Sulaimani, September 28th, 2025: Metro Center and Network 19, call on the future Kurdistan Regional Government to issue necessary guidelines to facilitate the implementation of the Right to Information Law in accordance with Article 25 of Law No. 11 of 2013, in coordination with the Independent Human Rights Commission and respect this fundamental right to freedom of expression.
This year’s 2025 UNESCO World Access to Information Day highlights the vital role of environmental information in the digital age. UNESCO’s message for this year reinforces this theme in the broader context of transparent governance and sustainable development.
In this year's main event, UNESCO and the Philippine government will host the World Conference on Universal Access to Information from November 29th to 30th in Manila.
Metro Center and Alliance Network 19 declare that access to information is the cornerstone of a democratic society and a fundamental human right linked to freedom of expression.
They call on the future Kurdistan Regional Government to issue necessary guidelines to facilitate the implementation of the Right to Information Law in accordance with Article 25 of Law No. 11 of 2013, in coordination with the Independent Human Rights Commission and respect this fundamental right to freedom of expression.
Due to hiding sensitive and important information from citizens and journalists about the involvement of government and party officials in encroachment on public property, it has not been possible to actively participate in exposing many cases of corruption.
We also ask the journalists and their institutions to act professionally and honestly in dealing with news, because they are no less important than providing information, they must be honest in conveying information to citizens, avoid playing with information, not fall into the trap of false and misleading news, respect citizens and their profession, and respect high values of professional ethics.
The right to information is enshrined in Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and Article 10 of the UN Convention against Corruption.
Article 25 of Law No. 11 of 2013 on the Right to Information in the Kurdistan Region, which states that the Council of Ministers in coordination with the Independent Human Rights Commission to issue necessary guidelines to facilitate the implementation of the provisions of this law.