Transcript of Q&A session SRSG Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert Press Conference | 5 October 2021

Q&A Session

Q:  My question to you, as representatives of the United Nations mission in Iraq, what are the guarantees provided by the Iraqi government to you in protecting the missions as well as the international observers who came to observe the elections?

Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary-General Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert (SRSG JHP):  In response, I can say that there is a great deployment by the Iraqi Security Forces and other authorities.  The Prime Minister has made that very clear.  I think that all efforts of the Iraqi government and security forces are focused on creating a conducive environment on Election Day, and this is precisely what we have been observing in the past days.  I mean, this is what they do. And this is of great importance, of course, for anyone because the safe and secure environment for anyone casting their vote is essential.

Q: How do you evaluate the freedom of electoral campaigning in Iraq? Since there are areas such as Sinjar, some parties were prevented from entering them. How do we ensure that such things do not happen in the disputed areas, like Kirkuk?

SRSG JHP: I am very much aware of what happened in Sinjar; and I am very sorry about what happened because any party - any candidate - should be free to contend or to campaign freely. I know that Iraqi authorities not only in Erbil but also in Baghdad really made an effort and reached out to the people who did that - who blocked candidates from coming in.  It's not good; so, I'm not going to justify it.  The electoral environment, political environment, in Iraq is not an easy one - as we all know - it's rather complicated.  But, let me emphasise:  any candidate should be able to campaign freely; and any voter should be able to cast his or her vote freely.  In other words, anyone in Iraq should be free, as I just said, to exercise his or her democratic and electoral rights.  So, I can only condemn what happened and urge any person, any community, to open up and to make sure that every Iraqi, whatever the background is, whatever his or her conviction is, beliefs - I don't care - but he or she is free to campaign and to exercise his or her electoral rights. 

Q. There are fears of fraud in Kirkuk, what is the guarantee to prevent this, just like what happened in the 2018 elections?

SRSG JHP:  As I said, all efforts are now focused on avoiding or preventing a repetition of the events in 2018 and that includes Kirkuk.  I know that not only IHEC but also other organisations, including the United Nations, stepped up their efforts to make sure that also in Kirkuk we will have a conducive environment where people and parties stay away from attempts to temper or force or distort election results.  So, this is what I can say at this very moment.  All efforts are there to prevent a repetition of the events in 2018.

Q: Is the number of observers sufficient to cover all voting areas in all governorates? The second question: there are a large number of voter cards that have not been distributed. Are there guarantees that these cards will not be used for fraud?

SRSG JHP:  Let me start with the latter. If you did not pick up your voting card, you missed a great opportunity to cast your vote.  And I cannot emphasise enough - I'm sorry, I'm abusing your question a bit - I cannot emphasise enough how important it is to go out and vote.  Because, not voting is - in a way - gifting your silence to a person you may oppose or disagree with.  So, I would urge anyone to not let go of the opportunity and to seize the moment and cast his or her vote.  Having said that, those that did not pick up their cards - these cards will not be distributed.  So, you will not be able to use them and thereby tampering the election results. Let me be clear about that.

You asked another question...Monitors. The number of monitors.  I get that question a lot. But I have to emphasise - the number is not really relevant.  My colleague, Ingibjörg, just explained that all the electoral advisers, the technical advisers, the monitors and our communications strategy all total - national, international, including support staff, is nearly 900 individuals - who try to contribute to a credible and sound process on Election Day on behalf of the United Nations.  That is unprecedented and, seriously, a lot of people. 

Now, we are not alone.  Because the European Union is deploying observers. The Arab League is deploying observers.  There are many domestic observers.  So, it's a joint effort in a way. Not only Iraqis are watching, but, in a way, the world is watching. This is what I need to emphasise.  We also know that Iraq has thousands and thousands and thousands of polling stations.  So, if you would take the number 55,000 and you would have an international observer - you can imagine, that is simply impossible - you cannot have 55,000 international observers throughout the country, including support staff.  That would be an invasion.  I don't think that many Iraqis would like that.

So, it's very well targeted and polling stations have been identified throughout Iraq.  And I can assure you that no governorate will be forgotten.  So, we have as the UN - I can only speak for the UN, I cannot speak for the EU and for other organisations - but for the UN - what is relevant is that we have five regional hubs – so, we have Baghdad, we have Erbil, Kirkuk, Mosul and Basra. And from these regional hubs, we will reach out to all nineteen (19) governorates.

Q: Through the conversation, you mentioned that this election is different from the previous four rounds of elections. You also mentioned that there are no elections that lead to immediate changes and achievements. Perhaps this gives an indication to the Iraqis that they are in the cortex of a new 4-year experience of the same old faces that have not succeeded in managing the political scene. Today, what is the secret of the UN interest in these elections, as it participated in the simulations and has more than 800 individuals who will supervise or monitor the polling stations, and there are more conferences than the previous elections. There is an obvious interest in these elections, what is the secret of this interest and these preparations? It is a question asked by citizens and those who follow up with these elections. Thank you.

