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"Ray of Hope" as Iraqi Parliament Approves Five Christian Seats

Teresa Neumann : Jun 8, 2010
Staff - Assyrian International News Agency/Persecution.org

"We will now be in a much better legal condition, and much more respected than we were under the persecution and discrimination policies of Saddam times. We are full with hope that all together we will be able to do much more than we had achieved in the last seven years."

(Iraq)—Assyrian International News Agency (AINA) reports that the Christian community in Iraq "may see a ray of hope" as Iraq's Federal Supreme Court has approved the results of the March election which include five Christian seats in the Iraqi parliament.

Iraqi ChristiansAccording to the report, the five Christian seats comprise part of 14 seats in the Iraqi parliament that are held by non-Muslims. The legislature has a total of 325 seats. Last term, Christians only held two seats.

Yonadam Kanna, one of the five Christian Iraqi Parliament members and secretary general of the Assyrian Democratic Movement, was quoted as saying that with larger representation in the legislature, Christians in parliament will push for security, more job opportunities, the end of discrimination policies and compensation for Christians who fled Iraq, to return what was stolen and what was lost.

Said Kanna: "We will now be in a much better legal condition, and much more respected than we were under the persecution and discrimination policies of Saddam times. We are full with hope that all together we will be able to do much more than we had achieved in the last seven years."