Iraqi Kurdistan parliament passes 'Rojava bill'

Duvar English

In an emergency session organized to discuss Turkey's operation in Syria, the Iraqi Regional Kurdistan Parliament passed a 12-statement resolution with a majority of votes.

Speaker Dr. Rewas Faiq chaired the parliament’s fourth sitting of the autumn session of the first year of the fifth term. The sitting was attended by Deputy Speaker Hemin Hawrami and Secretary Muna Kahveci.

Kurdistan political parties stated that the current situation in Rojava will not serve peaceful coexistence between the ethnic and religious communities of Syria, and will change the demography of the region. It will also result displace hundreds of thousands of civilians and spur the reemergence of terrorist groups.

The resolution stated that "The parliament of Kurdistan does not agree with the war and we want the war to end as soon as possible, and instead we propose a peaceful solution to the conflict through dialogue."

The Kurdistan parliament also strongly condemned the military attacks on ordinary citizens, calling on civilian lives and property as well as civil organizations to be protected.

The bill also stated that "In order to maintain international security and reconciliation and on the basis of international agreements, the Kurdistan parliament calls on the international community and the European Union and regional and international bodies to apply their political pressure and diplomatic pressure to end the war and military campaign against Rojava."

"The Kurdistan parliament recommends the Kurdistan Regional Government, within its capabilities and in cooperation with international organizations, to be prepared to welcome and resettle refugees who come to the Kurdistan Region as a result of the war in the Kurdistan of Rojava.

The Kurdistan parliament urges the Kurdistan Region Presidency to increase diplomatic efforts and coordination with the federal government to unify the position of all political parties in the Kurdistan Region to support peaceful ways of resolving the crises in Rojava.

We call on the Iraqi federal government to work with the KRG to provide part of the funding and resettlement of refugees, as the cooperation and resettlement of new refugees and their management in the KRGs places a heavy burden on the region's administration.

We call on all the diplomatic consulates and diplomatic representations of countries across the region to inform their governments on the current state of Kurdistan's Rojava and its domestic, regional, and international outcomes. We urge them to step up their diplomatic efforts and pressure to stop the military wars, the killing and displacement of civilians. We ask them to encourage all sides to negotiate and reconcile.

The Kurdistan Parliament announces a patriotic campaign to raise funds for Rojava refugees. From a patriotic, humanitarian perspective, and the Kurdish tradition, we call on the people of Kurdistan to do whatever they can or to help refugees and displaced persons through domestic and international institutions and regional government agencies.

The Kurdistan Parliament expresses its deep concern that the radical militia will operate in the same way as in Afrin, where human rights have been violated and demographic changes have already occurred. Efforts must be undertaken to prevent another Afrin-like scenario.

The Kurdish people and other peoples from Syria are entitled to natural, legal and democratic rights. Within the framework of diplomatic efforts to resolve the crises of Syria based on the Geneva Conventions and the UN resolutions and any treaty regarding the Syrian situation, the peoples’ national rights and equality in Syria should be protected within the framework of Syria's new constitution.

The Kurdistan Parliament calls on all political forces in Kurdistan of Rojava to abolish ideological contests, and usher in a new phase of collective action based on the interests of the Kurdish people in Rojava as a whole. They should work following the principle of peace, democracy, dialogue, coexistence and counter-terror for Rojava's Kurdish people.

The Kurdistan Parliament reminds the international community that the withdrawal of international allies and consequent instability in several areas of Rojava Kurdistan obliterated the achievements of the war on terror and against ISIS. The new situation provides leeway for ISIS and other terrorists, thus jeopardizing regional and international peace and security."

The statements have yet to arouse a reaction.