(Graphics: 964media)
'Reporting in the Brave New World'
Metro Center urges KRG to protect press freedom as AI poses new challenges
NEWSROOM — On World Press Freedom Day, the Metro Center for Journalists’ Rights and Advocacy called on the Kurdistan Regional Government to foster an environment where media can operate freely and professionally.
In a statement marking the May 3 observance, the center echoed this year’s UNESCO theme: “Reporting in the Brave New World – The Impact of Artificial Intelligence on Press Freedom and the Media.” The group noted that while AI enhances investigative reporting, content creation, fact-checking, and access to multilingual information, it also presents risks tied to misinformation, deepfakes, and surveillance.
“AI plays an important role in enabling rapid access to information for users,” the center said, “but it should not be used as a tool for producing fake and fabricated news, and violating fundamental rights of citizens and journalists.”
Metro urged the KRG to support “democratic dialogue” and transparency, stressing the need for a “pluralistic media landscape” free from pressure or interference.
The center also called for legal accountability for those obstructing media work and demanded the release of imprisoned journalists Sherwan Sherwani, Qaraman Shukri, and Omed Baroshky.
Sherwani, a prominent journalist, has been imprisoned since October 2020, drawing widespread criticism. In 2021, photojournalist Qaraman Shukri was sentenced to seven years in a secret trial without legal representation for violating Article 156 of the Iraqi Penal Code, which criminalizes actions that threaten Iraq’s unity or security. His sentence was later reduced by pardon. Journalist Omed Baroshky received a six-month prison sentence from a Duhok court on defamation charges.
Saman Fawzi, a media law expert, told 964media that any evaluation of press freedom in the region should be evidence-based.
“We can’t simply say press freedom in the Region is good or bad. To speak academically, we need to base our statements on evidence and determine whether or not those freedoms exist,” he said.
Fawzi likened journalism to “a mountain peak,” suggesting that developed societies are closer to reaching it. “In Kurdistan, press freedom is better than in some surrounding countries and regional areas,” he said. “But compared to Scandinavian countries, other parts of Europe, and France, it remains behind.”
Separately, the Reporters Organization for Rights and Development in Erbil reported over 70 violations against journalists and media outlets in the first four months of 2025.
The organization cited a “lack of judicial independence” and said political influence has contributed to the emergence of a “deeper government.”
According to the group, 31 individual journalists and 14 media organizations were targeted. Nine journalists were hospitalized due to tear gas exposure. One media outlet was raided. Four media teams were stopped at the Degala checkpoint and barred from returning to Erbil. Six journalists were arrested, and 11 were prevented from covering events.
The group also pointed to delays in implementing Law No. 11 of 2011 on access to information and the incomplete enforcement of Law No. 35 of 2007.
