Kurdish political parties to meet with President of Kurdistan and head of UNAMI to resolve dispute over election laws

“We should all do our best to hold the elections on time because if we fail to do so it will be bad for the reputation of Kurdistan Region.”
Leaders of Kurdish political parties in a meeting with Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, Head of the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI), Erbil, Kurdistan Region, May 26, 2022. (Photo: UNAMI)
Leaders of Kurdish political parties in a meeting with Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, Head of the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI), Erbil, Kurdistan Region, May 26, 2022. (Photo: UNAMI)

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) - Hemin Hawrami, Deputy Speaker of the Kurdistan Parliament, announced that Kurdish political parties are due to meet on Thursday to try to come to an agreement on the Kurdistan Region’s election laws. In this meeting, the President of the Kurdistan Region, Nechirvan Barzani, and Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, the Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Iraq and Head of the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI), will participate. 

“If the political parties succeed in reaching a compromise over reactivating the Kurdistan Region's Independent High Elections and Referendum Commission (IHERC), we will be able to hold the elections on October 1,” Hawrami explained at a press conference on Friday. 

“We should all do our best to hold the elections on time because if we fail to do so it will be bad for the reputation of Kurdistan Region,” he added. 

Responding to a call by Hennis-Plasschaert, the Kurdish major political parties met on May 26 to discuss their political disagreements and the possibility of reactivating IHERC, so that the elections could be held on time.

"UNAMI invited representatives of political parties in the Kurdistan Region (KR) for a joint closed meeting on Thursday 26 May," Hennis-Plasschaert tweeted. "With the KR (Kurdistan Region) elections scheduled for 1 October 2022, this meeting provides a welcome and timely opportunity for a direct exchange of views."

Read More: UNAMI head invites Kurdish parties for 'joint closed meeting'

Following the May 26 meeting, Samir Ghattas, UNAMI’s Director of Public Information, issued a press release stating that “with Kurdistan Region elections scheduled for October 1, 2022, the meeting provided a timely opportunity for the parties to exchange views on various issues, including the need to move away from divisive politics and the way forward to credible and transparent elections.”

“Serving the interests of the peoples of the Kurdistan Region dominated today's discussions,” the press release added. “Hennis-Plasschaert, thanked the parties for participating, urging continued and stepped-up efforts to tackle the multiple challenges the Kurdistan Region faces.” 

Fundamental disagreements among the political parties over amending the election laws and the form of the IHERC caused serious political disputes among the major Kurdish political parties in the region. 

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