In Iraq, Minority Survivors of ISIS Genocide Cautiously Anticipate Reparations

On August 3, the Yazidi community commemorated eight years since the genocidal attacks by the Islamic State (IS) in Sinjar — a day that destroyed their lives. IS militants separated family members and killed thousands of men, boys, and older women, and enslaved young women and girls. IS forced captive Yazidis to convert to Islam and forcibly conscripted young boys into military training and combat. Survivors played a central role in advocating for reparations from the Iraqi government that failed to protect them, and though they question its ability to implement a reparations program, they have little choice but to hope.

In March 2021, the Iraqi Council of Representatives passed the Yazidi Female Survivors’ Law the first such bill in the region to acknowledge the crime of sexualized violence in conflict and provide reparations to survivors from the Yazidi, Shabak, Christian, and Turkmen minority groups. The law was passed primarily to respond to brutal crimes of sexualized violence that were perpetrated by IS militants against women and girls, including sexual slavery, forced marriage, pregnancy, and abortion.

Importantly, to qualify as a survivor, an applicant does not need to prove that they faced sexual violence; they are only required to prove they were abducted by IS on or after August 3, 2014, and that they belong one of the four minority groups.

The Survivors’ Law also applies to Yazidi males, who were abducted by IS as children, as well as survivors of mass killings — of any gender — from the four minority communities.

There are several ways in which the application process has been designed to minimize the burden on applicants. There is no court procedure when applying for reparations, and the standard of evidence is flexible. Applicants are required to provide evidence proving only that they were abducted (and, additionally, that they had survived a mass killing if applying on that basis); however, they are not required to prove all the crimes enumerated under Article 1, such as sexual slavery. If an applicant lacks sufficient evidence, they can apply and submit details about exposure to Article 1 crimes in order to establish that they were abducted. Applicants can submit photographs, documents from IS like a marriage certificate, published articles that identify the person as a survivor, social media posts, witnesses, or other evidence.

The committee formed under Article 10 of the Survivors’ Law is an independent, eight-member body that reviews and decides applications and appeals. If individuals are approved as survivors under this law, they will have the right to a monthly salary, educational benefits, medical and mental health services, prioritization in public employment, and a plot of land.

The newly-established General Directorate for Survivors’ Affairs, which is under Iraq’s Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs, will soon accept applications. Survivors are covered whether they live in Iraq or overseas, and applicants can apply through an online portal accessible from inside Iraq and abroad. They can also apply in person or with the help of Directorate staff. If their cases are rejected, they can appeal to the committee, and if rejected a second time, they can appeal to the court of first instance.

The implementation of the Survivors’ Law offers the Iraqi government the opportunity to acknowledge and redress the harm caused to minority communities who were left defenseless in the face of a violent terrorist group. Many women and children were held in captivity and subjected to atrocities for years until IS was territorially defeated in the Battle of Baghouz in Syria in 2019. Thousands are still unaccounted for and remain missing.

However, despite these positive steps, there are potential pitfalls — especially if the law is not implemented in a way that is survivor-centered.

If an applicant already provided testimony to a government agency, this would be considered strong evidence, and their case would be approvable without a committee interview. This would benefit most Yazidi survivors who returned from captivity and provided statements to NGOs and government agencies. The rationale was that these traumatized individuals had little incentive to provide detailed statements; in fact, a number of survivors informed me that they gave statements under coercion. A survivor-centered approach recognizes the need to limit the number of times a person who faced trauma has to retell their story. Therefore, the committee will likely only interview applicants who lack sufficient evidence or present major inconsistencies or gaps in their applications.

Those who apply from the Shabak, Turkmen and Christian communities are differently positioned, as they have not provided statements to a government agency, though some gave their statements to NGOs that are affiliated with their communities. Survivors from these groups who apply are more likely to be interviewed by the committee for their cases.

One major drawback is that Article 10 only requires that 30 percent of the committee be women. Although this was a floor and not a ceiling, it appears that the committee will be dominated by men. This places a significant burden on female committee members to interview female survivors, who would be reticent to speak about their captivity in front of men. Male committee members will also have an interviewing function, as it is expected that a significant number of young Yazidi males who were abducted as children will apply.

The Directorate intends to take responsibility for gathering evidence of statements that survivors gave to government agencies and NGOs, rather than having applicants travel to these offices at their own expense. This is unprecedented in Iraq and, if handled efficiently and confidentially, offers an important way in which this reparations program can be survivor centered.

Confidentiality is key because applicants are expected when they apply to provide sensitive information about crimes they were exposed to — details that could lead to stigma and retaliation if they are leaked.

As the Directorate reaches out to coordinate with other government agencies and NGOs, it also will be critical for all entities to establish procedures that incorporate obtaining informed consent from survivors prior to sharing their data. There is a risk that government agencies and NGOs would assume that all survivors who provided statements will apply for reparations and that it would be easier to share their information rather than going back to each survivor to obtain their permission. However, that approach would violate the law and undermine the autonomy of survivors to be consulted about how their information is used. The Kurdistan Regional Government’s Committee on Gathering Information and Evidence, the Office of Rescuing Kidnapped Yazidis, and NGOs have already gathered detailed statements from survivors, and survivors have the right to their statements.

People have already circulated misinformation about who qualifies under the Survivors’ Law. Young male Yazidi survivors reported being neglected by NGOs and misinformed that they were not covered by the law. Similarly, some survivors pointed out that social media posts inaccurately claimed that women who gave birth to children born of war would not benefit from the law.

There have been efforts to counter misinformation, yet more needs to be done to disseminate accurate information from reliable sources. The International Organization for Migration (IOM) has played a pivotal role in the passage and implementation of the Survivors’ Law and has trained NGOs to raise awareness among survivors and minority communities. IOM has also trained employees from the Directorate on the law, bylaws and application process, and survivor-centered approaches to engaging with survivors.

Efforts to ensure a survivor-centered reparations program will require ongoing training and careful oversight and accountability. Government agencies, NGOs, and the international community all have a role to play. The Directorate must identify qualified service providers where the government has service gaps to coordinate the smooth delivery of salaries, services, and other benefits. Donors must also fund NGOs to delegate trained staff to help survivors submit applications, especially through the online portal. And all actors with relevant data and documentation must establish protocols to share information to support survivors’ applications.

With little progress by the Iraqi government and international community in pursuing justice for international crimes committed by IS, Iraq’s transitional justice program has the potential to provide life-changing benefits to a significant number of individuals. While many survivors are skeptical, they remain hopeful that positive change is coming.