GORRAN SAYS DATE SET FOR HOLDING REFERENDUM MUST BE POSTPONED

GORRAN SAYS DATE SET FOR HOLDING REFERENDUM MUST BE POSTPONED.

Gorran’s General Assembly convened on Saturday to discuss the financial crisis facing the Kurdistan Region, the political situation and the referendum.

There are certain preconditions which must be met to ensure the legal, proper political, economic, security and social preparation before holding the referendum, according to Gorran.

“Without the legal, proper political and economic, security and social preparation, a decision was issued to hold the referendum on September 25, 2017,” Gorran said.

Gorran further urged the need to sort out territorial disputes in “Kurdistan areas” ahead of the referendum.

Now the time is not ripe for the independence referendum, Gorran said, adding, “it must be presented to the parliament of Kurdistan.”

The region’s parliament has been in recess since Speaker Yousif Mohammed, a Gorran party member, was blocked from entering the Kurdistan Region’s capital city, Erbil, where the Parliament building is located.

There is a need for compromise between Kurdish political parties to break the Kurdistan Parliament stalemate and to let the legislature resume efforts toward amending the law of the Kurdistan Presidency, the movement said.

Gorran expressed opposition to austerity measures put into effect by the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) which has a percentage of employees' salaries withheld as part of plans to cope with financial crisis.

“We call for canceling the system of withholding salaries, which has been imposed against the people of the Kurdistan Region illegally,” Gorran’s statement read.

Gorran wants to know what oil and gas sectors are up to, saying there is lack of “transparency” in oil and gas as well domestic revenue.

The movement stated the date for general elections must stand without any change.

The Kurdistan Region declared on June 7 a plan to hold a referendum on the region’s independence this year on September 25. The announcement came following a meeting between the region’s political parties, not including Gorran and the Kurdistan Islamic Group (KIG).

(NRT)