Wednesday, August 29, 2007
Dr. Torhan Al Mufti: It Is Impossible To Implement Article 140 Now
Politics
(Al Qala Newspaper) - 28 AUG - Dr. Torhan Al Mufti, a member of the Kirkuk Governate Council, said that the application of Article 140 of the Constitution cannot be implemented at this time because the government is weak and cannot run the country. He said, “We are not against the original displaced inhabitants of Kirkuk. We call for the [Kirkuk] referendum to be cancelled because the outcome has been [wrongly] determined already. The Turkmen entity members of the Kirkuk Governorate Council have been boycotting the council for ten months.”
In regard to why they have been boycotting the council, Al Mufti said, “The reason behind this boycott is because the Turkmen have not been given a primary role in running Kirkuk and we have been negotiating with the Kurds for four months and we have still not reached any agreement. Recently, the US Councilor in Kirkuk has been heavily involved in the negotiations with the Kurds and he has called on us to end our boycott in exchange for important positions for the Arabs and us. But after the meeting between the Turkmen Front and other Turkmen parties, we have decided to demand we be given the Governor position and to have 32% of the administrative positions in Kirkuk.”
Regarding his opinion of increasing the UN’s role in Iraq, Al Mufti said, “We welcome this development because, frankly, the Iraqi issue needs global involvement in order to reach fair and reasonable solutions. This is particularly true regarding the Kirkuk issue which requires the UN to have a role.” Al Mufti added, “We are waiting for a final answer regarding our demands in Kirkuk and if the answer is negative then we will continue our boycott and we will not be a part of losing our citizens’ rights in Kirkuk.”
In regard to why they have been boycotting the council, Al Mufti said, “The reason behind this boycott is because the Turkmen have not been given a primary role in running Kirkuk and we have been negotiating with the Kurds for four months and we have still not reached any agreement. Recently, the US Councilor in Kirkuk has been heavily involved in the negotiations with the Kurds and he has called on us to end our boycott in exchange for important positions for the Arabs and us. But after the meeting between the Turkmen Front and other Turkmen parties, we have decided to demand we be given the Governor position and to have 32% of the administrative positions in Kirkuk.”
Regarding his opinion of increasing the UN’s role in Iraq, Al Mufti said, “We welcome this development because, frankly, the Iraqi issue needs global involvement in order to reach fair and reasonable solutions. This is particularly true regarding the Kirkuk issue which requires the UN to have a role.” Al Mufti added, “We are waiting for a final answer regarding our demands in Kirkuk and if the answer is negative then we will continue our boycott and we will not be a part of losing our citizens’ rights in Kirkuk.”
Labels: Article 140, Dr. Torhan Al Mufti, Kirkuk, Kirkuk Governate Council, Kurds, Turkmen, U.N.
