Iraqi Kurdistan Region’s Culture Ministry awards IraqiNews.com:

ARBIL / IraqiNews.com: North Iraq Region’s Ministry of Culture has awarded on Thusday IraqiNews.com news agency, as part of its awards granted to a group of local news agencies, media institutions, newspapers and tv satellite channels, which participated in covering the campaign of prohibiting anti-woman violence that took place last month. The celebration of awarding the mass media institutions, attended by IraqiNews.com, took place at the premises of the Kurdistan Culture Ministry, attended by its Culture Minister, Kawa Mahmoud and Director of the Development & Humanitarian Programs in the UN Mission in Kurdistan Region, Suzan Martin. Minister Mahmoud, in his speech on the occasion said: “The awards for the said institutions, news agencies and satellite channels, had been granted for their outstanding role in defending an important issue, which is the defense of the woman’s rights and fighting family violence.,” adding that 32 media organizations, including local news agencies, satellite channels, newspapers and magazines, had been awarded on this occasion. Nov. 25th of each year had been witnessing the International Day for Fighting Anti-Woman Violence, according to the UN General Assembly’s Decision No. 54/134 of 17/12/1999, that considered that Day as an international day for fighting anti-woman violence, being part of the efforts exerted to lay a limit for this dangerous phenomena and to take necessary measures to confront them. The UN General Assembly had also called upon governments, governmental and non-governmental organizations, to organize activities on that day, aimed at boosting the public opinion vigilance to confront violence and discrimination against the woman. Noteworthy is that Iraqi women have faced, during the past few years that witnessed the deterioration of security in their country, and the increase of the violence phenomena against them in different parts of the country, major family and social problems, along with the absence of employment opportunities for women, to enable them obtain their families prerequisites, especially for those large numbers of women who lost thier guardians. KNM (A) / SKH 1