Iraq
The Federal Supreme Court (left) and the Supreme Judicial Council (right) buildings. Graphic: Rudaw
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iraq’s Federal Supreme Court on Wednesday defended its authority, stating that the Iraqi constitution stipulates that its rulings are “final and binding for all authorities.” The move came after the Supreme Judicial Council of Iraq had earlier in the day argued that the court’s suspension of three recently amended laws was premature.
Drawing on Article 94 of Iraq’s 2005 Constitution, the top court charged that its decisions are “protected from appeal,” underscoring that their implementation is mandatory.
The federal court had a day prior temporarily suspended the implementation of three laws concerning general amnesty, personal status, and the return of land confiscated under the Baath regime to its original Kurdish owners.
The Supreme Judicial Council on Wednesday responded to the Federal Supreme Court stating that a law “must be published in the Official Gazette before it can be constitutionally challenged,” thus noting that the court’s decision is “premature and irrelevant.”
Kurdish, Shiite, and Sunni lawmakers last year introduced three bills which sparked several episodes of political bickering in the Iraqi parliament that led to delays in their passage. However, in a surprising move on January 21, the legislators agreed to pass all three bills ending months of disputes.
The general amnesty bill, submitted by Sunni lawmakers, seeks to amend the 2016 law’s definition of affiliation with terrorist organizations. The latter amendment was a key prerequisite by Iraq’s Sunni blocs for joining the ruling State Administration Coalition. Sunnis argue that thousands from their community have been unjustly imprisoned in Shiite-dominated Iraq since 2003 over alleged terrorism links.
The court ruling came after nearly a dozen lawmakers filed a complaint at the federal court, arguing that the voting procedures on the three draft laws were invalid. Independent member of parliament Bassim Khashan - who was among the lawmakers who filed the lawsuit challenging the amendments - told Rudaw that the simultaneous vote on the bills was unconstitutional, arguing that they ought to have been voted on separately.
The predominantly Sunni province of Anbar on Tuesday announced a disruption of work for three days while Nineveh and Saladin provinces announced a one day suspension on Wednesday in protest of the federal court’s decision.
In light of the ongoing row between Iraq’s top courts, Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia' al-Sudani on Wednesday urged the State Administration Coalition to meet on Saturday "to discuss the general situation in the country."
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