KRG calls on Iraq to facilitate return of displaced from Kurdistan before elections

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region (Kurdistan 24) – Discussions about the upcoming parliamentary elections in Iraq and the Kurdistan Region led Thursday’s meeting in Erbil with Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani and United Nations Representative to Iraq Ján Kubiš.

As the May 12 votes approach, Kubiš said international efforts to create a suitable ground for the Iraqi elections are ongoing but stressed the need for a consensus of all Iraqi political parties, including the signing of a code of honor.

Prime Minister Barzani said it was important that the elections were held on time, calling on Baghdad to facilitate the return of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) from the Kurdistan Region to their homes, according to a statement following the meeting.

He added that some of the IDPs who were previously taken back to their liberated areas by the Iraqi government had returned to camps in the Kurdistan Region because of the lack of services and security in the regions.

The KRG Prime Minister urged the Iraqi government to secure services and provide facilities for the return of IDPs ahead of the elections.

The Region has provided a haven for nearly two million displaced persons and refugees from other parts of Iraq and Syria since the emergence of the Islamic State in mid-2014.

Regarding ties between the KRG and the Iraqi government, Kubiš said he was happy with the progress being made since relations went sour following Kurdistan’s historic Sep. 25 independence referendum, and hoped the relations continue to improve.

Baghdad ignored the results of the vote, where over 92 percent supported secession from Iraq, and responded by imposing a set of punitive measures on the Kurdistan Region.

The embargos included an international flight ban on airports in Kurdistan as well as the use of the military to force Peshmerga from disputed territories, notably in Kirkuk on Oct. 16.

Prime Minister Barzani acknowledged the progress made between Erbil and Baghdad, adding that the central government knows the demands of the people of Kurdistan and their desire to move forward peacefully.