The Country and Territorialism

Article 1: The Country and Territorialism

Kurdistan is an independent republican State and the sole country and National Territory of the Kurdish Nation. The National Sovereignty of Kurdistan is immutable and non-negotiable; it shall neither be divided nor shared. This Sovereignty is rooted in the historical, cultural, and territorial continuity of Kurdistan as a unified nation.

First: Definition of Sovereignty and Territorialism

1.1. National Sovereignty is the supreme legal authority of the Kurdish Nation over the National Territory of Kurdistan and may be exercised only within the framework of a recognised State vested with full sovereign authority.

1.2. Sovereignty is the foundation of the legitimate political governance of an independent State and provides the basis for statecraft and governing authority in Kurdistan.

1.3. Territorialism means absolute ownership of the entirety of the historical lands of Kurdistan.

1.4. The National Territory of Kurdistan comprises all lands inhabited by the Kurdish Nation throughout history.

Second: The Collective Duty to Uphold Territorialism

2.1. All nationals of Kurdistan bear a legal and national duty to uphold Territorialism and protect National Sovereignty.

2.2. This duty shall be fulfilled through:

a. Active participation in the institutions of Kurdistan;

b. Loyalty to the fundamental principles of the State;

c. Readiness to defend the National Territory in times of peace and war.

Third: Commitment to National Defence Policy

3.1. The State of Kurdistan shall pursue a unified policy of National Defence.

3.2. The State shall, by law:

a. Establish the National Defence Force;

b. Organise the collective participation of the nationals of Kurdistan in National Defence;

c. Ensure coordination between military and civilian institutions.

3.3. The purpose of National Defence is not merely to defend, but actively to safeguard the independence and National Security of Kurdistan.

Fourth: Statecraft and Governing Authority

4.1. The State and the Government constitute the two principal dimensions of political governance in Kurdistan:

a. The State: the permanent structure of Territorialism and National Sovereignty, encompassing the military, educational, financial, and diplomatic instruments of statehood.

b. The Government: the temporary mechanism of political governance through which the country is administered and which is established by general election.

4.2. The Republic of Kurdistan is the State of Kurdistan. The State of Kurdistan derives its legitimacy, as the embodiment of the Kurdish Nation’s historic will for statehood, solely and exclusively from this Constitution. No force, dissenting internal will, or hostile external will may deprive the State of Kurdistan of this legitimacy.

4.3. All nationals and citizens of Kurdistan, by virtue of their Kurdistani Identity, have the right to participate in governing authority through the mechanisms of political participation, including the establishment of political parties and participation in the electoral process, provided that they adhere to the Constitution and the supreme values of Kurdistani society.

Fifth: International Relations and the Protection of Sovereignty

5.1. The State of Kurdistan has the legal right to secure international recognition and membership in the United Nations.

5.2. Subject to its National Interest and National Security, the State of Kurdistan shall participate actively in international treaties and shall be bound to implement them within the framework of its National Sovereignty.

5.3. Every agreement and alliance shall:

a. Be transparent;

b. Be founded upon mutual respect for the Territorialism of Kurdistan;

c. Not weaken the National Sovereignty of Kurdistan.

5.4. Any agreement contrary to the supreme National Interest or National Security of Kurdistan shall be legally null and void.

Sixth: The Constitution as the First Institution of the State of Kurdistan

6.1. The Constitution is the first institution of the State of Kurdistan and lays the political and juridical foundations for all other institutions of the State of Kurdistan.

6.2. This Constitution is the legal and constitutional guardian of the National Territory, National Sovereignty, National Security, and the independent State of Kurdistan.

6.3. The provisions of this Constitution concerning the foundational principles of statecraft and Territorialism are immutable and may not be amended, except for the purpose of strengthening and more effectively implementing those same principles.

6.4. The Constitution of the Republic of Kurdistan is the expression of the general will and common aspiration, as a product of the Collective Wisdom of the Kurdish Nation in Kurdistan, which now, in the depths of its Collective Self, possesses National Personhood. When all these elements are rendered into text, they together constitute the Constitution of the Republic of Kurdistan.

6.5. No law, rule, or decision may be formulated in contradiction with the principles of this Article.

6.6. Any political or social act or activity that threatens the Sovereignty or Territorialism of Kurdistan shall constitute the crime of National Treason and shall be punishable in accordance with law.

Seventh: The Kurdish Language, Territory, and Sovereignty

7.1. The Kurdish language embodies historical continuity and constitutes an inseparable part of the millennia-old National Identity and National Territory of Kurdistan.

