ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The acting governor of Kirkuk on Tuesday limited the celebration of the Kurdish New Year, Newroz, in the province to only three hours, also banning ethnic slogans. The decision was later called off following criticism.
Kurds torch fire on the eve of March 21 to mark the beginning of their New Year and continue celebrating the event for the following three days, with unofficial celebrations lasting for weeks.
However, Acting Governor of Kirkuk Rakan al-Jabouri decided on Tuesday to give Kurds only three hours on March 20, from 4pm-7pm, to celebrate it “without ethnic slogans” or any other slogans that could harm “ethnic and sectarian brotherhood” in the province, according to a ruling a copy of which has been obtained by Rudaw.
Marwan Ibrahim, head of Kirkuk’s media and public relations, told Rudaw later in the day that the decision came after a Kurdish parliamentarian in Baghdad submitted a request asking for celebration permission.
“We do not want the event to cause chaos but bring joy for all [ethnic and religious] groups. Therefore, we have asked our Kurdish brothers to refrain from using strong slogans,” he said, adding that the event will be celebrated on the city’s citadel.
Since taking office in 2017, Jabouri has been widely criticized for his anti-Kurd actions, particularly regarding land disputes between Kurds and Arabs.
Srwa Abdulwahid, head of the Kurdish New Generation bloc in the Iraqi parliament, slammed the governor for the “fascistic” decision, adding that no local authority can ban the celebration of the event.
Following the criticism, Jabouri retracted his ruling, allowing Kurds to celebrate Newroz "anytime and anywhere."
Kirkuk used to be controlled by Kurdish Peshmerga forces; it fell to the hands of the Iraqi forces in October 2017 following an independence referendum by Kurdish authorities in the province and the Kurdistan Region. Since then, Kurds have been unable to freely celebrate ethnic events.
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