Speaker Rewaz Faiq welcomes Iraq’s President Barham Salih to Kurdistan Parliament

Speaker Dr. Rewas Faiq on 18 September welcomed the President of Iraq Dr. Barham Salih to the Kurdistan Parliament.  as part of his visit to the Kurdistan Region. Speaker Faiq asked President Salih to help the Kurdistan Regional Government and the Iraqi Government in their current negotiations to reach a final agreement on outstanding issues. President Salih said, “It is the Constitution that brings us together to create mutual understanding between all Iraqis, and to reach agreement.  The only choice that we have is dialogue, agreement and mutal understanding.”

Kurdistan Parliament’s Deputy Speaker Hemin Hawrami, Secretary Muna Kahvecim the heads of the parliamentary blocks, and Iraq’s Finance Minister Dr. Fuad Hussein also took part in the meeting with President Salih.

President Salih said that the Kurdistan Parliament is a constitutional institution for enacting laws and scrutinizing the Kurdistan Regional Government, according to the Iraqi Constitution that the majority of the Iraqis voted for in 2005. The Kurdistan Parliament plays a key role in formulating the partnership between the Kurdistan Region and Iraq, he added.

President Salih said, “It is the Constitution that brings us together to create mutual understanding between all Iraqis, and to reach agreement.  The only choice that we have is dialogue, agreement and mutal understanding.”

Speaker Faiq thanked the Iraqi President for his visit to the Kurdistan Region and the Kurdistan Parliament. She said that the Iraqi Constitution guarantees the rights of all Iraqis including the Kurdish people and other components, and that any law passed by the Iraqi Council of Representatives (ICOR) that contradicts the Constitution, is against the Constitution itself.

Dr. Faiq said, “Passing laws such as the Civil Service Law, the Provincial Elections Law and the Financial Management Law is against the Iraqi Constitution. That is why we call on you as the Iraqi President to play your effective role to protect the constitutional rights of the people of Kurdistan Region, and also to protect the financial dues of the Region in Iraq’s 2020 budget.”

The Speaker also asked the Iraqi President to help bring the views of Erbil and Baghdad together to reach a final agreement, in the interests of the people of Iraq and the Kurdistan Region.

Deputy Speaker Hawrami outlined the relations between the Kurdistani blocs in the ICOR with the MPs of the Kurdistan Parliament, and said that mechanisms are being established to increase cooperation between the two parliaments.