Kurdistan Parliament delegation meet Speaker Mohammad Halbousi and first Deputy Speaker Hassan Kaabi of Iraqi Council of Representatives
A Kurdistan Parliament delegation led by Deputy Speaker Mr. Hemin Hawrami on 4 September had two separate meetings with the Speaker of the Iraqi Council of Representatives, Mr. Mohammad Halbousi, and with the First Deputy Speaker Mr. Hassan Kaabi. Mr. Hawrami raised several recent Iraqi laws that negatively affect the people of Kurdistan and said they should be amended.
At both meetings, the Kurdistan Parliament delegation called for amendment of Article 16 of the Iraqi provincial elections law, which prevents IDPs from casting their votes outside their home towns. A huge number of people, who have become internally displaced due to the war with ISIS and other conflicts, will not be able to vote including IDPs from Kirkuk, Mosul and Shingal.
Deputy Speaker Hawrami also raised their concerns about Iraq’s civil service bill which is currently with the Iraq Parliament’s finance committee. The delegation said that before the Iraqi Parliament votes on the bill, they should look at the Kurdistan Region’s comments on it. They submitted a letter on the matter to Speaker Halbousi from the Speaker of the Kurdistan Parliament, Dr. Rewas Faiq. Speaker Halbousi passed the letter to the Iraqi parliament’s finance committee.
Mr. Hawrami said that the Kurdistan Parliament supports the KRG’s position in its negotiations with the Iraqi government on outstanding problems such as the budget, oil and Kurdistani areas outside the administrative area, of solving the issues according to the Iraqi Constitution.
Speaker Halbousi warmly welcomed the delegation and said, “We will make a concerted effort to help resolve the issues between Erbil and Baghdad.”
The Kurdistan Parliament delegation had a separate meeting with the First Deputy Speaker of the Iraqi Council of Representatives, Mr. Hassan Kaabi. They discussed the current political situation in Iraq and in the wider region and stressed the importance cooperation and strengthening bilateral relations.
First Deputy Speaker Kaabi briefed the delegation on the Iraqi Council of Representatives’ current term and the peaceful coexistence between the diverse religious and ethnic components in the Iraqi Parliament. Mr. Kaabi appreciated the Kurdistani blocs in the iraqi Parliament for their role in improving these relations.
Mr. Hawrami thanked Mr. Kaabi for the warm welcome and discussed the same concerns that he raised with Speaker Halbousi, on Iraqi laws and bills. He said that the views and concerns of the Kurdistan Region should be considered before the passage of Iraqi legislation that affects the people and government of Kurdistan.
