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Iraqi Kurdish group calls for referendum on independence
2004-02-26
A group of Iraqi Kurds called Wednesday for a referendum to determine whether Kurds living in the north of the country should form an independent state. "We are an apolitical movement which is trying to make the voice of the people of Kurdistan heard so that they can determine their future," said a spokesman for the Movement for a Referendum in Iraqi Kurdistan. "We have gathered 1,700,000 signatures demanding that a referendum on independence be held amongst people of all religious persuasions aged over 16," said the spokesman, Halkaut Abdullah.
That's a pretty hefty shot across the southerners' bows.
The group, which collected the signatures between January 24 and February 15, was formed after Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein was ousted last April. They have been putting pressure on the two main Kurdish political parties, the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) and the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), which have toned down the Kurds' traditional nationalist aspirations to be part of a federal Iraq.
That's because they're in line for a piece of the pie. If they Shiites get their way, they won't be...
Abdullah said the movement decided to collect the signatures to put pressure on the US and Iraqi authorities, at a conference in late December in the northern city of Erbil attended by 135 members. After meeting with its representatives, interim Governing Council member Mohammad Bahr al-Ulum said Wednesday that he thought any plebicite should not be limited to the Kurdish part of Iraq alone. "I told them the referendum should include the Arabs as well so that they could voice their opinion on this question. I told them to make an official demand so that the Governing Council can respond," he told a press conference.
That's the way the Indonesians tried to run the East Timor plebiscite, isn't it? Worked well for them...
The nationalist group's call comes at a time when the PUK and KDP have been putting pressure on a reluctant Governing Council to allow them to control oil revenues and keep their own armed militia as part of a federalist Iraqi state. Iraqi Kurdistan has enjoyed virtual autonomy since 1991.
Posted by:Fred Pruitt

#5  as Fred said - this is a shot across the Shia's bow - you want the Merkins out and a plebiscite? Guess what? Our end of the country has the majority of the oil...your's has....Shia holy sites...sounds like a fair trade
Posted by: Frank G   2004-2-26 8:06:39 PM  

#4  There's a real reason I always play Turkey in Risk.
Posted by: Shipman   2004-2-26 4:55:44 PM  

#3  They wouldnt declare war on Iraq and the US. Theyd exert heavy pressure on the new Iraqi govt to let them assist in putting down the rebellion. This would be like pushing on an open door, since the new iraqi govt would hardly want to see the Kurds take the oil with them. So the Turks come in nominally on the side of the Iraqi govt against "illegitimate Kurdish rebels" Do you see the US fighting the Turks over this - do you see the EU having problems with it? I dont.

And dont forget theres a large population of ethnic Turks ("Turkmen") in Kirkuk. IF the iraqi govt doesnt invite the Turks in, they can go into Kirkuk as a "humanitarian mission" to stop the purported massacres of Turkmen. Yeah it wont be without diplomatic cost, but it probably doesnt mean losing the EU or becoming a permanent enemy of the US.
Posted by: liberalhawk   2004-2-26 3:10:28 PM  

#2  LH -- good point on "US interests," and I don't see much evidence that Kurdish leaders want full independence. Rather, they want as much autonomy as possible within a federal state. BUT -- do you really think that Turkey would "go to war" over this issue? Turkey may make empty threats, but it would hardly throw everything away over Iraqi Kurdistan. Forget the EU? -- and become an enemy of the US? No way.
Posted by: closet neo-con   2004-2-26 12:02:38 PM  

#1  The reality is no arab iraqis will allow JKurds independence WITH Kirkuk and the northern oil fields. And the Turks would go to war over that. Now if the Kurds want independence WITHOUT Kirkuk and the Northern oil fields, many Iraqi arabs (Chalabi for example) would grant them that, although the Turks might still object. I think they are much better off getting their piece of the pie within an Iraqi state - and lets be clear, its very much in the US interest for them to stay in the Iraqi state - they represent the most solidly democratic, capitalist, and secularist interest in Iraq. Taking them out impacts the balance of politics in rump Iraq very negatively.
Posted by: liberalhawk   2004-2-26 9:19:12 AM  

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