KDP sends strong message to Baghdad at end of elections campaign in Erbil
The US, UK, and the UN should not ignore the non-adherence of the Iraqi Constitution anymore, Nechirvan Barzani said at his party's last elections rally ahead of the Iraqi parliamentary elections.
ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – The Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) has sent a message to Iraqi authorities, urging them to respect the constitution and stop delaying its application, especially the articles related to the Kurdistan Region.
During his party’s last elections rally in Erbil, Nechirvan Barzani, the Vice-President of the KDP, called on the Federal Government of Iraq not to delay the implementation of the constitution anymore.
“We remind our Iraqi partners that not abiding by the constitution weakens the relations with Kurdistan,” he said.
“The US, UK, and the UN—who were supervising the writing of the constitution during the formation of Iraqi cabinets [in 2005]—promised the Kurdistan Region that they would guarantee its implementation. However, the Iraqi constitution has not been implemented at all,” Barzani explained.
“They should not ignore the non-adherence of the Iraqi Constitution anymore. Otherwise, it will have a bad reflection on the situation in Iraq and the region,” Barzani warned.
“We have been calling for the application of the constitution and the resolution of issues related to land, budget, and our people’s rights within Iraq for the past 12 years,” Barzani said, adding that authorities in Baghdad have ignored their calls.
“This election is an important event for the Kurdistan Region, and there is a possibility for a formation of new alliances after the polls,” the KDP Vice-President said, calling on all Kurdish parties to work together in Baghdad.
“After the elections, we will return to Iraq to guarantee the rights of the people of the Kurdistan Region and negotiate the realization of the constitution,” Barzani noted.
He also called on the central government to provide a full share of the KRG’s budget, the provision of salaries and military equipment to Peshmerga, and to guarantee the rights of martyrs and victims who suffered during the Anfal campaign.
Barzani also asked Baghdad to compensate the victims of the former Iraqi regime’s crimes as defined in Article 132 of the constitution.
Editing by Karzan Sulaivany