The closing statement of the 14th conference of the Kurdistan Democratic Party

ARK News... On the days from 3 to 6 November 2022, our party held its fourteenth conference under the slogan (Freedom, Democracy, Justice) in the city of Duhok, with the participation of 1061 members

According to the scheduled program, the conference commenced with the recitation of verses from the Holy Quran, the performance of the Iraqi national anthem, and the anthem of "Ayi Raqib".

In the beginning, President Barzani gave a speech, in which he indicated that the convening of the conference was delayed due to the war on ISIS, the protection of the territorial integrity of Kurdistan, and the Corona pandemic, he also talked in general about the conditions of the Kurdistan Region, Iraq, the region and the world, and highlighted in his speech two points that were considered a source of pride for his sovereignty during his tenure as president of the Kurdistan Region, the first; The second is to send Peshmerga forces to support Kobani and the holding of the independence referendum of Kurdistan, in another aspect of the speech, he thanked the steadfastness of the Kurdistan Peshmerga forces in their heroic defense during the war against ISIS and the protection of the lands of Kurdistan. He also thanked the people of Kurdistan for their steadfastness and the support of the Peshmerga and related institutions in waging that war.

After that, a documentary film was shown about the comrade leaders who left our world in the interval between the 13th and the 14th Congress, and then the Presidium of the Congress was elected.

Also in the first session, His Excellency President Barzani was re-elected as Chairman of the Kurdistan Democratic Party by unanimous vote, and the conference granted confidence to the first and second Vice-Presidents.

This was followed by reading the political report of the Kurdistan Democratic Party Leadership Council, and the report clearly reviewed the reasons for the delay in holding the conference. In addition to the reasons President Barzani mentioned above, the referendum and the October 16 betrayal and its repercussions were a reason for the delay of the conference.

On the other parts of Kurdistan, the report pointed to support for their legitimate demands, and at the same time, the political forces in the other three parts of Kurdistan were called upon to practice civil struggle in a modern manner.

The three neighboring countries with which we have geographical borders, historical depth, diplomatic understandings, and common economic, commercial, cultural, and social interests were also called upon to seek practically to find a political solution to the Kurdish issue, with the aim of establishing peace, stability, and reconstruction of the region in general, and at the level of Iraq, it was reported that our party is working through the parliament and the Iraqi federal government to legislate, activate and implement a set of important and basic laws to support the federal and democratic system in Iraq, as stated in the Iraqi federal constitution.

After that, the Presidency of the Conference opened the door for the formation of committees for the members of the conference, where the formation of four committees was approved by the conference, which is (the Committee of Procedures, the Program Committee, the Political Report Committee, and the Complaints and Suggestions Committee).

In the second session, which was held on the same day, the committees held intensive and meticulous discussions about the reports, and they were enriched with the observations of the members of the conference. In the first session of the second day of the conference, the reports were presented to the vote after reading them, and they were approved by the conference.

Dear citizens...
Fighting comrades...
The congress considered it necessary, at this stage, to conduct a careful review of the internal system in terms of structure, organization, and relations between party organizations, in line with today’s reality of party work, on the other hand, within the internal system, the name of the Leadership Council was changed to the Central Committee, and the changes included part of the party structure, and the name of the Provincial Leadership Council was changed to (the governorate’s organizational office), and it was decided to establish the Supreme Council of Fighters, as was the increase in the rate of women’s participation in Central Committee with no less than 15% one of the changes to the rules of procedure.

On the second day of the conference, President Barzani proposed the names of 10 of the comrades before the conference, and the ten comrades were elected as members of the Central Committee by direct vote.

Hence, the conference opened the door for candidacy for membership of the Central Committee, where 129 comrades were nominated for the 41 Central Committee membership seats and the 9 reserve seats. On the third and fourth days, the process of electing members of the Central Committee, counting, counting, and reading the votes was conducted by the Independent High Electoral Commission in Iraq and 9 judges in the Kurdistan Region.

It should be noted that the conference approved a set of principles and strategies for the Democratic Party in many areas, the most important of which is working to strengthen the parliamentary system and make the system of government democratic based on the following principles: The people are the source of authority, the separation and balance of powers, the independence, and effectiveness of institutions, the rule of law and the protection of rights, freedoms and women’s rights, in addition to respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms and respect for the principle of transparency, accountability, punishment, and punishment in the system of governance in the region and Iraq. On the other hand, the need to consolidate a model of good governance and respond to provide the best public services to the people of the Kurdistan Region was emphasized.

On the humanitarian and social levels, our party is working on cultural development in a way that is truly reflected in the Kurdistan society and embodies cultural and religious pluralism, acceptance of others, and respect for differences, in order to raise the intellectual, awareness, and patriotic level of Kurdistan.

With regard to Kurdistan, the conference stressed the unity of the ranks and friendly relations with all parties, re-opening a new page for relations, and addressing differences and problems through dialogue and understanding is an important matter.

At the Iraqi level as well, the conference stressed the settlement of outstanding differences that were not addressed and the implementation of the political agreement to form the government concluded with the Iraqi political parties.

Dear Citizens
Fighting comrades.

The Kurdistan Democratic Party considers the success of its conference a success for the will and interests of the people of Kurdistan because the party has always been and will remain the engine of the struggle and the mass struggle of our people in order to achieve the legitimate national rights of the Kurds and the people of Kurdistan. Obtaining rights and preserving constitutional, patriotic, and national benefits is an extension of Barzani’s immortal approach.

The conference also unanimously authorized, His Excellency President Barzani, to identify a comrade of the Yezidi Kurds for membership in the Central Committee of our party.

We congratulate the success of the fourteenth conference of the Kurdistan Democratic Party.

Peace be upon the souls of all the martyrs of the Kurds and the righteous Kurdistan and their leader, the immortal Barzani and brother Idris, the immortal always.

Long live the Kurds... Long live Kurdistan

Kurdistan Democratic Party
6/11/2022

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