Kurdistan’s largest Islamic party to stay in KRG for now
The largest Islamic party in the Kurdistan Region has announced its decision to stay within the current KRG cabinet, but conditioned that the government should improve the livelihood of people.
“The meeting found it necessary for the KIU to connect staying within the government to the improvement of the livelihood of the people. Therefore, it decided to give an ultimatum to the government until January 15, 2018,” Hadi Ali, the KIU spokesperson told the press following a meeting which lasted 13 hours. If these demands are implemented by January 15, 2018, the KIU will remain; otherwise, “it will make its own decision,” he added.
The KIU’s also stated from its meeting readout that “during this [limited] period, a KIU delegation will hand a petition to the government concerning the demands of the people and urge it to immediately make serious decisions. “
Ali announced his party wants the protests of the last few days mainly in Sulaimani province to be investigated.
“The meeting called for the formation of a committee in the Kurdistan parliament to investigate and follow up on the events of the past few days in the towns and cities of the Kurdistan Region in which unfortunately the direction of peaceful and civil protests were derailed resulting in many unwanted and heartbreaking incidents,” he explained.
The desired committee “must also do serious work to immediately free the innocent arrestees and reveal the hand or persons who turned the protests violent and question them according to law and by a court.”
KIU urges the Kurdistan Regional Government to respond to the “rightful demands of the protests by providing salaries on time and improving the living conditions and services in general.”
The KRG’s Ministry of Culture stated on Tuesday that they suspended NRT, a Kurdish news organization, for a week on charges of inciting violence following deadly protests in Sulaimani province. The channel called the KRG decision a “dangerous threat” to press freedom in the Kurdistan Region and Iraq. The outlet's offices were also raided.
KIU called for an end to “militarization of the cities,” and also rejected “silencing the media outside law.”
The Islamic party with 10 seats is one of the five parties who formed the so-called broad-based coalition government following the 2013 parliamentary elections.
Gorran and the smaller Islamic Group (Komal) on Wednesday announced they would withdraw from the KRG after they had lost “hope” for the other parties to bring about reform or fight corruption.
The KIU, however, is known to have taken a line that is close to the two main ruling parties in the past few years, namely with the powerful Kurdistan Democratic Party of Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani, and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan of Deputy Prime Minister Qubad Talabani.
Asked about the KIU’s stance on elections which the KRG called the parliament last week to set a day for parliamentary and presidential elections within the next three months, Ali responded: ““Election is important, but the current situation has to be deescalated and several issues resolved notably the economic crisis and the living conditions of people.”
“The voters’ registration list has to be cleaned,” he demanded.
The KIU, among other issues, supported the Kurdish vote on independence held on September 25 that triggered the Iraqi military incursion into the disputed or Kurdistani areas such as the oil-rich Kirkuk that is claimed by both Erbil and Baghdad in mid-October, halving KRG’s revenues compared to September.
KIU is a moderate Islamic party whose founding principle is based on non-violent struggle. It was formed when the Kurdistan Region entered into a bloody civil war in 1994. It called on Kurdish parties to stop fighting and instead seek a path of dialogue to resolve their differences.
Angry protesters set ablaze the offices of the five major parties and that of government in the provinces of Sulaimani and Halabja last week including KIU offices.
Gorran with 24 seats, KIU with 10 seats, and Komal with 6 seats entered the KDP-dominated coalition government after the 2013 elections following spending 2009-2013 as official opposition parties.
Anti-government protests which turned violent last Tuesday call for the full payment of delayed or reduced salaries, a fight against widespread corruption, and better basic services such as electricity. The KRG maintains that the loss of oil-fields in Kirkuk, and the continued budget cut by the Iraqi government since early-2014 means they have failed to pay the state salary in full or on time.