SRSG JHP: The reason for it being that our mandate changed.  So, the UN has a different mandate than it had in the year 2018. So, you cannot compare what we did in the past and what we are doing now.  You would actually compare actions or why do we do it?  Because the Iraqi authorities asked us to do it.  They were the ones reaching out to the UN in New York - the UN Security Council - and in response, late May, the UN Security Council decided to give us a more robust mandate allowing us to step up technical advice and assistance, not because we think we have nothing to do or nothing else on our plate, but because we think the Iraqi authorities and the Iraqi government asked us, for good reasons. 

These elections, if the events of 2018 will be repeated this time around, it will be detrimental to public trust.  And we all know that public trust is at an all-time low.  So, how to rebuild public trust is to make sure that you have, from a technical point of view, a sound and credible process. So, this is what our assistance is all about.  We are not in the business of certifying the elections.  The elections are Iraqi-owned; Iraqi-led, and IHEC will publish the provisional results; and those results will be certified by the Iraqi Federal Court. So, this is not what the UN is doing.  The UN is trying to contribute to make sure that the Iraqis go, vote, and that after Election Day, one can look back and say: "the legitimacy was there; the process was sound and credible".  This is what we do.  But we only do it in response to the request of the Iraqi authorities… 

Q: My question is: through your presence in Iraq, are there practical plans to control fraud in Iraq? And what is your role in setting (such plans)?

SRSG JHP:  During previous press conference, a number of weeks ago, I explained a number of measures that have been put in place.  So, again, these elections are owned and led by the Iraqi authorities.  I can affirm that IHEC is applying lessons learned from previous elections.  I can confirm that many, many, changes have been made to the electoral process and preparations for Election Day - including things like an independent IT audit.  The various measures to prevent and a very important key feature of this elections as explained by my colleague Ingibjörg just now is the fact that the results - the provisional results- will come in real time on Election Day throughout the country.  So, you can actually follow real-time what is happening. That was very different in 2018. So, I can give you a long list - I will not do that now - but I can affirm that many measures have been put in place…

Q: I'm going to ask in English, and my question is with two parts. First part, is that the first time that international observers are monitoring election in Iraq? The second part is, don't you think that international observers will give legitimacy to the process that you know it has been dispirited by local opposition and protesters, and we know that there is a raw for vote buying and armed factions. Thank you.

SRSG JHP: First of all, the UN has - for the very first time - a robust mandate within the context of the elections.  I think that must be clear because, as I said, you cannot compare our role - what we did in the past and what we are doing now. It's very different.  So, yes, it's for the first time.  And, it's unprecedented.  So, please do take note of that because many people think that we did the very same thing in the past.  This is not the case.

Secondly, you referred to the protestors.  Now, I am the first one to say - and I think I just did - is that the electoral environment, the political environment, in Iraq is complex and complicated, difficult.  Very different from what we have in the west and elsewhere in the world.  We have to really dive into it to understand the complexity of Iraq's political environment.  Having said that, I was here when, in October 2019, protestors took to the streets.  They were protesting a lack of socio-economic and political prospects.  Now, the UN compound is very close to Tahrir Square - we just have the river in between. 

As I said yesterday to a journalist, for weeks we could hear every single bullet; we could hear every single event that took place on Tahrir Square.  I visited Tahrir Square.  Now, I am perfectly well aware of the feelings of disillusionment; the anger; the loss of hope; but the early elections were a central demand of the protestors.  And these early elections are now taking place.  And after what I experienced in 2019, I promised myself that I would do everything to contribute to credible elections; to a sound process.  This is all I can do to rebuild and try to contribute to rebuilding public trust in Iraq.  So, this is the background.  Now, does that mean that everybody agrees with that?  No, of course not.  Iraqis are not a homogenous group.  They have very diverse opinions and feelings, which is perfectly fine and is part of any diverse society and democracy. So, people have, again, a right to say what they want, to express themselves freely; but the fact that these elections take place, I mean, is a given.  The fact that we are trying to do our utmost to make sure that the process is sound and credible is also a given, because, if the events of 2018 would again be repeated now - that would be detrimental to public trust.

Q: Ms. Plasschaert, there is fear or a negative impression by the Iraqis regarding the medium that transmits these results, the carrier of the election results or data. Do you, as the United Nations, have coordination with IHEC and the examining company responsible for transmitting data? Also, in a second question, will the UN support after the elections remain the same as before the elections? Thank you so much.

