Shaswar Abdulwahid

Shaswar Abdulwahid Qadir
شاسوار عەبدولواحید قادر
Abdulwahid in 2022
Born (1978-12-02) 2 December 1978 (age 46)
Sulaymaniyah, Kurdistan Region, Iraqi Republic
NationalityKurdish
Occupation(s)Founder of NRT News Chairman and founder of the New Generation Movement (Kurdistan), founder and owner of Chavyland (Amusement Park), NRT, and Kurd News TV Channel
MovementNew Generation Movement

Shaswar Abdulwahid (Sorani Kurdish: شاسوار عەبدولواحید, romanized: Şaswar Ebdulwahîd; born 2 December 1978) is an Iraqi Kurdish businessman and politician,[1] leader of New Generation Movement and the founder of NRT media.[2]

Business

Shaswar founded the Nalia Media Corporation conglomerate, one of the biggest media organisations in Kurdish Iraq,[3] which operates NRT News, several television stations, "real estate" and a theme park.[4][5]

Kurdistan referendum 2017

Abdulwahid entered politics in 2017, during the Kurdistan Region's independence referendum. Shaswar launched a "No for now".[6][7] He called the referendum as "an excuse by Kurdish leaders to remain in power".[8]

New Generation Movement

Abdulwahid was elected president of the newly established New Generation Movement at its first congress.[9] New Generation secured eight seats in the 2018 Kurdistan parliamentary election,[10] and won four seats in the 2018 Iraqi parliamentary election.[11] Abdulwahid said that "there should be an opposition in parliament", and did not plan to join a governing coalition.[12]

Arrest

Abdulwahid appeared in court in Sulaimani on 3 March 2019 and arrested after being summoned on charges related to Articles 229 and 434 of the Iraqi penal code.[13] Abdulwahid had been previously arrested in 2017.[14]

Assassination attempt

Abdulwahid survived an assassination attempt but was injured in his leg in October 2013 before entering political life. At that time, Abdulwahid said, "I am not a politician or a famous figure in politics in Kurdistan region of Iraq. I have no private connections with any politicians or political parties, the only reason that they wanted to kill me is my ownership of NRT TV, as we have been facing many other terrible events in the past three years".[15][16][17]

References

  1. ^ "10 Qs: PUK candidate confident party will perform well in election". Rudaw. Retrieved 3 March 2019.
  2. ^ Diehl, Jackson. "Opinion | Why a referendum won't solve Iraqi Kurdistan's problems". Washington.
  3. ^ "Iraqi Kurds campaigning for 'no' to independence face uphill struggle". The National. Retrieved 3 March 2019.
  4. ^ "CPJ condemns detainment of protestor in Duhok". Rudaw. Retrieved 3 March 2019.
  5. ^ "Rich tycoon takes on Iraqi Kurdish leaders over independence". Reuters. 12 September 2017. Retrieved 3 March 2019.
  6. ^ "Rich tycoon takes on Iraqi Kurdish leaders over independence". Reuters. 12 September 2017. Retrieved 3 March 2019.
  7. ^ Coles, Isabel; Nabhan, Ali (24 September 2017). "With Kurds Set to Vote on Independence, a Lone Dissenter Sounds Alarm". Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved 3 March 2019.
  8. ^ "Referendum to Put Iraqi Kurdistan Region Stability at Risk". Tasnim News Agency. Retrieved 3 March 2019.
  9. ^ "Shaswar Abdulwahid elected president of New Generation Movement". Rudaw. Retrieved 3 March 2019.
  10. ^ "Election commission publishes official KRG election results". Rudaw. Retrieved 3 March 2019.
  11. ^ "Factbox: Iraq's Kurds to elect a new parliament". Reuters. 27 September 2018. Archived from the original on 10 December 2018. Retrieved 3 March 2019.
  12. ^ Mark Habeeb. "Upstart Kurdish party has Iraq-wide ambitions". AW. Retrieved 3 March 2019.
  13. ^ "Sulaimani judge orders arrest of New Generation leader Abdulwahid". Rudaw. Retrieved 3 March 2019.
  14. ^ "Three people killed as protests turn violent again in Iraqi Kurdistan". Reuters. 19 December 2017. Retrieved 3 March 2019.
  15. ^ Avenue, Committee to Protect Journalists 330 7th; York, 11th Floor New; Ny 10001. "Mountain of impunity looms over Kurdistan journalists". cpj.org. Retrieved 3 March 2019.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  16. ^ Reuter, Christoph (22 September 2017). "Kurden-Referendum im Irak: "Der einzige Ausweg liegt im Kampf"". Spiegel Online. Retrieved 3 March 2019.
  17. ^ "Freedom of the Press at a Crossroads in Iraqi Kurdistan". Retrieved 10 January 2014.