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Immigrants challenge Kurds' dream
3.9.2007
By Gregoty.Katz
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September 3, 2007
Erbil-Hewler, Kurdistan region (Iraq), --
Kurds, a people of Indo-European origin who are
predominantly Sunni Muslims, have their own language
and culture and think of themselves as citizens of a
separate country.
They dream of uniting the Kurdish areas in Turkey,
Syria, Iraq and Iran into one homeland. But people
from Baghdad and other troubled parts of Iraq have
the legal right to live in the Kurdistan region.
Nonetheless, the Kurdistan Regional Government has
imposed some control over who migrates into the area
by requiring the newcomers to find sponsors and
undergo extensive security checks when they arrive —
including vehicle searches and, sometimes, body
searches.
So many people are arriving, however, that it is
difficult for the authorities to check every person
and every vehicle. Officials believe insurgents have
sneaked into Kurdistan to plan attacks.
Kurdistan's economic progress has been made possible
by the autonomy gained by the Kurds after an
uprising against Saddam Hussein in 1991. They did
not topple the dictator, but they did win a solid
measure of independence that was buttressed by a
no-fly zone established over the region by U.S. and
British air patrols.
That opened the way for investment that is now
gathering pace. Dozens of office buildings and
apartment houses are being built. Luxury homes are
sprouting on what was open land. Energy companies
have arrived, looking for joint ventures and service
contracts in the oil-rich region, and entrepreneurs
have started hundreds of businesses.
While Iraqis in many parts of the country stay off
the streets after dark, the tea shops and kebab
restaurants in Erbil — well known throughout the
Middle East for excellent barbecue — are packed
until midnight.
But this relative prosperity may be short lived.
Many Kurds believe everything they have accomplished
since they effectively gained autonomy 1991 is
jeopardized by the rising numbers of people coming
from south and central Iraq.
chron com
* Since 1991, the Kurds of Iraq achieved self-rule
in part of the country. Today's teenagers are the
first generation to grow up under Kurdish rule. In
the new Iraqi Constitution, it is referred to as
Kurdistan region. Kurdistan region has all the
trappings of an independent state -- its own
constitution, its own parliament, its own flag, its
own army, its own border, its own border patrol, its
own national anthem, its own education system, its
own International airports, even its own stamp inked
into the passports of visitors.
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