Erbil (March 8, 2022) — Jiyan Foundation for Human Rights Chairman and Founder Salah Ahmad released the below statement addressing the March 6th murder of female activist Iman Sami Maghdid in Erbil, Kurdistan-Iraq.

Her murder is the eleventh in the Kurdish region in the past six weeks, demonstrating a common pattern of violence against women.

Statement from Jiyan Foundation Head of Public Relations Middle East Delman Kareem:

“There is no honor in killing. Today is another sad day for the Kurdistan region where a young woman was found dead in Erbil. Though we are still uncertain on the details surrounding her death, Iman Sami Maghdid was an activist who chose a different religious path than she was born into and challenged societal norms she viewed as oppressive against women.

“On the eve of International Women’s Day, we are reminded that in the Kurdish region being different and speaking out can be a death sentence. Jiyan Foundation for Human Rights condemns violence against women and seeks to remind the communities in the Kurdish region and all of Iraq that societies are judged by the manner in which we treat the most vulnerable among us. Killing in the name of honor or religion is unacceptable.”

Jiyan Foundation for Human Rights works to support and empower women to become community leaders through our Program for Democracy and Civil Society. In addition, Jiyan Foundation provides specialized psychotherapeutic support to vulnerable women and survivors throughout Kurdistan-Iraq, Iraq and Syria.

Jiyan Foundation for Human Rights calls on the Kurdistan Regional Government to invest in educational and public awareness programmes to combat this culture of hatred and violence against women and religious groups.

About Jiyan Foundation for Human Rights

Jiyan Foundation for Human Rights is a nonprofit organization that supports survivors of human rights violations, defends fundamental freedoms, and promotes democratic values throughout the world. Jiyan Foundation seeks to build democratic societies that protects the dignity of the human being, where adults and children enjoy the rights to life and freedom, and citizens are free from violence, torture, and terror, domestic violence, and human rights violations.

Our programs, projects, and initiatives provide mental health, medical treatment and other health services to survivors of trauma, terror, domestic violence, and human rights violations. Our work supports nine treatment centers, a clinic for Yazidi women and families, a Healing Garden and mobile teams helping survivors in 11 refugee and IDP camps in nine regions throughout Kurdistan-Iraq, Iraq, and Syria. Since 2005 these programs have provided support to over 100,000 people.