The Union of Kurdistan Journalists (UKJ) in Iraq is appealing a verdict against a local journalist who was sentenced to jail for writing about homosexuals.
Union officials say procedural errors were made when the lawsuit was filed.
Adil Hussein, a trained physician, was sentenced to six months in prison last week by a court in Arbil, the capital of Iraq's Kurdish autonomous region, for his article in a weekly about the health effects of gay sex.
He was found guilty of offending public decency.
UKJ head Zirek Kamal told RFE/RL's Radio Free Iraq that, according to local legislation, justice officials must inform the UKJ about the case before officially charging the journalist, but they did not follow this procedure in Hussein's case.
Union officials say procedural errors were made when the lawsuit was filed.
Adil Hussein, a trained physician, was sentenced to six months in prison last week by a court in Arbil, the capital of Iraq's Kurdish autonomous region, for his article in a weekly about the health effects of gay sex.
He was found guilty of offending public decency.
UKJ head Zirek Kamal told RFE/RL's Radio Free Iraq that, according to local legislation, justice officials must inform the UKJ about the case before officially charging the journalist, but they did not follow this procedure in Hussein's case.
