Barzani Wants Referendum on Draft Constitution

[Piling]

The Kurdistan Region President, Masoud Barzani, has broken his silence on the heated debate about his future as president, by calling for a referendum on the controversial draft of the region’s constitution.

In the message – which was published on Saturday, May 4 – while Barzani clearly states that he had never called for an extension to his current term, he did not enunciate in clear terms his plans for the upcoming presidential election – whether he will be bidding for a third term.

As Barzani’s second four-year term is ending by 21 September, when the the region’s presidential and parliamentary elections are due, his message comes amid a legal (and political) debate about his eligibility to stand for a third term. The Kurdistan Region’s Presidency stipulates that a president can serve a maximum of two terms, but Barzani’s allies have said that the law is vague and open to interpretation.

“Now that this matter is talked about much, I would like to clarify to our dear citizens that I have neither asked for the amendment of the Presidency Law, nor for an extension to the [current] presidential term or to have the way cleared so I stand again,” Barzani said.

This statement contradicts recent comments by opposition politicians and sections of the media, who last month said that the ruling Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) of Barzani and its coalition partner, the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), discussed with them the prospect of extending Barzani’s current term or allowing him to stand for a third term, a proposal the opposition rejected.

Controversial Constitution

The most important (and clear) part of Barzani’s message was his view on the region’s draft constitution, which was approved back in 2009 in circumstances the opposition consider illegal as the then parliament term had come to an end.

“The constitution has not been voted on in a referendum for many reasons. The process of drafting the constitution was normal and all the stages [of drafting the constitution] were followed. Now, it is the people’s right to decide whether they approve of the constitution or not. The demand [that says] the political parties should decide on the constitution’s draft has no legal basis. This demand is in conflict with the belief in the people’s will and clashes with the concept of democracy,” Barzani said.

The PUK and the three main parliamentary opposition groups – the Change Movement (also known as Gorran), the Kurdistan Islamic Union and the Kurdistan Islamic Group – have called for reviewing the draft constitution, leaving the KDP as the only major party insisting on a referendum.

It is widely believed that if the current constitution is adopted, Barzani can stand for two further terms as the constitution dictates. This is because his previous terms as president will not be counted.

During the anti-government protests in Sulaymaniyah in 2011, the regional parliament agreed to amend the constitution, a decision that was not followed up.

More recently, the PUK and the Change Movement signed a deal in September as part of which they agreed on bringing the constitution back to parliament for amendment, but the PUK has since been criticized for reneging on its promises.

Reaction

The head of Change Movement’s Political Analysis Room, Yusuf Muhammad, was very critical of Barzani’s message.

“From today onwards, none of us should harbour any doubts that this constitutional bill was drafted with a view to prolonging the absolute powers of Barzani and his family [which has led the KDP since its inception in 1946], and so that it allows them to monopolize the essential positions in the executive, judicial, peshmerga, security, administration and economy of Kurdistan for themselves and their subordinates,” Muhammad said in a statement hours after Barzani’s message.

He added that Barzani and his party had failed to either persuade the other parties to allow him stand again or a legal loophole to make this possible.

Change Movement leader Nawshirwan Mustafa said in early April that if the KDP insisted on a referendum on the constitution, it would be making a “historic mistake”.

The PUK is yet to react to Barzani’s message.

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