KRG warns parties against using religious sites for elections campaign

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – Political parties and electoral lists running in the Kurdistan Region’s upcoming elections will not be allowed to campaign at religious sites.

Nabaz Ismail, the spokesperson for the Ministry of Endowments and Religious Affairs at the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), underlined in a statement on Monday that political parties should not campaign at religious sites.

He said the Ministry had called on all the political parties and electoral lists participating in the parliamentary polls not to use mosques and other religious sites to promote their lists and candidates.

The Kurdistan Region’s Independent High Electoral and Referendum Commission (IHERC) will penalize any party or list that violates the decision and uses religious sites for their electoral campaign, Ismail warned.

“The Ministry will report and issue formal complaints with the elections commission against any party or candidate that violate the rule,” the ministry’s spokesperson added.

During a meeting with representatives of political parties on Sept. 4, the IHERC announced that it had outlined the guidelines for campaigning in the upcoming regional elections.

“Campaigning will begin tomorrow, will go on for 23 days, and will end 48 hours before the vote,” Aram Najmaddin, the Director of IHERC’s Erbil Office, stated.

He added that parties and candidates are prohibited from advertising in government buildings, public parks, and religious sites.

In a press conference on Sunday, Ismail Khurmali, the spokesperson for the IHERC’s Commissioners Council, reiterated that the Kurdistan Region’s parliamentary elections would be held on Sept. 30 as scheduled.

Political parties and electoral lists were free to launch their campaigns at midnight on Sept. 11.

Editing by Karzan Sulaivany