ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - A Kurdish lawmaker in the Iraqi parliament on Monday urged President Abdul Latif Rashid to intervene and cancel the planned elevation of the disputed Qaratapa subdistrict in Diyala to district status, calling the move unconstitutional and a violation of Article 140, which governs Iraq’s disputed territories. “This step is contrary to Article 140 of the constitution,” lawmaker Karwan Yarwais from the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) told Rudaw. “The administrative boundaries of disputed areas should not be altered while the phases of normalization and referendum for their reunification remain pending.” Yarwais described the move as unconstitutional in a memo sent to Rashid, calling on him to reverse the Diyala governor’s July 16 order to upgrade Qaratapa. The decision would also administratively attach Jabara, Koks, and Kulajo to the new district. The Iraqi planning ministry announced in early July that Minister Mohammed Ali Tamim had approved the elevation following a vote by the Diyala Provincial Council. The change prompted strong backlash from Kurds, who see the move as an attempt to alter the demographics of the disputed province and wrest control from Kurds. However, Diyala’s Provincial Council on Tuesday formally requested the planning ministry to suspend the elevation process, council member Aws al-Mahdawi, the only PUK representative, told Rudaw. He cited Qaratapa’s population being below the required threshold and emphasized the area’s disputed status under Article 140. Additionally, Koks subdistrict is under the control of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) and not Diyala province, which is under federal control. As such, Mahdawi stressed that its inclusion in the plan is “illegal.” Yarwais warned that the governor's decision lacks a constitutional basis and violates Article 110, which he says reserves the power to alter administrative boundaries of high-level units to the federal government. “The governor’s decision was not based on any federal constitutional approval or law issued by parliament,” his memo to President Rashid stated. “Therefore, we request Your Excellency to immediately intervene and issue the necessary guidance to reverse this decision.” Following the fall of Saddam Hussein’s regime, Iraq adopted Article 140 of the constitution to reverse the Baath-era policy of Arabization in disputed Kurdish-populated areas like Qaratapa. Kurdish officials say the article’s incomplete implementation has left these regions vulnerable to renewed attempts at demographic change. The article calls for normalization steps in the disputed areas, including the return of lands and properties to their original owners.
