The parliament convened on Monday to respond to demands from protesters for radical change in the government and governance system.
Seventy-four people have been killed since the protests resumed on Friday, according to the most recent figures from the Human Rights Commission. A wave of unrest broke over southern Iraq at the start of this month as angry Iraqis, acting independent of any political movement or leader, took to the streets to demand government reforms tackling high unemployment, poor provision of services, and rampant corruption. At least 157 people were killed in the first nine days of the month, according to a United Nations report.
Protests resumed on Friday after the Shiite religious observance of Arbaeen, but this time demonstrators want to topple the government, saying this is a “revolution.”
Though the protests are not aligned with any political party and have torched offices of many political parties and armed militias from across the spectrum, prominent leaders like cleric Muqtada al-Sadr have thrown their support behind the demonstrations.
Sadr, whose Sayirun alliance won the 2018 parliamentary election, called on Prime Minister Adil Abdul-Mahdi to announce snap election.
“Brother Adil Abdul-Mahdi must be present at parliament to announce snap election under the auspices of the United Nations and within a legal period which is not long. During this period, all necessary measures shall be taken to change the electoral commission and amend its law,” Sadr tweeted Monday evening.
He also said that existing parties must not be allowed to contest the election unless they have “the acceptance” of the people.
Sadr called on demonstrators not to allow parliament’s decisions on Monday to sway them from their protests because there have been no steps taken towards punishing those “the corrupt.”
The protesters have vowed to continue their demonstrations despite parliament’s decisions today.
In Baghdad, local security forces imposed a fresh curfew in the province, from midnight Monday until 6am.
About a third of parliament’s 329 lawmakers were absent on Monday, but the majority of 222 who were present voted for the “important” measures, according to a statement on the parliament’s website.
The legislature voted to dissolve the provincial councils, except for those within the Kurdistan Region. The governors will remain in place, assuming the roles of the councils, but will be under close scrutiny of the central government. The disputed province of Kirkuk was given special status, allowing MPs from the province to “supervise and monitor the performance of the governor.”
Lawmakers also cancelled special privileges for all senior officials in the government including the top three people – the president, prime minister, and speaker of the parliament.
These measures could remain in place until an election is held.
A new election law is in the works. President Barham Salih said on Monday that the draft law “is the main basis for political and economic reforms in the country.”
He said there should be a deadline set to pass the bill into law and that elections must be done in coordination with the United Nations “to prevent fraud in elections.”
Parliament’s move to open up the constitution to amendments has worried Kurdish parties.
"The rights of Kurds and the Kurdistan Region – guaranteed and specified in the constitution – are all under threat, as per these people's desire,” Hoshyar Zebari, a politburo member of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), told Rudaw’s Hiwa Jamal on Monday night.
Kurds were influential in writing Iraq’s post-Saddam Hussein constitution and secured significant rights in that document.
"The constitution is a social deal between the people who drafted it. One single party cannot act as they desire,” said Zebari, accusing the parliament of bowing to pressure.
He said Iraq’s president, prime minister, and parliament speaker are “ready to offer anything to preserve their status and posts."
"Our only guarantee in the democratic, federal Iraq is this constitution. If we open this we will harm ourselves,” he said, adding that the KDP will soon meet with the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) to discuss the issue.
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