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Baghdad, 24 May 2017 - A national conference bringing together civil society representatives to gauge the political aspirations of Iraqis for the post-Daesh phase and to promote the merits of national reconciliation convened in Baghdad today, drawing from the findings of a series of cross-country roundtable discussions by academics, journalists, activists as well as tribal and religious leaders over the past five months.
About 50 civil society representatives out of the 112 men and women who had participated in the previous six roundtables gathered at the national conference in the form of group discussions to consolidate their findings and adopt and endorse recommendations to be presented to the Government.
The conference, organized by the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) under the “Iraq-after-Conflict” project, is in line with its mandate to promote inclusive dialogue in support of the national reconciliation process in Iraq. The project was funded by the Governments of the Federal Republic of Germany and the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
The conference’s opening session was attended by Mr. Waleed Al-Hilli, representing the Prime Minister, Mr. Ahmed Rushdi, representing the Speaker of the House of Representatives and Mr. Faal Al-Maliki, representing the National Reconciliation Committee at the Prime Minister’s Office, in addition to the Director of the UNAMI Office of Political Affairs, Mr. Manoj Mathew.
On behalf of UNAMI, Mr. Mathew said that the near defeat of Daesh terrorists in Mosul was a welcome development which makes dialogue and today’s conference all too significant, as Iraqis look forward to a post-conflict future of peace and prosperity.
“Genuine reconciliation can only be achieved if diverse views, opinions and thoughts are incorporated properly [...] This is the right opportunity on which you should express your opinions about peaceful coexistence, reconciliation and national unity,” he said.
Mr. Mathew said that the recommendations that will be adopted and endorsed at the national conference will be shared with the Prime Minister’s Office and other Iraqi leadership.
The “Iraq-after-Conflict” project was designed to cover two layers of Iraqi civil society: grassroots community members and leaders of civil society. The six previous roundtables covered the governorates of Erbil, Anbar, Karbala, Najaf, Kirkuk, Basra, Missan, Dhi Qar, Muthana, Baghdad, Babil, Wassit and Diyala. Participants included academics, journalists, activists, as well as tribal and religious leaders who flagged their concerns and expectations for social and political transformation after the defeat of Daesh.
For more information, please contact: Mr Khalid Dahab, Deputy Director of Public Information/Deputy Spokesperson United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq, Phone: +964 790 194 0146, Email: Dahab@un.org or the UNAMI Public Information Office: unami-information@un.org