BBC Monitoring

Iraqi Kurdish journalists have said that they did not expect many changes in the Kurdistan Journalists' Syndicate management board, Rozhnama daily of Wisha Company run by former Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) deputy leader Nawshirwan Mustafa reported on 27 December.

The journalists' claim came as the KJS was holding its second conference in Arbil to elect a new management.

The deputy editor-in-chief of Awene weekly, Shwan Muhammad, said: "The KJS was founded on the basis of a political agreement and there is no room for independent journalists in it. Therefore, we do not expect the conference's outcome to be anything but the re-election of several partisan journalists to the syndicate's management board."

Muhammad called on journalists to form another syndicate on the basis of professional journalism.

Another journalist, Mam Burhan Qani, said: "Although we should not be jumping to conclusions, the KJS's previous work record confirms tha! t we should not expect many changes in the programme of the syndicate and the rotation of the important posts of the syndicate's chairman, his deputy or the KJS council [members]."

The report said that according to unnamed sources, lists were formed and senior posts in the organization were decided on prior to the conference.

The chairman of the KJS, Farhad Awni, rejected claims that the organization had no room for the impendent journalists, saying that 95 per cent of all journalists were members of the organization.

The report said 363 KJS members attended the conference.

Source: Rozhnama, Sulaymaniyah, in Sorani Kurdish 27 Dec 07