While en-route to Baghdad in January, Executive Director Rend Al-Rahim appeared on NPR's "To the Point" with Host Warren Olney. Ms. Al-Rahim discussed the outcomes of the US Military surge as well as the progress of key legislation in parliament, particularly the controversy over the bill on "Accountability and Justice" that is intended to replace the law on De-Bathification. The program aired on January 14 and is available for download on "To the Point's" website.

In January, Executive Director Rend Al-Rahim traveled to Iraq with USIP Vice President Daniel Serwer. They met with a broad cross-section of high ranking Iraqi political officials, including President Jalal Talabani, Vice Presidents Adel Abdel Mehdi and Tariq Al-Hashemi, and key leaders of the "Awakenings" movement from the Anbar and Baghdad provinces. Over a three-week period in Iraq, Ms. Al-Rahim, examined the evolution of Iraqi politics in the context of the military surge, the state of political alliances, and key political issues that will affect the Iraqi state in the coming period. USIP published a PeaceBrief written by Mr. Serwer and Ms. Al-Rahim, summarizing their findings. Please see the link below.

On January 26, the Pledge for Iraq Campaign Board of Directors met in Baghdad to discuss the state of the Campaign's five proposed laws and form a strategy to address future implementation. IF's Executive Director Rend Al-Rahim, a founding Board Member of PFI, attended this meeting. In a related development, Ms. Al-Rahim also met with Member of Parliament Samira Al-Musawi to discuss the status of Article 41, the Personal Status Law, and convey PFI's objectives on parliamentary developments. The Pledge for Iraq campaign proposes a platform of five laws to guarantee freedom of expression, the integrity of the judiciary, and protection of human rights. The goal of this campaign is to institutionalize this agenda across a broad social and political spectrum. Earlier in the month, PFI's Freedom of Expression Law was amended by the Iraqi Parliament's Human Rights Committee and combined with the Peaceful Demonstration and Congregation Law. On January 12, this proposed legislation was presented to the Iraqi Parliament's Presidency Office and is awaiting its second reading in parliament.

IF's Pledge for Iraq (PFI) team arranged a media interview with Radio Al-Athir for PFI's chairperson, Dr. Azhar Al-Shaikhly, on January 21. Dr. Al-Shaikhly discussed the goals of the Pledge for Iraq initiative and the status of the proposed legislation currently under consideration in parliament. In addition, Dr. Al-Shaikhly used this opportunity to clarify that the PFI campaign is a human rights movement, rather than a women's rights movement.

Throughout the month of January, IF broadcast four radio programs on Radio Al-Iraqiya as part of the Human Rights Education Project (HRE). Covering a variety of human rights issues, this is the second cycle of radio programs sponsored by the Foundation. On January 2, human rights activist Suha AL-Azzawi discussed human rights issues that face Iraqi children, including how international standards defines a child, how to address violence against children, the role of education, and child labor. The second program, which aired on January 9, addressed civil society organizations. Women's issues activist Ta'mim el- Azzawi discussed the concept of civil society, the role of non-governmental organizations in Iraqi society as well as the relationship of NGOs to the Iraqi government and the constitution. On January 16, Hussein Abdel Amir Sabri, editor in chief of a major Iraqi media outlet, discussed the role of information in Iraq's national reconciliation process. Examining laws regulating official and non-official information in Iraq, Sabri went on to discuss the interplay between state and government information, media, and public opinion. The final broadcast in January occurred on the 23, and featured Sadek Rashid Al-Tammimi, a noted advocate and human rights activist. Al-Tammimi focused the discussion on culture and social tolerance and their roles in promoting national reconciliation. Examining the mosaic of Iraqi society, Al-Tammimi explored the possibility of promoting a culture of plurality in Iraqi politics. The discussion also investigated ways to create strategic mechanisms, which would enable Iraq to build a diverse and thriving democracy on the foundation of a pluralistic and robust middle class.

The Human Rights Defenders Network (HRDN) published its eleventh electronic newsletter in January. These newsletters report on the human rights situation in at least 12 different governorates of Iraq each month. Formed in December 2006 by the Iraq Foundation, HRDN monitors, documents, and advocates for human rights in Iraq's governorates. Published in Arabic, HRDN's monthly newsletters are available on our website. Some newsletters are also available in English. To learn more about the HRDN project click here.