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U.S. plan in Iraq doesn’t address Kurdish group’s concerns
U.S proposals for a unified Iraq can only lead to civil war, according to some members of the main ethnic group in North Iraq.
The U.S. blueprint for Iraq after Saddam Hussein describes a unified country, or a federalist Iraq with minimal autonomy for three different states: the Kurds, the Sunnis and the Shiites. U.S. officials envision a strong federal government that mimics the power-sharing arrangement of the states and the federal government in the United States.
Some Kurds, who make up 20 percent of Iraq’s population, say they already have been oppressed by the Arabs controlling Iraq — and the Arabs controlling Turkey, Syria and Iran — for too long. Now is the time, they say, for an independent Iraqi Kurdistan.
Several Kurds, including Sabah Salih, who was raised in Irbil, Iraq, and is now a professor at Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania, said their people will participate in a new government only if it has the following:
- Inclusion of Kirkuk as part of an autonomous Kurdish region.
- Kurdish control over borders with Syria, Iran and Turkey, including the ability to tax international trade with those countries.
- Kurdish authority to negotiate and contract with foreign companies without the need for approval from the central government.
- No reference to Islam in the new Iraq’s constitution.
As defined by Rebwar Fatah, director of the Internet news journal Kurdish Media and a longtime advocate of Kurdish issues, "Iraq should be made three states with some sort of weak cooperation between them."
Each of these demands creates significant problems in the U.S. effort to mold a peaceful and unified Iraq, while maintaining stability in the volatile Middle East.
Who gets Kirkuk?
The fate of Kirkuk is pivotal to U.S. efforts to create a unified government.
Kirkuk’s proven oil reserves exceed those of Iraq’s other regions. For this reason if no other, the Sunnis and Shiites want Kirkuk’s wealth to become the property of a central government.
"America is siding with the (Arab-controlled interim) government in Baghdad by saying that natural resources belong to all the people of Iraq, regardless of where they are," Salih said. "The Kurdish side wants to see those natural resources, particularly oil in Kurdistan, used primarily for the development of the Kurdish region."
Until the1980 s, the majority of Kirkuk residents were Kurds. This was a problem for Saddam, and he solved it in typical Saddam fashion. Not only did he kill Kurds in Kirkuk, he offered incentives to Iraqi Arabs to move to the city. He also implemented forced relocations of Kurds from the city.
Sunnis and Shiites argue that, because Kurds are no longer a majority, Kirkuk should not be included in the Kurdish district. Kurds argue that, even if they are a minority in Kirkuk, removing the city from the Kurdish district would legitimize Saddam’s brutal tactics.
Fatah put the matter simply:
"There will be no Kurdistan without Kirkuk."
And there can be no Iraq without Kurdistan.
Church-state separation
Almost all Kurds are Islamic. Most Kurds in Iraq are Sunnis, a fact that would seem to point to a natural alliance with the non-Kurd Sunnis in Iraq.
Not so.
The doctrinal division results from the fact that Kurds generally adhere to a different branch of Sunni Islam (Shaf’i) than do other Iraqis. Similarly, Shiite Kurds follow a different school of Shia Islam than do non-Kurds in Iraq.
Unlike most Arabs, Kurds identify themselves through their ethnicity, not their religion. Included in the Kurdish population are Sunnis, Shiites, Jews and Christians.
Kurds believe they can coexist peacefully despite their diverse religious beliefs. And from harsh experience, they believe they cannot coexist peacefully with Arab Muslims, especially if those Muslims are the majority in an Islamic democracy.
That is why Kurds were alarmed when the Coalition Provisional Authority enacted a pre-constitution administrative law that said, "Islam is the official religion of the State and is to be considered a source of legislation."
Salih said Kurds would resort to military action before participating in an Iraq government that incorporates Islam.
"If the central government adopts a constitution containing religious language, or making Islam a part of the state operation in any visible way," Salih said, "then the Kurds will simply withdraw from the federation."
