Sadr delegation seeks coordination with Kurds on Iraqi elections, reconciliation

Sadr delegation seeks coordination with Kurds on Iraqi elections, reconciliation
By Rudaw 50 minutes ago
President Masoud Barzani meets with Muqtada al-Sadr delegation in Erbil. Photo: KRP
President Masoud Barzani meets with Muqtada al-Sadr delegation in Erbil. Photo: KRP
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – A senior Shiite delegation visiting Erbil on Saturday on behalf of leading cleric Muqtada al-Sadr has reportedly presented two projects to the president of the Kurdistan Region in a bid to resolve the existing crisis in the country, including reaching an agreement for elections and approaching national reconciliation in the country after the ISIS war.

The delegation headed by Ahmad Sadr, the cleric’s nephew, has put forward two projects suggested by Sadr related to holding elections across the country after the current Independent High Electoral Commission is replaced by a new one, as demanded by Sadr as part of government reforms, and a new law is in place which could satisfy Iraqis as a whole.

Sadr has long been calling for changes to the election law and the electoral commission whose president is from the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP). Supporters of Sadr have, on his call, marched in the streets of Baghdad many times demanding such government reforms.

Sadr’s party believes the change is in the interests of the Iraqi people demanding the commission be free from political interference.

The next provincial elections are due to be held in September.

The second suggestion presented to the Kurdistan president highlights the need to approach reconciliation among the country’s diverse peoples after the military operation to evict ISIS is over and the group is driven out of the country.

Sadr has also suggested setting up an international account to reconstruct the war-ravaged areas in Iraq and fund the returns of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs).

In a separate statement issued by Barzani’s office after their meeting, it said they discussed the political environment of Iraq, on-the-ground developments against ISIS, and increased cooperation between the Iraqi army and the Peshmerga as they have achieved outstanding triumphs against the terrorist group.

Sadr’s Movement has 34 seats in the Iraqi parliament. It is a member of the Shiite National Alliance that also includes Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi's Dawa Party.

Barzani, the KDP, and the Sadr Movement are staunchly opposed to former PM Nouri al-Maliki making a return to Iraqi politics and governance.

Maliki’s government tried hard to crush the Sadr movement through military operations in 2008, when violence spread to some parts of Iraq, resulting in the imprisonment of some Sadr followers.