Kurdistan-Iraq
The two major Kurdish parties fought a major war
with one another 1994-1997, during which Massoud
Barzani of the Kurdistan Democratic Party allied
with Saddam Hussein and invited Baath tanks up into
Erbil and Sulaimaniyah. Later on Barzani and his
enemy, Jalal Talabani of the Patriotic Union of
Kurdistan, buried the hatchet. But as the Kurdistan
regional government developed, it had a split
personality. Kurdistan unification has been a matter
of lively debate for the past year, and the Kurds
now say they have achieved it.
An observer writes from Iraq:
"Finally, after more than 11 months of discussion,
since the election in January, the PUK and KDP
merged their two governments. This is the
announcement from KurdistanSAT yesterday morning.
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Juan Cole is Professor of History at the University
of Michigan
Photo: JuanCole.com |
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Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani will keep his
position as Prime Minister and his deputy will be
from PUK, but I do not know who it is. The President
remains Massoud.
PUK will run the ministries of Human Rights,
Interior, Justice, Education, Health, Social
Affairs, Water Resources, Transportation,
Reconstruction, Planning and Religious Affairs.
KDP will run the ministries of Peshmerga Affairs,
Agriculture, Finance, Municipalities, Higher
Educating, Electricity, Youth and Sports, Foreign
Affairs and Culture.
My understanding is that there are additional and
less important ministries which will be given to
minority parties. There is a Christian Party of some
sort that may be in government, but it looks like
the Islamic Kurdish party will be locked out.
Surprise, surprise.
The Prime Minister will have a two year term. This
is down from five years as announced in the spring,
and even more reduced from the ten or fifteen years
that Massoud wanted.
The government will be based in Arbil.
I have been told that this finally went through
because there is an understanding around the country
that Jalal will continue as President."
Juan Cole is Professor of History at the University
of Michigan
www.juancole.com
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