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Kurdistan's and Iraq's parliamentarians
renew support for federalism
11.7.2007
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Conference on federalism opens in Iraqi Kurdistan
July
11, 2007
Erbil-Hewler, Kurdistan region (Iraq), --
Shiite and Kurdish politicians Tuesday renewed their
support for the establishment of federal regions in
the country, saying such a move could help in easing
sectarian tension.
The officials made their comments at the opening of
a seven-day conference about federalism held in
Erbil, the capital of Kurdistan autonomous region.
For the first time brought together members of
Kurdistan’s regional parliament and Iraq’s federal
parliament.
At the opening of the conference, Kosrat Rasul,
Vice-President of the Kurdistan Region, said,
“Through dialogue and negotiation we can find a
solution to Iraq’s problems.” He added, “I’m certain
that federalism is the most viable solution for Iraq
as it has succeeded in many other countries around
the world.”
Sunni legislators, who oppose federalism, were
invited but did not show up.
"The conference will give suggestions and ideas of
how federalism can be implemented in Iraq in a way
that guarantees its success in the future," said
Iraq's acting parliament speaker, Khaled al-Attiyah.
Kosrat Rassoul, vice president of the Kurdish
region, said federalism "is a successful
administrative system in all the countries that
implement it."
"When 80 percent of the Iraqis voted in favor of the
new constitution they chose this system. Kurds are
getting more attached to this principle," he said.
This first joint conference between members of the
Iraqi Council of Representatives (ICR, the federal
parliament) and the Kurdistan National Assembly (KNA,
Kurdistan’s regional parliament) gives the
parliamentarians the opportunity to review the
practical implications of federalism. They will look
at the distribution of powers and responsibilities
among different levels of government.
Shiites and Kurds are Iraq's strongest proponents of
federalism, enshrined in a new constitution adopted
in 2005. Iraq's Kurds and Shiites form about 80
percent of Iraq's 26 million population. They
suffered the most under Saddam Hussein's ousted
Sunni-led regime.
Sunni Arabs, however, see federalism as a prelude to
partitioning the country into a Kurdish north, a
Shiite south, leaving them in a central Iraq bereft
of oil and other natural resources.
Former human rights minister Bakhtiar Amin, a Kurd,
said Iraqis "prejudge matters but I am confident
that federalism is a way to solve some of the
problems and reduce the level of tension."
U.N. representative in Iraq, Ashraf Qazi, said the
United Nations brought experts to Iraq in order to
teach Iraqis how federalism can be successfully
implemented. He added that no matter what amendments
are made to the constitution, Iraq will be a federal
state.
Sheikh Khaled Al Attiyah, Speaker of the Iraqi
Council of Representatives, said that the Iraqi
people had decided to embrace the future, bolstered
by the twin supports of federalism and democracy. He
added, “The bitter experience of the Iraqi people
and the difficulties we suffered under Saddam
Hussein have made us all the more determined to
achieve this vision of the future. The attempts by
the terrorists will fail and serve only to make the
people of Iraq support the constitution more.”
Through discussions with experts from Kurdistan and
visiting experts from federal and devolved
countries, the parliamentarians will look at how
responsibility and authority are distributed in many
areas, including political representation, taxation,
public spending, natural resources, protection of
individual rights and freedoms, education, and
cultural and religious affairs.
Adnan Mufti, Speaker of the KNA, said “Federalism is
the people's answer to dictatorship, and will
conquer the racism and chauvinism of the
terrorists”. He added, “Having overcome our
differences, we have chosen federalism as it is our
only chance for peace on the basis of freedom and
justice”.
The parliamentarians, who are from diverse
communities and political parties, will also have
the opportunity to discuss the report that the Iraqi
Constitutional Review Committee recently presented
to the Iraqi National Assembly. The committee was
established by the Iraqi National Assembly last
September to determine whether the constitution
should be amended.
Senior federal government and Kurdistan Regional
Government officials are also participating in the
conference. Other speakers who addressed the
conference today were Ambassador Maurizio Melani,
Italy’s Ambassador to Iraq; Ambassador Ashraf
Jehangir Qazi, Representative of the UN Secretary
General in Iraq; and Mr Kamel Abu Jaber, former
Jordanian Foreign Minister who attended on behalf of
Prince Hassan Bin Talal.
The conference, called ‘Practical Federalism in
Iraq’ was organised by No Peace Without Justice and
the International Alliance for Justice, both
international NGOs working for the protection of
human rights, justice and democracy. It is also
supported by the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs
and the Kurdistan Regional Government.
AP | krg org
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