Could the Kurds protect themselves from Iraqi Arabs if civil war breaks out and the United States does not intervene?
"We have been doing so for1 , 000years," said Fatah.
The fear of Arab Muslims is central to Kurdish rejection of an Iraq-wide democracy. Shiites make up the majority in Iraq, and Kurds have little hope that being subject to the Shiites would be an improvement over their previous subjection to Saddam’s Sunnis.
"Iraq has no one Islamic identity," said Fatah. "Kurdish Islam is totally different from that of the Arabs. So religion must not be mixed with politics."
Fear of Arabization
The Kurdish insistence on separation of church and state creates problems for the United States in its relations with other Middle East states. For both religious and economic reasons, Arab states would welcome an Islamic Iraq to their club.
"The Arabs and the Sunnis want to impose this hegemonic identity over Iraq. The Shiites may want this, too. But there is no way the Kurds can accept it," said Salih.
The fear of Arabization shapes how many Kurds view the interim government headed by prime minister Ayad Allawi, a Shiite.
"Most of us think that those in Baghdad are just fooling around. The prime minister is an Arab," said Sardir Zewar, who lives in Iraqi Kurdistan.
Zewar welcomes an extended U.S. presence in Iraq, but only if the United States is serving as the protector of an independent Iraqi Kurdistan.
The Kurdish view of Arab Islam is similar to the view held by many post-Sept. 11 Americans.
"As a Kurd, I do not want to legitimize an Arab government in Iraq," Fatah said, explaining why he objects to an Iraq-wide election. "I have seen enough Arab governments."
Salih agreed.
"The Kurds want the United States to be on their side in their demands for a federal structure in Iraq which recognizes Kurdistan as a separate entity," Salih said. "What the Kurds have been hearing from the U.S. is not very encouraging."
The Turkish problem
As Arab countries go, Turkey is an important U.S. ally. It is a trade partner and a member of NATO, and it permits the United States to maintain an important military base on Arab soil.
Ever since its formation after World War I, Turkey has been in conflict with its Kurdish population. Indeed, a Kurdish group within Turkey is on the secretary of state’s list of terrorist groups. The Turks, like the Syrians, fear an autonomous Iraqi Kurdistan would cause their own Kurds to revolt.
Iran also fears a Kurdish revolution. The fear is apparently justified. To celebrate the signing of an interim constitution in Iraq, tens of thousands of Iranian Kurds gathered in demonstrations.
Kurds have been hostile to Turkey ever since after World War I, when the fledgling country nixed a treaty that would have created an independent Kurdistan.
Kurdish leadership
Many Kurds cite a growing rift between Kurdish leaders and their people. The two main political parties governing the Kurds — the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan and the Kurdistan Democratic Party — support the U.S.-proposed federalist system with a strong central government.
In an August interview with a Swiss newspaper, PUK leader Jalal Talabani said an independent Iraqi Kurdistan, though popular, is unrealistic.
"The Kurdish people, like other peoples in the world, have the right to govern themselves; the right to self-determination is included in this," Talabani said. "But, in reality, it is not possible to establish an independent state."
Asked if the PUK and KDP are at risk of losing power, Fatah responded, "It is not a question of if but when. ... I think they play with fire."
It is because of this rift that most Kurds demand a referendum in which Kurds can vote on whether they are willing to be part of a unified Iraq, or whether they want to form a separate Kurdish state. In an effort to obtain U.N. backing for this desire, Fatah submitted a U.N. petition with 2 million Kurdish signatures.
"The (PUK and KDP) leadership is trying to placate both the United States and the Shiites and the neighboring countries by watering down their demands for some kind of federalism," Salih said. "Instead of serving the Kurdish people, they are serving the interests of the United States."
Dr. Kamal Artin, a Kurd who now practices medicine in California, said he believes the Kurdish people need direct input into their own future.
"I think Kurds should be given the option of federalism or independence in a referendum as part of the election in January," Artin said.
