Consultative Session to Review the Draft Guidelines for the Forensic Medicine Law

On 30 June 2022, within the framework of the “Review of Mandatory Forensic Medical Reports” project, implemented by the Investigator Organization for supporting role of law and Democracy (IOL) in partnership with the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and with the support of the European Regional Development and Protection Program (RDPP), a consultative session was held to review the draft guidelines for Forensic Medicine Law No. (16) of 2001 in the Kurdistan Region, prepared by our organization.
The session was attended by forensic medicine specialists and experts from the forensic medicine institutes and directorates in Erbil, Sulaymaniyah, Duhok, and Halabja, as well as representatives of forensic medicine departments in the independent administrations of Garmian, Raparin, and Soran, in addition to legal experts from the legal departments of the Ministry of Health and the General Directorate of Erbil Health.
At the beginning of the session, Mr. Ali Abdulrahman, Project Manager, delivered a brief presentation on the implementation of the project over a period of four months and addressed the main challenges and obstacles encountered by the project team during implementation, as well as the mechanisms adopted to address them.
Subsequently, retired Judge Rahim Al-Aqili presented an overview of the content of the draft guidelines.
Participants were then given the opportunity to present their comments and recommendations on the draft guidelines. Their specialized observations and proposals contributed to further enriching the draft. The session was attended by a number of forensic medicine specialists and representatives from different areas, including Dr. Yasin Karim Amin, Director of the Forensic Medicine Institute in Erbil; Dr. Bakhtiar Rashid Qadir, Deputy Director of the Forensic Medicine Institute in Sulaymaniyah; Dr. Tamara Ablahad Hanna, Representative of the Forensic Medicine Institute in Duhok; as well as representatives of forensic medicine in Raparin, Halabja, Garmian, and Soran. The session also included forensic medicine experts from outside the main cities, namely Dr. Kamil Haidar Kakahama, Representative of Forensic Medicine in Raparin; Dr. Bahroz Mohammed Hussein, Representative of Forensic Medicine in Halabja; Dr. Hassan Abdullah Ahmed, Representative of Forensic Medicine in Garmian; and Dr. Sattar Salim Hassan, Director of Forensic Medicine in Soran; in addition to Dr. Jamila Salih Hamad Amin and Dr. Dilman Azad Khoshnaw, as specialists in the field of forensic medicine.
At the conclusion of the session, following nearly four hours of discussion and exchange of views, the various perspectives and recommendations were brought together to facilitate the finalization of the draft guidelines in a more precise and professional manner.