Lewis reports back after being part of fact-finding mission in Iraq

By Ron Giofu

Essex MP Chris Lewis returned home from what is being described as “a factfinding mission” in Iraq and is now reporting on what he and others in his delegation experienced.

Lewis was joined by Rev. Majed El Shafie, president and founder of One Free World International (OFWI) and Khassan F. Saka, president of the Integrative Canadian Group Organization (ICGO) at a press conference last Friday afternoon at Lewis’ constituency office in Essex. The OFWI is based in Toronto while the ICGO is a Windsor-based group.

Lewis said there are a lot of Iraqi refugees and immigrants in the Windsor-Essex County area as well as in Toronto and he has worked “very closely” with them since becoming a Member of Parliament.

The international delegation was described as one that was there to assess the human rights situation for Chaldeans, Yazidis, and other persecuted minorities in the region.

“Windsor-Essex is home to a large Chaldean community, and many still have friends and family in Iraq who have suffered from persecution and discrimination at the hands of ISIS,” said Lewis. their representative in Ottawa, it was important for me to see firsthand what they are going through.”

“While the situation on the ground has improved greatly since ISIS was defeated, many are still concerned about the safety of the community and recognize there is a lot of healing and rebuilding to do.

Rev. El Shafie led the nine-person international delegation of politicians, human rights defenders, and security experts. There was representation from the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, and

Iceland. Saka was the deputy head of the delegation.

The five-day trip started in Baghdad where the delegation met with several senior members of the Iraqi government and religious leaders, including Iraqi president Dr. Abdul Latif Rashid, vice president and former prime minister Nuri al-Maliki and minister of immigration Evan Jabro. Following two days of meetings in Baghdad, the delegation visited the autonomous Kurdistan Region of northern Iraq where they met with senior members of the Kurdistan Regional Government as well as Chaldean religious leaders. Those included minister of foreign affairs Safeen Dizayee, minister of transport and communications Ano Abdoka, Chaldean Archbishop Thabet, Chaldean Church of St. Kyriakos; and Priest Farid Kina, Chaldean Church of St. Kyriakos.

The delegation engaged government officials about their efforts to protect and accommodate religious and ethnic minorities, and reiterated their strong belief that the culture and rights of minorities must always be safeguarded.