Iraqi Church leaders threaten to boycott elections (Irish Catholic)

Church leaders in Iraq’s Nineveh Plains region have threatened to boycott parliamentary voting unless the election laws are changed to protect the representation of the Christian minority.

Current electoral provisions reserve five parliamentary seats for Christians. But since non-Christians can vote for candidates, the bishops of the “Nineveh Council” argue that the elected candidates do not represent the interests of Christians. The bishops suggest a registry of Christian voters who are eligible to vote for these representatives.

The Nineveh Council statement is signed by leaders of the Roman, Chaldean, and Syrian Catholic churches; the Syrian Orthodox Church, the Assyrian Church of the East, and the Ancient Church of the East.