Thousands of graduates march toward Green Zone demanding government jobs

BAGHDAD — Thousands of graduates from governorates across Iraq demonstrated in Baghdad on Monday to demand government jobs, marching from the Al-Alawi area toward the Green Zone and blocking some entrances to the heavily fortified area.

The protesters gathered around Al-Shawaf Park, while their numbers disrupted access to parts of the Green Zone. At Al-Sinak Bridge, movement into and out of the area came to a halt.

The Green Zone houses Iraqi government institutions and foreign diplomatic missions in the capital.

Mohammed Attiya, a protester who traveled from Karbala, told 964media the demonstrators would not return home without securing their demands.

“We came to demand our legitimate right, and we will not return to our homes without it,” Attiya said. “We are not begging for jobs; they are the state’s duty toward us.”

Protester Hossam Ali told 964media that male and female graduates had faced years of waiting for employment. He attributed their situation to corruption and said protesters would continue escalating their demonstrations until their demands were met.

Alaa Abbas, a protester from Babil, told 964media that demonstrators faced security restrictions and attempts to prevent them from entering Baghdad. She said protesters consequently blocked roads to reach the demonstration site in the capital.

Abbas said Monday’s protest was the group’s sixth demonstration without what she described as a genuine government response. She also said the private sector had marginalized graduates.

Another protester, Abdul Karim Qasim, described the demonstrations as a “revolution of the ’90s generation” against years of marginalization affecting graduates from different fields of study. Qasim called on Prime Minister Ali Al-Zaidi to intervene to address the protesters’ demands.

Monday’s demonstration follows several protests by graduates seeking government employment. On May 18, thousands of graduates from across Iraq gathered at Al-Shawaf Park in Baghdad demanding public-sector jobs. The protesters were described as “old graduates,” referring to people who had graduated five or more years earlier without obtaining government employment. Protesters at the time told 964media that their next demonstration would reach the Green Zone.