Many Kurds said they expect a new Kurdish party to rise to prominence. "The PUK and KDP are only serving their U.S. masters," Fatah said.
http://www.kurdmedia.com/reports.asp?id=2296
Some Kurds, who make up 20 percent of Iraq’s population, say they already have been oppressed by the Arabs controlling Iraq — and the Arabs controlling Turkey, Syria and Iran — for too long. Now is the time, they say, for an independent Iraqi Kurdistan.
Several Kurds, including Sabah Salih, who was raised in Irbil, Iraq, and is now a professor at Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania, said their people will participate in a new government only if it has the following:
- Inclusion of Kirkuk as part of an autonomous Kurdish region.
- Kurdish control over borders with Syria, Iran and Turkey, including the ability to tax international trade with those countries.
- Kurdish authority to negotiate and contract with foreign companies without the need for approval from the central government.
- No reference to Islam in the new Iraq’s constitution.
As defined by Rebwar Fatah, director of the Internet news journal Kurdish Media and a longtime advocate of Kurdish issues, "Iraq should be made three states with some sort of weak cooperation between them."
Each of these demands creates significant problems in the U.S. effort to mold a peaceful and unified Iraq, while maintaining stability in the volatile Middle East.
Who gets Kirkuk?
The fate of Kirkuk is pivotal to U.S. efforts to create a unified government.
Kirkuk’s proven oil reserves exceed those of Iraq’s other regions. For this reason if no other, the Sunnis and Shiites want Kirkuk’s wealth to become the property of a central government.
"America is siding with the (Arab-controlled interim) government in Baghdad by saying that natural resources belong to all the people of Iraq, regardless of where they are," Salih said. "The Kurdish side wants to see those natural resources, particularly oil in Kurdistan, used primarily for the development of the Kurdish region."
Until the1980 s, the majority of Kirkuk residents were Kurds. This was a problem for Saddam, and he solved it in typical Saddam fashion. Not only did he kill Kurds in Kirkuk, he offered incentives to Iraqi Arabs to move to the city. He also implemented forced relocations of Kurds from the city.
Sunnis and Shiites argue that, because Kurds are no longer a majority, Kirkuk should not be included in the Kurdish district. Kurds argue that, even if they are a minority in Kirkuk, removing the city from the Kurdish district would legitimize Saddam’s brutal tactics.
Fatah put the matter simply:
"There will be no Kurdistan without Kirkuk."
And there can be no Iraq without Kurdistan.
Church-state separation
Almost all Kurds are Islamic. Most Kurds in Iraq are Sunnis, a fact that would seem to point to a natural alliance with the non-Kurd Sunnis in Iraq.
Not so.
The doctrinal division results from the fact that Kurds generally adhere to a different branch of Sunni Islam (Shaf’i) than do other Iraqis. Similarly, Shiite Kurds follow a different school of Shia Islam than do non-Kurds in Iraq.
Unlike most Arabs, Kurds identify themselves through their ethnicity, not their religion. Included in the Kurdish population are Sunnis, Shiites, Jews and Christians.
Kurds believe they can coexist peacefully despite their diverse religious beliefs. And from harsh experience, they believe they cannot coexist peacefully with Arab Muslims, especially if those Muslims are the majority in an Islamic democracy.
That is why Kurds were alarmed when the Coalition Provisional Authority enacted a pre-constitution administrative law that said, "Islam is the official religion of the State and is to be considered a source of legislation."
Salih said Kurds would resort to military action before participating in an Iraq government that incorporates Islam.
"If the central government adopts a constitution containing religious language, or making Islam a part of the state operation in any visible way," Salih said, "then the Kurds will simply withdraw from the federation."
Could the Kurds protect themselves from Iraqi Arabs if civil war breaks out and the United States does not intervene?
"We have been doing so for1 , 000years," said Fatah.
The fear of Arab Muslims is central to Kurdish rejection of an Iraq-wide democracy. Shiites make up the majority in Iraq, and Kurds have little hope that being subject to the Shiites would be an improvement over their previous subjection to Saddam’s Sunnis.
