One third of the female journalists of the Iraqi Kurdistan Region IKR believe there is sexual discrimination between male and female journalists in the media institutions they work for, and the discrimination is evident in the manner of treatment, honors and rewards, according to an opinion survey conducted by the Kurdistan Journalists Syndicate.
The questionnaire was published on Monday, January 22, 2024, as part of a special supplement on the conditions of female journalists in the IKR called (No to discrimination based on gender).
The questionnaire included 21 questions that were directed to 108 female journalists working in dozens of media institutions of the IKR, where some female journalists indicated that they were exposed to violence, threats and sexual harassment within their institutions.
31 percent of participants believe that there is discrimination practiced between males and females in the institutions in which they work, in terms of how they are treated, honored, and given rewards.
Also, 33 percent of female journalists pointed out that there is gender discrimination in terms of payroll.
71 percent of the female journalists participating in the survey have more than five years of service in the field of journalism, most of whom work in journalistic positions. The salaries of about half of the participants are less than 500,000 Iraqi Dinars IQD (USD300) per month, and 26 percent say that “our salaries are determined according to the mood of the director.”
At the conclusion of the questionnaire, the majority of participants said that the situation requires issuing a special law to protect female journalists, and a section of them demanded the necessity of signing a code of ethics between the Journalists Syndicate and media institutions in order to protect female journalists and guarantee their rights, in addition to organizing various training courses to reduce sexual discrimination.
