Abbas Ahmed
23 oct 2025
Session summary
Politics, Power, and the Lived Realities of LGBTQ+ People in Kurdistan: the theme of this conference—Power, Politics, and Populism—asks us to reflect not only on how systems govern, but on how those systems include or exclude, protect or punish. And when it comes to LGBTQ+ individuals in Kurdistan, the truth is difficult but undeniable: power has been used to erase us, politics has ignored us, and populism has targeted us. In this talk, Abbas will paint a vivid picture of the situation in Kurdistan where, just last year, the Kurdish Parliament proposed a bill that would effectively criminalize any expression of LGBTQ+ identity. They claimed it was to protect “Kurdish values.” But in reality, it was a political weapon. It sought to ban LGBTQ+ organisations, censor media, block education, and silence advocacy. It attempted to legislate the LGBTQ+ communities’ erasure.
Biography
Abbas Ahmed is a queer activist from Kurdistan, Iraq. For the past six years, Abbas has been working at the intersection of LGBTQ+ rights and sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR), to build safer, more inclusive communities in Kurdistan and across the region. Abbas is the co-founder of HEM, the first exclusively Kurdish queer movement. HEM’s work is deeply rooted in community building—something that has long been lacking and desperately needed. HEM creates spaces where queer individuals feel safe, supported, and connected. They offer temporary housing, access to essential services, and a strong online presence to reach and support people across Kurdistan. The movement is decentralised and collaborative, built on values of interdependence, mutual respect, and collective strength. Before HEM, Abbas worked with IraQueer, where he supported at-risk queer individuals facing increasing legal threats in Iraq. IraQueer provides emergency shelter, cash assistance, and access to HIV medication at a time when it was becoming even more dangerous to be queer—or to advocate for queer rights.
