Seventeen Years of Silence

 Hawkar Bahir Denounces Kurdistan’s Ruling Parties on Soran Mama Hama Anniversary

Manchester July 21, 2025
On the 17th anniversary of the assassination of investigative journalist Sorani Mama Hama, Kurdish activist Hawkar Bahir delivered a fierce condemnation of the ruling powers in the Kurdistan Region in front of Iraqi consulate in Manchester, accusing the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) and the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) of systematic corruption, lawlessness, and the brutal silencing of dissent.

“I detest the tribal, party-based mindset that dominates the government,” Bahir stated during the protest in front of the Iraqi Consulate in Manchester. “In this system, criminals and executioners are protected, while there is no place for a journalist or activist.”

Bahir’s remarks echoed the frustration of many in the Kurdish diaspora who continue to demand justice for Sorani Mama Hama, a journalist murdered in 2008 after exposing high-level corruption. To this day, no one has been held accountable.

“The authority of these two party militias is so unjust and lawless,” Bahir added. “Their corruption will destroy them, I look forward to the day they collapse.”

The protest was part of a broader effort by Kurdish human rights defenders to spotlight the ongoing threats to press freedom and the impunity enjoyed by those in power in the Kurdistan Region.