A delegation from the Kurdistan Regional Government is set to visit Baghdad this week to discuss raising salaries for political prisoners in the Kurdistan Region to match those paid by Iraq’s federal government, a senior Kurdish official has said.
Ahmed Mam Rasool, director general of political prisoners’ affairs at the KRG’s Ministry of Martyrs and Anfal Affairs, said the delegation will meet Iraq’s incoming finance minister, Faleh Al-Sari, as part of ongoing efforts to secure equal treatment for political prisoners across the country.
Political prisoners in the Kurdistan Region currently receive a monthly allowance of 500,000 Iraqi dinars (around $382). Kurdish officials are seeking to increase the payment to 1.2 million dinars (about $916), bringing it in line with the benefits received by eligible prisoners elsewhere in Iraq.
The visit follows a previous round of meetings in Baghdad, where Kurdish representatives held discussions with Nizar Amedi and officials from the Iraqi Martyrs Foundation. The foundation is responsible for supporting victims of past state repression and terrorism through financial assistance, healthcare and other social benefits.
Beyond salary parity, the Kurdistan delegation is seeking to transfer responsibility for political prisoner payments from the regional government to Baghdad. Officials also want greater federal support for Kurdish families searching for relatives believed to be buried in mass graves dating back to the rule of Saddam Hussein.
The beneficiaries include Kurdish political activists, former Peshmerga fighters and civilians who were imprisoned, exiled or persecuted under the former Ba’ath regime before 2003. Many were detained during the Anfal campaign, including at the notorious Nugra Salman prison.
According to official figures, authorities in the Kurdistan Region have documented 25,618 political prisoner cases. More than 5,200 people currently receive financial support, while around 17,000 additional applications remain under review.
