Iraqi government says it cannot implement Article 140 of Constitution

Article 140 states it is the responsibility of the Iraqi government to "perform a census and conclude through referenda in Kirkuk and other disputed territories the will of their citizens, by a date not to exceed the 31st of December 2007.”

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region (Kurdistan 24) – The Iraqi government, in a letter to the Kirkuk Provincial Council, claimed the government "cannot implement" Article 140 of the Iraqi Constitution in Kirkuk.

Recently, the Kirkuk Provincial Council asked the Iraqi government to trigger article 140 of the Constitution in Kirkuk to help "determine the future of the disputed territory between the Kurdistan Region and Iraq."

Article 140 states it is the responsibility of the Iraqi government to "perform a census and conclude through referenda in Kirkuk and other disputed territories the will of their citizens, by a date not to exceed the 31st of December 2007.”

In an official letter, the Iraqi General Secretariat at the Council of Ministers stressed its refusal to hold a referendum in Kirkuk due to "the non-fulfillment of its conditions," referring to the parameters defined in Article 140 and Article 120 regarding the need to complete a census in the county.

Rebwar Talabani, Head of the Kirkuk Provincial Council, told Kurdistan 24 the Iraqi government has "no intention" of implementing the Constitution, saying there is "no option left for [Kurds] but to use other means outside of the constitutional framework" to determine Kirkuk's future.

“We will present our recommendation to the Kurdistan Region's leadership to finally decide on the future of Kirkuk, either by participating in the referendum for independence on September 25 or through a separate referendum,” Talabani said.

 

Editing by G.H. Renaud