The Kurdistan Region is often shown to the world as a peaceful and democratic place, but anyone living here knows that this image is far from reality. Behind the speeches and the photo opportunities, the two ruling parties the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) and the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) have built a system where real opposition is not tolerated.

No one has experienced this more directly than Shaswar Abdulwahid, the President of the New Generation Movement (NGM). His political career has been marked by constant threats, harassment, and attacks not because he has broken the law, but because he has dared to challenge the way power works in our region.

From Bullets to Fire

The campaign against Shaswar began before he entered parliament. In October 2013, he was shot at in Sulaimani in broad daylight. The attackers were never found.

In 2011, just days after NRT the independent TV channel he founded went on air, masked men stormed the station and set it on fire. This was the first of many times NRT was attacked, shut down, or had its staff threatened. In 2017, Asayish forces raided its offices, arrested journalists, and confiscated equipment. In Duhok, the KDP’s stronghold, its office was threatened with arson. All of it was aimed at stopping people from hearing voices outside the ruling parties’ control.

The Courts as a Weapon

Over the years, the authorities have filed countless cases against Shaswar many of them absurd, most of them related to his public statements.

The latest, and perhaps most dangerous, happened on 12 August 2025. Security forces loyal to the PUK surrounded his office, arrested him, and took him to an undisclosed location. The charges are politically motivated. The PUK and the KDP, as the parties controlling the Kurdistan Regional Government, bear full responsibility for his safety.

NGM Under Attack

Shaswar is not the only target. Members of our movement have been threatened, arrested, and assaulted.

I know this personally. In August 2022, I was arrested along with other NGM MPs and activists during peaceful protests calling for reform and transparency. We were surrounded by armed forces, detained, and treated as if speaking our minds was a crime.

Others in our party have faced the same. MP Sipan Amêdî was abducted and beaten in June 2025 after making critical comments about the KDP leadership. Our members are harassed at checkpoints, pressured with fabricated charges, and smeared in media controlled by the ruling parties.

A Political System Built on Control

These are not isolated incidents. This is a system.

 • Control of politics: keeping power by crushing competitors.

 • Control of information: silencing the media that challenges the official line.

 • Control of security: using police and security forces as party tools.

 • Control of the courts: making sure justice serves politics, not the people.

This is not the democracy that the Kurdistan Region claims to uphold.

What the World Should Do

As a member of the Iraqi Parliament, I have a duty to speak out for my constituents, for the Kurdish people, and for every Iraqi who believes in democracy.

I call on our international partners especially the United States, the United Kingdom, the European Union, and the United Nations to:

 1. Condemn the arrest of Shaswar Abdulwahid and demand his immediate release.

 2. Pressure both ruling parties to stop political arrests.

 3. Support independent media in the Kurdistan Region.

 4. Demand an independent judiciary.

Why This Matters

The Kurdistan Region’s "stability” is often given as a reason for ignoring abuses. But stability without freedom is temporary. You cannot silence people forever. If the world ignores what is happening now, it will only face a deeper crisis later.

Remaining silent is not staying neutral. It is choosing a side the side of those who abuse power.

The New Generation Movement will continue to work through peaceful and democratic means. We will not give up. But we need the world to stand with us. The arrest of Shaswar Abdulwahid is not just about one man it is about whether the Kurdistan Region will be a democracy in more than name.

Arian Taugozi

Member of the Iraqi Parliament

New Generation Movement Bloc