SRSG JHP:  The UN will not disappear after the elections. So, let me reassure that we will continue to be here in line with our mandate.  I mean, we are always here in Iraq at the invitation of the Iraqi government; and as long as that is the case, we will continue our hard work trying to work with all Iraqis.  That's one.

Secondly, on the transfer of data, as I just said and as explained by my colleague, Ingibjörg, the results from E-Day will be displayed real-time.  That is a key feature and a very important one.  Because there will be no time - if you display them real-time - to enter the system and to tweak, or to distort or to force the results.  Again, I cannot emphasise enough - all efforts IHEC and also with the UN's assistance, focusses on trying, on preventing any attempt to temper the election results.   And this is all I can say at the moment because only after Election Day we will be able to tell you this was indeed the case. Okay.

Q: Two days ago, you announced the entry of 800 UN observers, and today the number has increased to 900. What are the final numbers of UN observers? And is there cooperation between the United Nations and the European Union in order for the monitoring to be done in cooperation between the two parties and the preparation of a unified report?

SRSG JHP:  I never said 800 observers; I think it's important to stick to the facts. I keep on repeating that if you would take the total package of what the UN is doing at the moment. So, the technical assistance, advice, plus the deployment of monitors, plus the communication efforts, the total package is nearly nine hundred (900), I believe eight hundred and eighty-seven (887) - to be very precise. But I summarised it as nearly nine hundred (900) UN staff, national and international, including support staff, that contribute on behalf of the UN to a sound and credible process.  As I said, this is unprecedented.  So, this is in response to the Iraqi authorities’ request.

The cooperation and coordination with the other organisations.  Look, the EU is an entity in itself and will speak on behalf of itself.  But, of course, there is coordination.  So, there is coordination with the Arab League, with the EU, with domestic observers and so on.  But the UN will never be able to speak on behalf of the EU, for example.  So, this must be clear as well.  But it would be rather awkward if we would not speak to each other.  So, yes, there is coordination. 

Q: What if the violations of the 2018 elections were repeated in the 2021 elections? What will be the position of the United Nations on that? 

The second question: how do you assess the Iraqi government efforts to end the displacement file?

SRSG JHP:  They are two very different questions and ending the displacement file is something that is not, I mean, is ongoing.  This is not only relevant during elections, but it's relevant before, during and after elections.  So, we will continue to work closely with Iraqi authorities to make sure that people can return to their home communities of origin.  Nobody wants to be displaced; nobody in the country wants to have displacement camps on its soil; so, the UN is extremely committed to it. Agencies continue to contribute to a safe return for all Iraqis that are currently displaced. 

Having said that, we go back to the elections.  You asked me, "what if" - I know after three years of living in Iraq that many of us love the "what if" questions - but I would only repeat what I just said.  All our efforts are focused on preventing fraud, on preventing attempts that would temper elections results.  I think this is most important. 

I also said that the elections are Iraqi-owned and Iraqi-led.  Results will be published by IHEC, and the Federal Court which will certify the elections. What we will see, monitor and observe, we will write it down in a report that will become public.

You know, the UN was often accused of rubber stamping the outcome of the elections in 2018.  I can have a long debate with you whether this is justified or not.  But rightly or wrongly, I will not allow that perception to reoccur this time around.  So, I think I have been clear enough.

Q: You indicated in a previous statement that these elections will be different from the previous elections. Would you specifically mention the difference? What is your view on the future of Iraq? Thank you.

SRSG JHP:  I have the feeling I keep on repeating myself, but that's fine; no problem at all.  Let me first of all emphasise: I did not say "they will be different".  I said that "the elections have the potential to be different".  We can only determine whether this was the case the day after, or few days after, the elections. 

Having said that, what is different- I just explained we have a new mandate, in response to the request from the Iraqi government, that made it possible to step up our technical advice and assistance to IHEC and other relevant authorities. We are also deploying monitors.  What we can affirm is that the fact that IHEC really applied lessons learned from previous elections and that numerous measures are in place to avoid and to prevent measures and abuse and that significant changes, and good changes, have been made to electoral processes and the preparations for Election Day.   

Also, there is a new system in place.  So, the whole electoral environment is in a way different from the electoral environment in 2018.  Okay.

Q: I have two questions. First one, the IHEC confirmed that whatever the participation in the election, the election will be considered successful. How do you feel about that?

The second question is technical. So, according to coronavirus measures, IHEC said that they have trained the staff in the polling stations. But I did not really confirm to what measures have been taken regarding coronavirus. So, basically, I was asking if the person is positive with the coronavirus test, is he still be allowed to vote or not? And I did not get clarification for that. Thank you.

