Iraqi President stresses the need to empower women at many levels

Shafaq News/ On Saturday, Iraqi President Barham Salih described the upcoming parliamentary elections as "historic,” stressing the need to empower women at the electoral and political levels.

 The Iraqi Presidency said in a statement that Salih received today at Al-Salam Palace in Baghdad, an Iraqi delegation of activists and civil society organizations, and discussed the elections issue and the necessity to support the broad participation, especially women.

The statement quoted Salih saying that the upcoming elections are a “historical and pivotal event for the country, and it must be a shift towards achieving the reform, and establishing a rational government gives the Iraqis what they deserve.”

 Salih added that the electoral empowerment of women is essential in the elections, noting that the number of women voters is about half of the total number of candidates as they amounted to about 30%, which exceeded the quota.

 He added that the current electoral system enables women to have a good presence in the legislative institutions through a quota.

 The Iraqi president stressed that women in society are necessary and linked to development, economy, and social stability, and “without empowering women, the economy cannot develop, and development cannot be achieved.”

 He pointed out that targeting women candidates is an unfortunate, painful and unacceptable situation, and work must be done to prevent this.