By: Sabah Abdulrahman
In light of the UN Security Council Resolution 1770 and in line with its continuous assistance to the people of Iraq, the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) and the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) jointly organized a Roundtable on the draft Iraqi NGO Law, which was held in Erbil from 1 to 3 March 2008.
Representatives of civil society organizations from Kurdistan Region and the rest of Iraq, as well as key policymakers from the three executive, legislative and judicial authorities in Iraq and Kurdistan Region participated in the 3-day roundtable entitled 'Towards an Enabling Legal Framework for a Strong Civil Society in Iraq'. The European Union provided the funding through the United Nations Development Group Iraq Trust Fund (UNDG ITF).
Three experts from Jordan, Lebanon and Morocco as well as others from the UN participated in the roundtable as facilitators, and helped the Iraqi stakeholders with examples and references from contexts similar to that of Iraq, as well as with envisaging solutions to controversial issues.
UNAMI's Head of Office in Erbil Mr. Mark Rutgers opened the first session with a short speech underlining the importance of a legal framework for the work of civil society organizations and renewed the UN commitment to provide the Iraqis with the technical assistance needed on this important aspect of communal life and on other issues. Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) Minister of Region for Civil Society Affairs, Mr. George Mansour and the KRG Coordinator for UN Affairs Dr. Dindar Zebari also delivered opening remarks before the start of the working sessions.
The working sessions were mainly devoted to discussing key issues that remain controversial, as presently addressed in the draft law, as well as the specificities of the Iraqi context. It also indicated a common determination, particularly from the NGOs representatives, to pass this important law as soon as possible.
At the end of the roundtable, the participants worked on formulating a shared declaration of principles to be used by the Iraqi Ministry of Civil Society in fine-tuning the draft law before presenting it to the Council of Representatives for endorsement.