Peregraf
The Board of Environmental Protection and Improvement (BEPI) of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) has urged the Iraqi Independent High Election Commission (IHEC) to mandate that "individuals, political parties, and organizations" refrain from utilizing public parks and neighborhood gardens for election campaigning. Furthermore, it has been recommended that campaign banners be made from "fabric and paper, rather than flex and nylon," and that tapes should be employed instead of adhesives and nails for mounting these materials.
The deployment of numerous posters, slogans, and images made from flex and nylon during election campaigns by various candidates and political parties, followed by their improper disposal into the environment, constitutes a significant environmental issue in the Kurdistan Region and Iraq.
Abdulrahman Sidiq, the head of the BEPI, has addressed a correspondence to IHEC concerning the "election campaign and environmental guidelines" pertaining to the sixth term of the Kurdistan parliamentary elections.
The head of the BEPI states in the correspondence, "To ensure a balance between the two constitutional rights of citizens, namely the right to vote and the right to a safe living environment, it is essential that, alongside the legislation on environmental protection and enhancement, individuals, political parties, and entities adhere to environmental considerations throughout the election campaign."
The Environmental Board has highlighted several key environmental concerns and guidelines, which include the following:
1. Banners and promotional signage must be made from fabric and paper, avoiding the use of flex and nylon materials.
2. Election campaigning is prohibited in public parks and community gardens.
3. Posters should be affixed using tape rather than glue, and nails must not be employed to secure election banners to trees, which should remain free from any covering by banners.
Kurdistan parliamentary elections scheduled for October 20, 2024. The Iraq’s Independent High Electoral Commission and political parties welcomed the date and are ready to conduct the process and preparations continue.
The Kurdistan Parliament consists of 100 seats and five seats are reserved for the communities. The election will be held in a four constituencies system.
The seats in parliament are divided among the provinces as follows; Erbil province has 34 seats, two of which are for communities, Sulaimaniyah province has 38 seats, two of which are for communities, Duhok province has 25 seats, including one seat for communities, and Halabja province has three seats.
The election has been postponed four times so far. Initially, Nechirvan Barzani, the President of Kurdistan Region of Iraq set October 1, 2022 for the elections, but they were not held on that date. Despite three other times that the KRI President announced for the elections (18 November 2023, 25 February 2024 and 10 June 2024), the elections were not held on those three dates.
Following the first elections on 19 May 1992, no elections for the Kurdistan Parliament have been held within the legal deadline during the three decades of the Kurdistan rule by PUK and PDK.