Suraye organizations submit memorandum to Iraqi consul, demand participation of Iraqi emigrants in November elections and protection of minority quota seats 

BRUSSELS — The Christian quota in the Iraqi electoral system has been a sensitive issue for years, with critics arguing the system is prone to manipulation by non-Christian actors. Chaldean–Syriac–Assyrian political parties have been vocally and repeatedly calling for reform to ensure the right of their people to elect representatives free from the inclusion of votes from outside the component. Furthermore, many Suraye, a inclusive term encompassing Arameans, Assyrians, Chaldeans, and Syriacs, have emigrated since the US invasion of Iraq in 2003. The current election law does not allow them to vote abroad. 

Three Chaldean–Syriac–Assyrian political and social organizations — the European Syriac Union (ESU), Assyrian Democratic Movement (Zowaa), and Assyrian Democratic Organization (ADO) — in collaboration with the Brussels-based Iraqi Refugee Committee, today presented a memorandum to the Consul of the Embassy of the Republic of Iraq in Brussels, Haydar al-Rifai, with the request the Iraqi government address these issues. 

The memorandum, entitled The Election Demands of Our People, contains two main demands of the Chaldean–Syriac–Assyrian people. The four organization call for the restoration of the right of Iraqi emigrants to vote in the upcoming parliamentary elections, scheduled for 11 November 2025, and the protection of the quotas of smaller components to guarantee their rights. 

According to the European Syriac Union on its official Facebook page, the Iraqi consul expressed his understanding and hope that such technical obstacles linked to the electoral process and voting cards can be overcome quickly. He also stressed the importance of all Iraqi diaspora communities to unite in the claim for their right to participate in the Iraqi November parliament elections.