An Iraqi member of parliament has sparked controversy after she was filmed firing shots illegally in the air on New Year's Eve.
Even though MP Wihdah al-Jumaili apologized in a post on her Facebook page, her actions still angered Iraqis all over the country.
Jumaili said she was celebrating the marriage of a friend’s son in Ramadi when the shots were fired. She wrote on Facebook that she shot in the air as “part of tribal practices adopted by tribes in Ramadi,” stressing she used empty bullets.
Jumaili was a member of parliament between 2010 and 2014 and served as a consultant to former Parliament Speaker Salim al-Jabouri. In 2017, she became a member of the High Commission for Human Rights and won a parliamentary seat as a member of the National Axis coalition in the current parliamentary session 2018-2022.
The deputy was strongly criticized by various Iraqi parties and seven lawyers filed a written request on Wednesday to Iraq’s attorney general, urging him to hold the deputy accountable under the Iraqi Penal Code.
Firing a gun in the air is considered an offense under Iraqi law, and under Article 495-2 of the Penal Code, Jumaili could face one to three years in prison.
Mohammed Majid al-Saadi, who is one of the lawyers that filed the complaint, stated that the deputy had actually violated the law, and they informed the prosecutor and were waiting for him to take necessary measures in the coming days.
Saadi ruled out the possibility of parliament lifting the deputy’s immunity in preparation for the prosecution. He confirmed to Asharq al-Awsat that “accountability in this case does not fall within the statute of limitations, so even if the parliament does not lift immunity, we will prosecute her after this parliamentary session ends.”
Many citizens were surprised by the fact that a deputy, who is supposed to set an example for the rest, fired random bullets. According to Ministry of Health figures, a girl was killed and over 700 injured by guns or suffered burns from fireworks on New Year's Eve and New Year's Day.
MP Faiq al-Sheikh Ali sharply criticized Jumaili's actions saying they were not ladylike.
Former colleague and current head of Irada parliamentary bloc, Hanan al-Fatlawi, condemned Jumaili for firing shots, adding on her Twitter account that “celebrating New Year’s Eve does not mean doing these disgraceful acts.”
Legal expert Tariq Harb explained that, according to Iraqi law, it is illegal for an MP to fire shots, if confirmed, regardless of the existence of immunity or not. Considering the video, Harb noted that the video published is enough to convict the MP.
Speaking to Asharq al-Awsat, the expert said that the legal proceedings against the MP were not stopped even with immunity, indicating the possibility to carry on with the proceedings and ask the Judicial Council to request lifting the MP's immunity.
