My interview was scheduled for the evening, and my editors had given
me a long list of sensitive questions to ask Mr Talabani, who was
then General Secretary of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK)
party. Arriving at the house, my photographer and I had expected to
be frisked and interrogated, and yet, the door swung open and we
were greeted by the larger-than-life politician himself, who
welcomed us into his home as if we were long lost relatives.
Over tea and finger-food, Mr Talabani regaled us with startlingly
non-pc jokes about the region, until his wife, Hero Ibrahim Ahmed
joined us. She had returned from a long day’s work at KurdSat, the
Kurdish-language satellite channel. She was wearing an elegant mauve
pantsuit, and suffering from a toothache. Mr Talabani left us
briefly to peep into the kitchen and personally check on the dinner,
a practice he is famous for. He returned holding a mutant cucumber,
which he called his “triplets”. His wife explained that Mr Talabani
was very proud of his cucumber garden, and then teased him about his
rose garden. The invincible revolutionary with a weakness for roses…
This was a little over three years ago. I had the privilege of
interviewing “Mam Jalal” again on 2 May 2006. Everything had
changed, and yet nothing had changed. He greeted me with the same
warmth and exuberance of an uncle, and invited me to spend a day
relaxing with his family in Dukan – a resort town northwest of
Sulaimaniyah, which may be for the Talabanis what Hyannis Port was
for the Kennedys.
Today, Jalal Talabani is the first democratically elected president
of Iraq. The Kurdish struggle has certainly come a long way, and
yet, the leader of the Kurdish resistance remains a man of the
people.
This week at Dukan, he held a lunch in honor of 250 artists,
writers, filmmakers and journalists from across the Middle East, who
had come to Iraqi Kurdistan to participate in the annual Al Mada
Cultural Festival. There were no formalities, no strip searches, no
metal detectors in sight as the Iraqi President mingled with his
guests, which included Arabs and Kurds alike. In an exclusive
interview, President Talabani outlined the objectives of the new
Iraqi government, and expressed optimism for the future.
Nouri Al Malki is essentially Ibrahim Al Jaafari’s number two man
in the Dawa Party. After so many objections to Jaafari’s performance
as prime minister, why did you settle on Al Malki ?
We don’t believe that either of them is bad. But we did have some
objections to Jaafari’s initiatives. It’s nothing personal, and it’s
not about exchanging a bad prime minister for a good one. Moreover,
we believe the United Iraqi Alliance (UIA) had the right to choose
their candidate for prime minister, and we respect their choice. We
will do our best to make his work easier, and ensure his success, in
the interest of Iraq and the Iraqi people.
But you had thoroughly objected to Al Jaafari’s re-nomination as
prime minister… Look, there was a point of view that the UIA should
choose a new candidate for prime minister. That’s all. The new
cabinet will start their work on the basis of an agreement reached
by the different groups. The most important thing is that the work
of the government will be carried out collectively. It will not be a
one-man-show by the prime minister. It will be a collective effort
by the ministers’ council. In that frame, we will help and support
the new prime minister to fulfill his duties.
What plan have you set to deal with the rising insurgency?
First of all, there is the Political Council for National Security,
which consists of representatives from all groups in the parliament,
and is headed by the President. This Council will devise a
comprehensive plan to fight terror and insurgency in the country. We
believe that when all the groups are working together, cohesively,
it will close the doors, or at least narrow the path for insurgents
to conduct their activities. It will start dialogue with those who
want to end violence and participate in a peaceful democratic
process.
This comprehensive plan shall not be limited to security issues
alone; it shall also include putting together a robust economic
development policy that will improve the lives of our citizens.
There are reports that elements within the Ministry of Interior are
involved in acts of terror…
Let us look to the future. We will work together in the new cabinet
and set a plan whereby every ministry can contribute in defeating
terrorism. Where there is a problem, the government will study it
and choose a best way to solve it.
I’ve heard that the Kurdish regional administrations have hired a
British firm to monitor the activities of their ministries in a bid
to curb corruption. Will this be done for the Iraqi ministries?
No, there will not be foreign monitoring. We don’t need this. The
new government of Iraq will pay great attention to this problem, and
the cabinet will put a plan in place. The government and the cabinet
plan on controlling corruption and they will take any measure to
stop it. We are serious about tackling corruption; we all understand
that we need accountable institutions of government that are
transparent. We owe it to our citizens to be open with them; we are
after all working for them.
There is some controversy surrounding the peshmergas, as your
political opponents claim they are militias.
Some people can claim what they want… But the peshmergas are not
militias. They were forces who defended the Kurdish people of Iraq,
and fought in the struggle against the dictatorship. And now, they
are part of the national defense of Iraq. They have been integrated
into the police, the border guards, army and national guards. We
have a constitution and in this constitution, we solve all the
issues related to Kurdistan, and especially with regards to Kirkuk.
How do you feel about the future of Iraq?
I am optimistic. I am sure that all the political forces across Iraq
have learned from the experience of the last crisis and all of them
are now sure that unity is best for the Iraqi people. And now, even
those Iraqi groups that use the gun have come to see that there is
no other way to solve the problems of Iraq except through the
political process. As I said, we have direct contact with some of
them, and we are doing our best to push them to be part of the
political process.
I am optimistic that this year we will see real progress in
eradicating the terrorists from our country. We will strengthen our
governing capacity, strengthen our army and security services as
well as rebuild our infrastructure to provide the best services we
can to our citizens. Especially since the local people have started
to understand the dangers associated with terrorism, and have come
forward to help the Iraqi Security Forces.
Have you reached an agreement over the ministries of Interior and
Defense?
I think we all agree that within all the groups, alliances and
coalitions, whether Sunni or Shia, we have some capable and loyal
people. There are reasonable people who are able to think about the
good of the nation and such people can handle these two important
portfolios of Defense and Interior. .. I think most of us have
candidates in mind, and perspectives about all the problems. But it
is not going to be candidates alone that will resolve the problems
of this or any ministry.
We need to build up our ministries as institutions. We must move
beyond the cult of personalities. All of these issues, however, will
be solved during the ongoing discussions. I think it will not be too
big a problem. Anyway, the main crisis is behind us. After this,
everything can be solved through discussion and meetings, because
now we have a very good basis of trust on which to operate.
Are the two Kurdish administrations facing problems in unifying?
There are no problems, and in the coming few days, we will see the
Kurdistan parliament in session, and the unity government of
Kurdistan will be announced.
Some Kurds complain that the Kurdish leadership has abandoned them
and put most of their focus and energy in Baghdad.
Sulaimaniyah is part of Kurdistan and Kurdistan is part of Iraq. I
think the president of Iraq should pay great attention to all cities
and I am not forgetting Sulaimaniyah. As you see, from time to time,
I am here, and I have meetings with my colleagues in the politburo
and I have meetings with the cadres and the people of Kurdistan… And
at the same time, if I have the chance, I will visit other parts of
the country. Nobody should be afraid that I have forgotten my
hometown.
soma-digest com Top |
® 
