On Sunday, December 11th, 2026, Metro Center welcomed (Peter Bos) Advisor to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands, (Ciska De velt) Secretary of Political Affairs of the Consulate General of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in the Kurdistan Region.

Peter Bos expressed his pleasure to meet with Metro’s team up close, said that Metro is known for its reports on freedom of expression and press and they are reliable. The purpose of their visit was to better understand the situation of freedoms in the region.

Metro’s team discussed the development of these violations, which are highlighted in both the Freedom of the Press and Freedom of Expression reports which are going to be published in the following week, that reveal a deep gap between the legal texts and their implementation. Such as the Journalism Law, No. 35 of 2007, which is supposed to protect the work of journalists, Law No. (11) of 2013, the Right to Information Law, and the Law on Organizing Demonstrations, but they are not implemented as they are.

During the meeting, Metro’s team discussed several issues related to the situation of freedoms, opportunities and challenges in this field.