ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - A member of the Iraqi parliament on Sunday filed a lawsuit against the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) to Iraq's top court, claiming that the “rebellious party” has not abided by the rulings of the constitution, requesting its dissolution, and prohibition from holding any public office.
The complaint document filed by Alia Nusaif Jasim, MP of the State of Law coalition, sent to Rudaw on Sunday by her lawyer Muhamed Majid al-Saadi, asks the Iraqi federal supreme court to dissolve the KDP and prohibit its candidate for Iraq’s presidency, Reber Ahmed, and all other members from holding official positions in Iraq, on the basis of disregarding previous rulings from the court, in violation of Article 94 of the Iraqi constitution.
Jasim gives examples of the KDP refusing to abide by the court’s judgment when it ordered the cancellation of the Kurdistan Region’s 2017 referendum, as well as rejecting the decision to outlaw the Region’s oil and gas law in February.
Article 94 of the Iraqi constitution states that “decisions of the federal supreme court are final and binding for all authorities.”
The MP argues that the phrase “all authorities” applies to the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) as well, which is heavily ruled by the KDP.
“It has become the obligation of the venerable Iraqi judiciary, as a preliminary measurement, to isolate and dissolve the party that has rebelled against the Iraqi constitution [KDP], and reject any candidate it presents for the post of president of the republic or any other executive or legislative position in the Iraqi state,” read the document filed by Jasim.
Hoshyar Siwaily, head of KDP’s foreign relations, responded to Jasim’s allegations, stating that there was no legal basis for the accusations against his party, adding that if the court decides to move forward with the complaint, representatives of the KDP will defend the party, as representatives of the KRG have done in previous cases against the Region as well.
The KDP official believed that the lawsuit was bound to fail, stating that the party has always abided by the rulings of the Iraqi constitution. “There is no evidence to prove that the Kurdistan Region has not abided by the federal court. On the contrary, the discussions between the KRG and the Iraqi oil ministry are ongoing and the efforts are in the direction of reaching a mutual agreement to issue an oil and gas law, compatible with the Iraqi constitution,” Siwaily told Rudaw’s Sangar Abdulrahman on Sunday.
The Iraqi top court in February found the Region’s oil and gas law to be “unconstitutional,” therefore striking down the legal basis for the independence of the Kurdistan Region’s oil and gas sector. Kurdish leaders have slammed the decision repeatedly, including President Nechirvan Barzani and PM Masrour Barzani, both key members of the KDP.
The Kurdistan Region’s judicial council on Saturday reiterated the claim that the top Iraqi court is “unconstitutional,” therefore rejecting the court’s ruling against the Region’s oil and gas industry.
The Region held an independence referendum on September 25, 2017, despite ruling from the Iraqi supreme court a week prior to suspend the vote.
In November 2017, the Iraqi Federal Court ruled that the Kurdish independence referendum which was held on September 25 is "unconstitutional" and therefore its results are null and void.
