Bakhtiar Amin
Encyclopedia
Bakhtiar Amin is a Kurdish Iraqi politician who was the Human Rights
Minister in the Iraqi Interim Government
from June 2004 to May 2005.
. He went to university in Sweden
and the Sorbonne
in France
, where he received a master’s degree in international affairs and a doctorate in political geography.
, Amin was the secretary general of the Kurdish Institute and active in the International Alliance for Justice group that campaigned against Saddam Hussein
's human rights violations. In 2001 he was invited to give evidence to the European Parliament
's Committee on Foreign Affairs and Human Rights as an expert on the political and human rights situation there.
He condemned Saddam Hussein
for creating a "museum of crimes, land of sorrow and hopelessness" and said that there will be "generations" of "genetic mutations suffered by the survivors of his chemical, biological and radiological attacks" in Halabja
. He called for the creation of an International Court for Iraq, along the lines of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia
.
Amin then went on to be the director of the Human Rights Coalition in the United States
He went on to found the Iraqi Democracy Institute in the US.
and overthrow of Saddam Hussein
. In September 2003 he was quoted supporting the decision to sanction Al Jazeera
and Al Arabiya
, saying they were "spreading sectarian and racial hatred" and saying a "western democracy would not allow masked gunmen to appear on TV and make direct threats against government officials" In November he was quoted calling for a referendum
to decide whether the death penalty should be restored.
Amin was appointed as the Human Rights Minister in the Iraqi Governing Council
in May 2004, following the resignation of his predecessor, Abdel Basset Turki
. He was reappointed to the Iraqi Interim Government
when that was formed in June 2004.
In September 2004 he was quoted saying that conditions at the Abu Ghraib
prison had "immensely improved" since the Abu Ghraib torture and prisoner abuse
scandal.
In May 2005, following the Iraqi legislative election of January 2005 and the formation of the Iraqi Transitional Government
he was replaced by Narmin Othman
.
Amin's wife, Safia Taleb Ali al-Suhail
, is a prominent female Iraq politician who was appointed as Ambassador to Egypt in 2004 and elected to the Council of Representatives of Iraq in December 2005.
's "Foundation for the Future"
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
Minister in the Iraqi Interim Government
Iraqi Interim Government
The Iraqi Interim Government was created by the United States and its coalition allies as a caretaker government to govern Iraq until the Iraqi Transitional Government was installed following the Iraqi National Assembly election conducted on January 30, 2005...
from June 2004 to May 2005.
Background
Amin was born in KirkukKirkuk
Kirkuk is a city in Iraq and the capital of Kirkuk Governorate.It is located in the Iraqi governorate of Kirkuk, north of the capital, Baghdad...
. He went to university in Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
and the Sorbonne
Sorbonne
The Sorbonne is an edifice of the Latin Quarter, in Paris, France, which has been the historical house of the former University of Paris...
in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, where he received a master’s degree in international affairs and a doctorate in political geography.
Exile
In FranceFrance
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Amin was the secretary general of the Kurdish Institute and active in the International Alliance for Justice group that campaigned against Saddam Hussein
Saddam Hussein
Saddam Hussein Abd al-Majid al-Tikriti was the fifth President of Iraq, serving in this capacity from 16 July 1979 until 9 April 2003...
's human rights violations. In 2001 he was invited to give evidence to the European Parliament
European Parliament
The European Parliament is the directly elected parliamentary institution of the European Union . Together with the Council of the European Union and the Commission, it exercises the legislative function of the EU and it has been described as one of the most powerful legislatures in the world...
's Committee on Foreign Affairs and Human Rights as an expert on the political and human rights situation there.
He condemned Saddam Hussein
Saddam Hussein
Saddam Hussein Abd al-Majid al-Tikriti was the fifth President of Iraq, serving in this capacity from 16 July 1979 until 9 April 2003...
for creating a "museum of crimes, land of sorrow and hopelessness" and said that there will be "generations" of "genetic mutations suffered by the survivors of his chemical, biological and radiological attacks" in Halabja
Halabja
Halabja , is a Kurdish town in Northern Iraq, located about north-east of Baghdad and 8–10 miles from the Iranian border....
. He called for the creation of an International Court for Iraq, along the lines of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia
International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia
The International Tribunal for the Prosecution of Persons Responsible for Serious Violations of International Humanitarian Law Committed in the Territory of the Former Yugoslavia since 1991, more commonly referred to as the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia or ICTY, is a...
.
