23 Septmber, 2025
The Iraqi Observatory for Human Rights (IOHR) expresses deep concern over the conduct of several candidates in the upcoming parliamentary elections whose actions constitute serious violations of human rights and human dignity, particularly against the poor and marginalized.
IOHR has documented the circulation of images and videos showing candidates distributing cash, food, or making promises of employment, while exposing people’s faces and highlighting their dire living conditions. Such displays degrade citizens and transform their suffering into a cheap campaign tool.
These practices represent a clear violation of the Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC) regulations, which prohibit electoral campaigning before the legally designated period, ban the use of money, aid, or promises of jobs to influence voters, and forbid exploiting people’s poverty or publicizing their images for political gain. They also directly breach the Iraqi Elections Law No. 9 of 2020, which prohibits the use of public or private funds to sway voters, as well as the Iraqi Penal Code, which criminalizes bribery and abuse of influence.
Moreover, such actions contravene the Iraqi Constitution, particularly Article 38, which guarantees human dignity and the freedom of expression and choice. They also violate Iraq’s obligations under international law, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), Article 25, which guarantees the right of citizens to participate in free and genuine elections without coercion or exploitation.
These practices are further inconsistent with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), Article 21, which affirms the right of citizens to take part in government through free elections, as well as the 1990 Copenhagen Document of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), which sets out standards for democratic elections.
The continuation of such violations undermines electoral integrity, turning economic deprivation into a tool for vote-buying. It erodes the principle of equal opportunity among candidates in favor of those with wealth and power, and entrenches a culture of clientelism at the expense of substantive electoral programs that address citizens’ real concerns. It also humiliates society’s most vulnerable groups by exposing and publicizing their suffering in degrading ways. With over 30% of Iraqis living below the poverty line, millions remain at heightened risk of electoral exploitation in the absence of effective legal deterrence.
The Iraqi Observatory for Human Rights stresses that these actions amount to degrading human dignity and directly infringe upon citizens’ right to free and fair choice. Elections in which such violations are tolerated cannot be considered democratic or transparent.
IOHR therefore calls on the Independent High Electoral Commission to urgently monitor and classify these practices as unlawful campaigning, to establish clear mechanisms such as a public hotline for complaints, and to refer violators to the Complaints Committee. Sanctions should include fines and, in cases of repeated offenses, the disqualification of candidates.
IOHR further calls on all political forces to assume their legal and ethical responsibilities by instructing their candidates to adopt democratic and humane approaches in engaging with voters, and to prohibit any practices that exploit poverty or expose citizens’ identities for political purposes. The Observatory also urges media outlets to refrain from broadcasting or promoting such exploitative content, and reminds them of their professional responsibility to uphold the dignity of citizens.
At the same time, IOHR calls on Iraqi voters to reject these degrading methods, to report instances of exploitation or humiliation, and to assert their right to free and independent choice without material inducements or coercion.
Finally, IOHR reaffirms that it will continue to document these violations and will publish regular reports to expose, both to the public and to oversight bodies, the names of candidates who abuse citizens’ rights. Tolerating such practices will not only strip the upcoming elections of credibility, but will also erode public trust in Iraq’s democratic institutions.
IOHR sends a clear message: those who violate people’s dignity do not deserve to represent them; and those who buy votes today will sell citizens’ rights tomorrow.
