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Kurdistan hosts a roundtable on the Iraqi
NGO law
4.3.2008
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March 4, 2008
Erbil-Hewler, Kurdistan Region 'Iraq',--
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,www.ekurd.net
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.
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