Amin then went on to be the director of the Human Rights Coalition in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
He went on to found the Iraqi Democracy Institute in the US.
Interim government
Amin returned to Iraq following the 2003 invasion of Iraq2003 invasion of Iraq
The 2003 invasion of Iraq , was the start of the conflict known as the Iraq War, or Operation Iraqi Freedom, in which a combined force of troops from the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia and Poland invaded Iraq and toppled the regime of Saddam Hussein in 21 days of major combat operations...
and overthrow of Saddam Hussein
Saddam Hussein
Saddam Hussein Abd al-Majid al-Tikriti was the fifth President of Iraq, serving in this capacity from 16 July 1979 until 9 April 2003...
. In September 2003 he was quoted supporting the decision to sanction Al Jazeera
Al Jazeera
Al Jazeera is an independent broadcaster owned by the state of Qatar through the Qatar Media Corporation and headquartered in Doha, Qatar...
and Al Arabiya
Al Arabiya
Al Arabiya is a Pan-Arabist Saudi-owned Arabic-language television news channel. Launched on March 3, 2003, the channel is based in Dubai Media City, United Arab Emirates, and is majority-owned by the Saudi broadcaster Middle East Broadcasting Center ....
, saying they were "spreading sectarian and racial hatred" and saying a "western democracy would not allow masked gunmen to appear on TV and make direct threats against government officials" In November he was quoted calling for a referendum
Referendum
A referendum is a direct vote in which an entire electorate is asked to either accept or reject a particular proposal. This may result in the adoption of a new constitution, a constitutional amendment, a law, the recall of an elected official or simply a specific government policy. It is a form of...
to decide whether the death penalty should be restored.
Amin was appointed as the Human Rights Minister in the Iraqi Governing Council
Iraqi Governing Council
The Iraqi Governing Council was the provisional government of Iraq from July 13, 2003 to June 1, 2004. It was established by and served under the United States-led Coalition Provisional Authority...
in May 2004, following the resignation of his predecessor, Abdel Basset Turki
Abdel Basset Turki
Abdel Basset Turki was Minister of Human Rights in the cabinet appointed by the Iraq Interim Governing Council in September 2003. He resigned in April 2004 in protest at the deaths of over 600 Iraqis during the siege of Falluja....
. He was reappointed to the Iraqi Interim Government
Iraqi Interim Government
The Iraqi Interim Government was created by the United States and its coalition allies as a caretaker government to govern Iraq until the Iraqi Transitional Government was installed following the Iraqi National Assembly election conducted on January 30, 2005...
when that was formed in June 2004.
In September 2004 he was quoted saying that conditions at the Abu Ghraib
Abu Ghraib
The city of Abu Ghraib in the Baghdad Governorate of Iraq is located just west of Baghdad's city center, or northwest of Baghdad International Airport. It has a population of 189,000. The old road to Jordan passes through Abu Ghraib...
prison had "immensely improved" since the Abu Ghraib torture and prisoner abuse
Abu Ghraib torture and prisoner abuse
Beginning in 2004, human rights violations in the form of physical, psychological, and sexual abuse, including torture, rape, sodomy, and homicide of prisoners held in the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq came to public attention...
scandal.
In May 2005, following the Iraqi legislative election of January 2005 and the formation of the Iraqi Transitional Government
Iraqi Transitional Government
The Iraqi Transitional Government was the government of Iraq from May 3rd, 2005, when it replaced the Iraqi Interim Government, until May 20th, 2006, when it was replaced by the first permanent government....
he was replaced by Narmin Othman
Narmin Othman
Narmin Othman is the Iraqi Minister for the Environment in the government of Nouri al-Maliki, a post she also held in the Iraqi Transitional Government...
.
Amin's wife, Safia Taleb Ali al-Suhail
Safia Taleb Ali al-Suhail
Safia Taleb Ali al-Suhail is an Iraqi politician and a member of the Council of Representatives of Iraq who was elected in December 2005 for the secular Iraqi National List.- Background :...
, is a prominent female Iraq politician who was appointed as Ambassador to Egypt in 2004 and elected to the Council of Representatives of Iraq in December 2005.
After government
In February 2006, Amin was asked, with two other Muslim former politicians, to select the board of directors for the Broader Middle East and North Africa InitiativeBroader Middle East and North Africa Initiative
The Broader Middle East and North Africa Initiative is a set of projects initiated by G8 and the states in the Middle East and North Africa at the Forum for the Future ....
's "Foundation for the Future"