"Iraq has no one Islamic identity," said Fatah. "Kurdish Islam is totally different from that of the Arabs. So religion must not be mixed with politics."
Fear of Arabization
The Kurdish insistence on separation of church and state creates problems for the United States in its relations with other Middle East states. For both religious and economic reasons, Arab states would welcome an Islamic Iraq to their club.
"The Arabs and the Sunnis want to impose this hegemonic identity over Iraq. The Shiites may want this, too. But there is no way the Kurds can accept it," said Salih.
The fear of Arabization shapes how many Kurds view the interim government headed by prime minister Ayad Allawi, a Shiite.
"Most of us think that those in Baghdad are just fooling around. The prime minister is an Arab," said Sardir Zewar, who lives in Iraqi Kurdistan.
Zewar welcomes an extended U.S. presence in Iraq, but only if the United States is serving as the protector of an independent Iraqi Kurdistan.
The Kurdish view of Arab Islam is similar to the view held by many post-Sept. 11 Americans.
"As a Kurd, I do not want to legitimize an Arab government in Iraq," Fatah said, explaining why he objects to an Iraq-wide election. "I have seen enough Arab governments."
Salih agreed.
"The Kurds want the United States to be on their side in their demands for a federal structure in Iraq which recognizes Kurdistan as a separate entity," Salih said. "What the Kurds have been hearing from the U.S. is not very encouraging."
The Turkish problem
As Arab countries go, Turkey is an important U.S. ally. It is a trade partner and a member of NATO, and it permits the United States to maintain an important military base on Arab soil.
Ever since its formation after World War I, Turkey has been in conflict with its Kurdish population. Indeed, a Kurdish group within Turkey is on the secretary of state’s list of terrorist groups. The Turks, like the Syrians, fear an autonomous Iraqi Kurdistan would cause their own Kurds to revolt.
Iran also fears a Kurdish revolution. The fear is apparently justified. To celebrate the signing of an interim constitution in Iraq, tens of thousands of Iranian Kurds gathered in demonstrations.
Kurds have been hostile to Turkey ever since after World War I, when the fledgling country nixed a treaty that would have created an independent Kurdistan.
Kurdish leadership
Many Kurds cite a growing rift between Kurdish leaders and their people. The two main political parties governing the Kurds — the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan and the Kurdistan Democratic Party — support the U.S.-proposed federalist system with a strong central government.
In an August interview with a Swiss newspaper, PUK leader Jalal Talabani said an independent Iraqi Kurdistan, though popular, is unrealistic.
"The Kurdish people, like other peoples in the world, have the right to govern themselves; the right to self-determination is included in this," Talabani said. "But, in reality, it is not possible to establish an independent state."
Asked if the PUK and KDP are at risk of losing power, Fatah responded, "It is not a question of if but when. ... I think they play with fire."
It is because of this rift that most Kurds demand a referendum in which Kurds can vote on whether they are willing to be part of a unified Iraq, or whether they want to form a separate Kurdish state. In an effort to obtain U.N. backing for this desire, Fatah submitted a U.N. petition with 2 million Kurdish signatures.
"The (PUK and KDP) leadership is trying to placate both the United States and the Shiites and the neighboring countries by watering down their demands for some kind of federalism," Salih said. "Instead of serving the Kurdish people, they are serving the interests of the United States."
Dr. Kamal Artin, a Kurd who now practices medicine in California, said he believes the Kurdish people need direct input into their own future.
"I think Kurds should be given the option of federalism or independence in a referendum as part of the election in January," Artin said.
Many Kurds said they expect a new Kurdish party to rise to prominence. "The PUK and KDP are only serving their U.S. masters," Fatah said.
http://www.kurdmedia.com/reports.asp?id=2296
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But we really need teach how current borders came about in schools, and remind people in the media (because people remember about 10% of what they learned in history class). There is always this implication that current borders are natural and long-standing. There are lots of Kurds in germany - Germany outlawed the PKK.