Ongoing efforts

Halabja council calls on Iraqi president to support governorate recognition

2024-09-09 | 21:09

HALABJA — The Halabja Support Council has called on Iraqi President Abdul Latif Rashid to support the recognition of Halabja as a governorate by the federal government. The council, made up of religious leaders, social figures, and academics from Halabja, is advocating for the city’s official administrative status.

On Monday, the council met with President Rashid as part of their ongoing efforts to push for the city’s recognition. They plan to meet with the prime minister and the Iraqi Parliament’s leadership to continue the discussions.

Iraqi Kurdish MP Chro Hama Sharif, who recently returned to Baghdad, participated in the discussions. “We have engaged in talks with many opposing sides who either have concerns about the mechanism of Halabja becoming a governorate or have demanded that other areas be recognized alongside Halabja,” Sharif told 964media. She noted that the number of opposing views has decreased.

Kurdish parliamentarians are pushing for the draft law to be approved in the current parliamentary session. “We are continuing our lobbying efforts. If we succeed in consolidating the votes and achieving unity among the different parliamentary factions, the approval process will be easier,” Sharif said.

A vote on recognizing Halabja as a governorate was scheduled for Sept. 30, 2023, but was postponed, marking the fourth delay in voting on the law.

The draft law has been read twice in parliament, with some Iraqi lawmakers suggesting the inclusion of other districts for recognition alongside Halabja. On March 13, 2023, the Iraqi Council of Ministers approved the draft law to establish Halabja as a governorate. The first reading took place in parliament on April 2, 2023, followed by a second reading on May 4, 2023. During these sessions, several parliamentarians proposed allocating a budget for the reconstruction of the city and the treatment of victims of chemical attacks.

Halabja, known as “Martyr Halabja” among Kurds, was declared the fourth governorate of the Kurdistan Region by the Kurdistan Regional Government in 2014, alongside Erbil, Sulaymaniyah, and Duhok. However, it remains under Sulaymaniyah’s jurisdiction under Iraqi federal authority.

Located 75 kilometers southeast of Sulaymaniyah, Halabja was attacked with chemical weapons by the Ba’athist regime in 1988, resulting in the deaths of 5,000 people and injuries to over 10,000 others. The long-term effects of the chemical attack continue to impact the city’s residents today.