Christians call for establishing autonomously administered region in Ninewa – STP

BAGHDAD / IraqiNews.com: Following a devastating bloodbath in a Syrian-Catholic church in Baghdad, representatives of Assyrian/Chaldean/Aramaean Christians in Iraq are calling for an autonomously administered region for their people in the Ninewa province in the northern part of the country, according to Society for Threatened Peoples (STP) Organization. “In the Ninewa plains, Christians, Shabak, Yazidi and Muslim Kurds make up the majority of the population. Thus the Assyrian/Chaldean/Aramaean demand is completely justified,” stated the President of the Society for Threatened Peoples (STP), Tilman Zülch. “Most importantly, autonomy for the region could help protect the smaller ethnic and religious communities if this area is connected to the peaceful Iraqi-Kurdish region. The situation there has been safe for years, and the policies of the regional government concerning nationalities is exemplary for the entire Middle East region.” Many Christians have already been taken in by Iraqi Kurdistan because they have relatives there. “The constitution of Iraq permits the formation of autonomous regions and provides for a referendum on affiliation, including for parts of the Ninewa,” reported Zülch. “The referendum must be held soon, as it is in the best interests of the security of all minorities.” The STP, which has an independent section in Iraq, has maintained a “Chronicle of Violence” for many years documenting the violence against Christians and minorities in Iraq. According to STP research, since 2003 more than three quarters of the 400,000 Christian inhabitants have fled the metropolis of Baghdad with its five million residents. Many of them hardly dare to go to mass or send their children to a Christian school for fear of terrorist attacks. SH (S) 1