“My father's phone rang. While we were waiting for afternoon tea, I heard my name,” said Awat Shahin, a university graduate in Erbil. “I was shocked to hear my name, so I went back to him.”
Awat Shahin, who used a pseudonym out of fear of the party's reaction, added: “I was very scared.
The phone calls from the local committees and branches of the political parties, which are organs of the two ruling parties in the Iraqi Kurdistan Region IKR- the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) and the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), have been harassing citizens, urging them to vote through direct phone calls.
The committees, regions, branches, and headquarters of the two parties have obtained personal information for the majority of employees and civil servants in the IKR, such as voting card numbers, national ID cards, polling stations, and centers.
This is seen as a form of blackmail to force citizens to vote for the candidates chosen by the PUK and KDP committees and regions, which goes against the rules and guidelines of the commission and is considered a "serious" violation.
"The person who called introduced himself and mentioned his party's name. He said we should vote for them. I sighed, and my father hung up," Shahin added.
According to KirkukNow, this situation is widespread and is happening throughout the Kurdistan Region.
The person who called introduced himself and mentioned his party's name. He said we should vote for them
Another young person in Koya told KirkukNow that he received a call from the committee asking him to vote for the PUK. “They called me in the PKK area to vote for them.”
Most employees of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) have been asked to provide copies of their voting cards, national IDs, polling centers, along with their family's voting card numbers and mobile phone numbers.
Avin Khalil, a contract teacher in Sulaimaniya, said, "I have received three calls so far, telling me the name of the party and candidate, the number of voting cards, and the polling station.
Evin's manager works for an organization of a ruling party in Sulaimaniya, which raises suspicions that the information was passed on to the party through him.
“They even asked me to send them my husband's voting card number, but I told them he had lost it,” she said.
The Shams Network, a non-governmental organization NGO that monitors elections, referred to the situation as a "serious" violation.
Among other violations, "tearing and distorting candidate posters, violence, rival speeches, accusations against each other, including insults and harsh language, as well as the use of state property, buying votes, and using religious centers for election campaigning.”
They even asked me to send them my husband's voting card number, but I told them he had lost it
"Yes, it is true that some citizens have contacted the Shams Network because they have been contacted by party organizations, which is a serious violation of personal information," said Hogar Cheto, head of the Shams Network for Election Monitoring, told KirkukNow.
"What is happening is the use of government data and information that is not available to everyone, and a violation of privacy where your phone number and information have been given to others without your consent, as well as the way the calls are made and questions are asked.”
According to the Shams Network, the headquarters of the Independent High Election Commission (IHEC) has provided information and data to the provincial offices to contact those who have completed their biometric voting cards and have not yet received them.
The Election Commission insists that they have only shared the data with the state, but Hogar Cheto said, "The state in the Kurdistan Region consists of the two main parties, the PUK and KDP.
" According to the guidelines of the IHEC, taking data from the state to the party, making phone calls to employees, and transferring personal information to the party are violations.” Since the campaign began on November 4, over 550 violations have been recorded across Iraq.
Nabard Omar, head of the Independent High Election Commission (IHEC) in the IKR, told KirkukNow that the commission has not provided any data to the party, but the information may have been leaked from the application.
"After voter protests, we stopped the application," he added.
"We have informed all parties not to call voters except their members and supporters. Although the calls are illegal, the commission cannot take action unless voters file a complaint."
However, since the start of the campaign, opposition parties in the IKR have protested against the collection of voting cards and their numbers from employees.
"We have met with the commission, and an inquiry committee has been formed, but they know that some of this information has been given to the parties by the commission's provincial offices. Voters can file a complaint on this matter," Chato said.
According to the commission, no voter has filed such a complaint.
"It's useless to complain. I might have to change my phone number. I don't want it to be in the (PUK) committee and (KDP) branch," Khalil said.
