, including the rolling mill factory of the General Company for Iron and Steel, as well as the urea and DAP fertilizer factories belonging to the Southern Fertilizers Company.

A group of Basra engineers staged a protest in Aviation Square, in front of the Millennium Hotel where Prime Minister Mohammed Shiaa Al-Sudani was staying. Dozens of protesters laid on the ground, demanding that the Prime Minister address their longstanding grievances by issuing administrative orders they had been awaiting for about four years. One protester mentioned that they were prevented from meeting him earlier while they were protesting in front of the iron and steel plant, where they demanded to be appointed in oil positions instead of foreign labor.

Another demonstrator said that the marginalization and exclusion that engineers are subjected to in Basra Governorate is completely unacceptable, as we are the most deserving people to work in our governorate. We have enough competence and skill to develop the city and no foreigner is better than us. Today we seek to meet Prime Minister Muhammad Shiaa Al-Sudani, to talk to him directly to find a solution to our problem. While one of the demonstrators spoke, saying, “I am an engineer who graduated in 2020, and all I aspired to after 16 years of study was to obtain job opportunities that suit me, to compensate myself and my family for years of fatigue.” Our reality is shocking. Is it possible for me to be an engineer in an oil province that feeds Iraq’s budget and not find a job opportunity for me while they bring in foreign workers and give them many times the money we hope for. I personally speak three languages, I graduated from a reputable government university, I have internationally accredited certificates, and I am able to work, but we have no opportunity in the public or private sectors.

Since the early hours of the morning, Basra has been witnessing a struggle with the deployment of security forces and road closures, in addition to heavy traffic congestion, alongside protests by lecturers and contract workers. For the first time, Basra experienced unprecedented traffic congestion due to a significant deployment of security forces as well as the closure of some vital streets. The protests also led to road closures in the city center, as a result of the large numbers of protesters who followed Al-Sudani to his residence.

During the protest, demonstrators raised slogans demanding a resolution to their longstanding issue, as they have been excluded from previous budgets. After Al-Sudani headed to the Grand Millennium Hotel, the protesters, who were demanding the issuance of their administrative orders, followed him, only to encounter a large presence of riot police around the hotel. The protesters dispersed between Al-Sudani's residence, the Basra Governorate building, and nearby streets in the city center.

Governmentally, Prime Minister Mohammed Shiaa Al-Sudani promised representatives of various protest groups from Basra, including representatives from lecturers and engineers, on Saturday, to find legal ways to resolve their issues. He affirmed that the government is attempting to address the problems faced by graduates from various specialties. Security-wise, a significant presence of security forces was observed, deployed to protect the Prime Minister and control the demonstration. One security official noted that riot police prevented protesters from gathering near the mentioned hotel and attempted to disperse the demonstration, resulting in injuries on both sides. Media coverage was extensive, with several media channels present to cover the event, and the news was widely shared on social media platforms.

Reasons and demands of the demonstrators:

By reviewing the demonstrations and events in several Iraqi governorates, it becomes clear that the most prominent reasons that led to their inception are as follows:

• Poor services.
• Demanding appointments in government institutions.
• Claim financial compensation.

Notes on how security agencies deal with gatherings:

It can be argued that the security forces still exhibit weaknesses in terms of professionalism when dealing with demonstrators. One of the primary responsibilities of security forces is to be present during demonstrations to protect both the demonstrators and vital facilities at the demonstration site, while also ensuring the peacefulness and organization of the protest. The tendency of security forces to crowd demonstrators and exhibit unprofessional behavior, which can potentially provoke citizens to resort to violence, reflects poorly on the overall performance of the security forces.

Kurdistan Organization for Human Right Watch

www.KOHRW.org

Email: Reports@kohrw.org