Lawmakers brawl in Iraqi Kurdistan parliament, Erbil, January 13, 2020. Photo: Parliament live stream.
HEWLÊR-Erbil, Iraq’s Kurdistan region,— A brawl broke out between a number of lawmakers during a session of Iraqi Kurdistan Parliament on a pension reform bill on Monday.
The Kurdistan Parliament continued to debate the government’s reform plan for a second day on Monday, after seven hours of discussion on Sunday.
A brawl had erupted between two lawmakers from the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and the opposition New Generation Movement (Newey Nwê) during the session.
Live stream footage of the parliament has shown the lawmakers getting involved in the brawl.
The Kurdistan Parliament, however, halted the live stream footage following the scuffle.
New Generation lawmaker Sipan Amedi said a KDP lawmaker had threatened the New Generation lawmakers to remain silent over the pension reform bill.
Amedi added that he did not remain silent and he threw a pen at the KDP lawmaker, noting that a number of KDP lawmakers later attacked them after the live stream of the parliament was cut off.
“They attacked us with punching and kicking,” he said.
Some lawmakers from the KDP and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) mediated during the scuffle, he continued.
Activists and pension beneficiaries have objected to the legislation, which they say primarily benefits senior government officials at the expense of ordinary government workers and people dependent on government social services.
New Generation caucus rejects pensions for high-ranking officials
The New Generation caucus in the Kurdistan Parliament rejected pensions for high-ranking officials as the parliament is debating a pension reform bill.
Head of the New Generation caucus Kazim Faruq said on Monday that the caucus had asked for a form that rejects pensions for the high-ranking officials from the parliament’s presidency, including speaker, deputy speaker and secretary.
Faruq added that the parliament’s presidency had not given them the form.
“We will start with ourselves to sign the form … and we call for the removal of pensions of lawmakers before we talk about the removal of the high-ranking officials’ pensions,” he stated.
The Kurdistan Parliament continues to debate the government’s reform plan for a second day on Monday, after seven hours of discussion on Sunday.
Activists and pension beneficiaries have objected to the legislation, which they say primarily benefits senior government officials at the expense of ordinary government workers and people dependent on government social services.
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