INDEPENDENT MEDIA CENTRE KURDISTAN

During an official ceremony in Erbil 16 participants of Media bo Khalk (Media for People, Al-Alam al-nas) were presented with their certificates. The sixteen have finished eight months of training in journalism, including internships at Iraqi media outlets. The ceremony was attended by members of the press, editors in chief, politicians, diplomats and others. KRG-minister of Culture Kawa Mahmoud held a speech about the importance of professional media for the development of democracy in his country. Ari Harsin spoke for KDP and mentioned how important it is for Kurds and Arabs in Iraq to work together, stressing the importance of projects like Media bo Khalk for the whole of Iraq. The chargé d´affairs ad interim at the Dutch embassy in Baghdad, Lars Tummers, explained to the audience that the Dutch are good at bringing quality media to other countries, and Michael Mussi, Provincial Action Officer at the US Reconstruction Team in Erbil drew a picture of the role of the media in a socie...

,,We need a credible media'', said the Kurdish prime minister Nerchirvan Barzani at the opening of the new Kurdish newsagency AK. ,,Independent media have to strenghten democracy.'' It was for the first time the Kurdish PM showed his strong support for independent media in the north of Iraq. He criticized the role of media that let themselves be manipulated to deform information. Kurdistan needs an independent newsagency to inform the people, and to show the world what is happening there, was his message. In the past Kurds have suffered from media that distorted the facts. ,,That's why it took so long in the 80's for news on the genocide in Kurdistan to reach the world.'' AK is an independent Kurdish newsagency, that operates in Kurdish, Arabic and English from Irbil, the capital of the Kurdish region of Iraq. The IMCK has helped AK by offering training to the staff since June 2008.