SRSG JHP:  If I'm not mistaken on the COVID, we mentioned it that we provided them with all the necessary gear like gloves, masks, sanitizers, et cetera; so, it will be addressed.   But I don't believe people need to have a negative test result with them because that would be a major push-back for the voter turn-out.

All measures are in place.   

Journalist:...positive cases...thousands of them, will they still be allowed to vote?

SRSG JHP: What do you mean? That we now go door-to-door to check who is positive or not? 

Journalist:...so, basically they said that if there is a positive case, they have to report to the polling station and that they will take measures in that regard, with the assistance of the UN.  So, I just wanted to confirm that was the case.

SRSG JHP:  Yes, it is the case.  I'm sorry; yes.  Everybody is welcome; I mean, sorry Aamir - can you tell me on the technical aspects… Okay.  I think I tried to say that we provided them with all the tools that are necessary to allow everybody - negative or positive - so cast his or her vote. 

Secondly, on the threshold you refer to IHEC as well, right?

Journalist: right

SRSG JHP:  IHEC said a number of things about the threshold.  They are right.  The threshold is not a condition to determine the credibility of the election processes.  But obviously, all of us understand that a bad turnout like in 2018 would be extremely harmful in rebuilding public trust.  Secondly, the only thing we said to IHEC is if you use certain formulae for calculating the turnout then just be as transparent as possible because the Iraqi public was not born yesterday.  So, if you try to tweak or to boost the turnout, they will find out soon enough. So, just publish everything so Iraqis have access to all the relevant numbers and percentages.

Q. What concerns us in the last hours is to motivate the citizen to join the electoral process… At the beginning of the talk, you appreciated and praised Sayyid Al-Sistani's speech, which contributed to the reassurance for the Iraqi people and the credibility of the (current) stage. What is required of you is an explicit word to reassure the Iraqi people as a representative of the United Nations, as your word is parallel to the word of reassurance by Sayyid Al-Sistani. The Iraqi people need the UN representation in announcing quick results and preserving the rights of voters. This is an important thing to motivate, and it will motivate a good turnout in the elections. Thank you.

SRSG JHP:  Thank you very much for your question.  I think that the wise words of His Eminence are very relevant for all of us, also for the United Nations. So, act responsibly and cautiously.  There is no alternative.  It's a democracy and even if the electoral environment is very complicated and difficult; seize the moment to cast your vote. 

Secondly, I just made it clear and that although the elections are Iraqi-owned and Iraqi-led, IHEC Federal Court they are in the business of certifying the results; it's not up to the UN, but I will not allow the UN to be used to rubber stamp the elections that cannot be seen as credible.  Okay.

Q: What happened in Sinjar in terms of threatening candidates with weapons, may be repeated in another form on Election Day by putting pressure on voters at gunpoint and forcing them to vote for certain parties, and this may happen in areas other than Sinjar. How will the United Nations deal with that? And how will (the UN) deal with the news circulated two days ago about threatening the candidates in Sinjar? And how does it communicate with the Iraqi government, and does it have specific recommendations or a report on that? Thank you.

SRSG JHP: What happened in Sinjar although very characteristic, very complex situation in Sinjar, it could happen anywhere else in Iraq.  I mean, Iraq, again, has a very complicated political and electoral environment and we cannot shy away from emphasising that.  At the same time, I have been clear. Everyone, every voter, every candidate, every Iraqi, wherever they are - in Iraq, up north or in the south - they should be free to exercise their electoral and democratic rights.  What does that mean?  That means that if there is an incident, that authorities will have to respond immediately. Hence, our coordination and cooperation with the Iraqi authorities.  Also, after incidents.

I'm not sure why you are shaking your head because what would be your silver bullet?  The fact is that all of us have a duty to reach out to any part who think that they should block another person in campaigning or exercising his democratic and electoral rights freely.  So, if you have an alternative for me, you let me know; but I think … what you said.

… And this is exactly why I emphasise our contribution to a process that is credible and sound.  This is exactly why I emphasise also that the government’s efforts are all focused on trying to prevent the events that we all witnessed in 2018. These elections are of great importance for a reason because the public trust is already at an all-time low.  If the experience of 2018 is repeated, it would be detrimental.  So, I agree with you.  This is all I can say.

Q: Ms. Plasschaert, you spoke at length about the role of the UN mission in monitoring the upcoming election process, and here the talk takes us to the special voting and the mechanism for the presence of international observers; the mechanism of their work. Will there be coordination with IHEC in the process of having international observers at special polling stations? As you know, special voting includes specific groups, including the security forces and those in prisons, other than the sick and the displaced. I am here specifically asking about the presence of international observers in the polling stations where security forces vote.

SRSG JHP:  Yes, we are.  I will be, myself, present; as will Ingibjörg, Aamir.  Most of us will be deployed somewhere - I'm not going to tell you where; but you will find us.