The Iraqi Supreme Court issued a ruling on Monday to suspend the referendum at the request of the Iraqi prime minister who asked the court to rule as “unconstitutional” the separation of “any region or province.”
Barzani said the Iraqi constitution, in its preface, stipulates that full commitment to the constitution preserves “free union.” Since Baghdad has failed in this point, the constitution gives Erbil the right to hold the vote, Barzani argued.
He said the reason behind increased global and regional calls to postpone the vote is because everyone thought at the beginning that the Kurdistan Region was using the vote simply as a “pressure card” against Baghdad. He said that thanks to the referendum, the issue is now “top of the agenda” for the international community.
The international community has presented offers to persuade Erbil to postpone the vote, Barzani said. But Kurdistan’s problem is with Baghdad and it is Baghdad that must commit to an agreement, not the international community, he stressed.
Falah Mustafa, the head of the government’s Department for Foreign Affairs, told Rudaw Monday that Turkey, France, and the UN are working on a joint alternative in order to convince the Kurdistan Region to postpone the vote. He stressed that they had not yet received a convincing alternative.
Addressing thousands at the rally, most waving Kurdistan flags, Barzani called on referendum supporters to raise only the flag of Kurdistan and not those of individual political parties, including his own ruling Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP).
