Parliament Session adjourned to next Wednesday

INA – Baghdad

Iraqi Parliament adjourned Monday’s session to next Wednesday.

The session was chaired by the First Deputy Speaker of the Parliament Hassan al-Kaabi where 182 MPs have attended, according to a statement by the Parliament Media Department that Iraqi News Agency (INA) received.

Al-Kaabi called on the MPs to attend the sessions to proceed with the required legislations. He pointed to announcing the absentees and deducting a sum of money from each, according to the rules of procedure of the internal system.

According to the statement, the Deputy Speaker Bashir Haddad chaired a part of the session where the Parliament voted on the draft law on the accession of the Republic of Iraq to the International Convention on Load Lines - 1966 and the amended protocol to it – 1988; amended in 2003 and submitted by the Committees of Foreign Relations, Services and Reconstruction in order to adhere to the principles and unified rules regarding loading limits for ships operating on international voyages for the protection of life and property at sea.

The Parliament postponed the vote on the draft law on the accession of the Republic of Iraq to the Convention on Limits of Liability on Maritime Requirements - 1976 in its amended form by Protocol - 1996, including the limits of liability amended therein, and the draft law on ratification of the United Nations Convention on Transparency in Treaty Arbitration between Investors and States that was submitted by the Foreign Relations Committee.

During the sessions, the Parliament postponed the vote on the draft law on ratifying the agreement to accelerate cooperation in the economic field and energy affairs between Iraq and South Korea governments submitted by the committees of foreign relations, oil, energy, wealth, economy and investment.

The statement also included that the Parliament completed the first reading of the draft law ratifying the basic cooperation agreement between Iraq and the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) submitted by the committees of Foreign Relations, Services and Reconstruction in order to promote industrial improvements in developing countries to establish a new international economic order to promote development and cooperation in the industrial field, globally, regionally, nationally and sectoral wise.

The Parliament proceeded with reading the report and discussion of the Cabinet and Ministries draft law submitted by the Legal Committee.

MPs interventions focused on the demand for a thorough study of the draft law, as it contradicts the parliamentary system and limits its authorizations, in addition to that, it gives the executive authority and the Prime Minister more authority which goes against the constitution, in addition to its violation of many laws of ministries and bodies.

In turn, the Legal Committee affirmed that it took the parliament’s proposals and opinions into consideration in order to complete the drafting.

For his part, Al-Haddad directed to continue discussing the draft law of the Cabinet and ministries in order to improve ideas and submitted proposals regarding the law.