7.2. Every region of Kurdistan, including those regions in which the Kurdish Nation has been reduced to a minority, constitutes an inseparable part of the territory of Kurdistan. No demographic or legal change shall alter this fact.

7.3. No hierarchy of superiority or inferiority among the dialects of the Kurdish language shall be recognised. No single Kurdish dialect, standing alone, constitutes the Kurdish language. Rather, Kurdish is a dialect continuum comprising the totality of all Kurdish dialects, and the official status of the Kurdish language extends to them all.

7.4. Throughout Kurdistan, the Kurdish language shall:

a. Be the official language of education and instruction;

b. Be used at every level of education;

c. Be learned by all inhabitants of Kurdistan;

d. Be supported through the establishment by the State of Kurdistan of the “National Academy of the Kurdish Language”, which shall be responsible for the standardisation, development, and facilitation of the official register of the Kurdish language within State institutions and public spaces, in a manner that facilitates mutual understanding throughout society while respecting the multidialectal character of the Kurdish language.

7.5. All Kurds who have lost their Kurdish language as a result of linguistic assimilation or language shift shall not thereby cease to be Kurds. It is the duty of the State of Kurdistan, through an appropriate language policy, to restore the Kurdish language to them and to their subsequent generations.

Eighth: Kurdistan as the National Foundation

8.1. The Sovereignty and Territorialism of Kurdistan transcend the imperial political borders imposed by occupying powers and are the product of the historical struggle of the Kurdish Nation for independence and freedom.

8.2. The Sovereignty of Kurdistan over its National Territory:

a. Arises from the natural and ontological existence of the Kurds;

b. Takes precedence over the will of the international community;

c. Is the product of the perpetual and unceasing will of the Kurdish Nation.

Ninth: Definition of Being Kurd and Being Kurdistani

9.1. Definition of Being Kurd:

a. Being Kurd is the ontological foundation of Kurdish national sentiment and expresses an ancestral, historical, cultural, and territorial bond with the Kurdish Nation.

b. The State of Kurdistan shall institutionally guarantee the protection of the identity of Being Kurd in primary and secondary legislation.

c. For the protection of Being Kurd, a specialised institution for National Identity affairs shall be established and entrusted with determining, protecting, and entrenching the criteria of Being Kurd.

9.2. Means of Transmission of Being Kurd:

a. Being Kurd is transmitted through Kurdish descent, which may derive from both parents or from either parent alone.

b. Being Kurd is affirmed and developed through self-awareness, shared consciousness, and a sense of Kurdish ancestral identity.

c. Being Kurd entails legal and practical adherence to the Constitution of Kurdistan and the National Territorialism of Kurdistan.

d. Being Kurd requires a National Covenant with the State of Kurdistan and commitment to the will for absolute National Sovereignty.

9.3. Definition of Being Kurdistani:

a. Being Kurdistani is a fundamental bond with the National Territory of Kurdistan as the country and land to which the existence and life of the Kurdish person are bound.

b. Being Kurdistani is the legal and constitutional foundation of Kurdistani National Citizenship and guarantees the right to reside and live upon the territory of Kurdistan.

c. Being Kurdistani may be acquired through birth in the territory of Kurdistan to parents holding Kurdistani Citizenship, through long-term residence, or through a Covenant of National Citizenship.

d. Being Kurdistani is linked to acceptance of and loyalty to the Constitution of Kurdistan and acquires formal legal status through the National Identity of Kurdistan.

9.4. Status of the Kurdistani Citizen:

a. The body of Kurdistani citizens comprises Kurds and non-Kurds residing in Kurdistan who hold the status of Citizenship.

b. All citizens of Kurdistan are equal before the law, without distinction as to ancestry, race, sex, religion, belief, language, or social status.

c. All citizens of Kurdistan are equal in the duties, rights, and democratic freedoms defined in the Constitution.

d. Non-Kurds of Kurdistan have the right to preserve their Cultural Identity and Linguistic Identity, provided that they adhere to the Constitution and to the Sovereignty of the National Territory of Kurdistan.

9.5. Duties of the State concerning Being Kurdistani:

a. The State of Kurdistan is responsible for determining the laws and rules relating to Kurdistani Citizenship, the Right of Asylum, the Right of Residence, and all related matters.

b. The State shall maintain a balance between the individual rights of citizens and the protection of the National Identity and National Territory of Kurdistan.

c. A Special Law on Kurdistani Citizenship and National Citizenship shall be enacted by the National Assembly of Kurdistan and shall determine the criteria and conditions governing the acquisition, loss, and restoration of Citizenship.