Thursday, March 17th 2011 Kurdish parliament to discuss budget amid public protests
Erbil, The parliament of Kurdistan is expected to have the first reading of the region’s 2011 budget bill on Thursday in an emergency meeting amid protests in the region over poor public services, unemployment and low living conditions.
The protests which began on February 17 have been predominantly in Sulaimaniyah province and some areas of Erbil province. So far, 8 people have been killed in the protests and about 200 injured in clashes between the demonstrators and the security forces.
It is expected that a larger share of the budget will be dedicated to public service projects, creating jobs and improving the living conditions of the region’s citizens.
The parliament of the Kurdistan Region has formed a committee to look into the demands of the protestors in Sulaimaniyah and the committee is expected to present a 10-point report it prepared through encounters with the protesters.
The parliament of Kurdistan has already met to discuss the 10-point report but has not yet been able to reach consensus between the political factions in the house on the plan of action to follow.
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