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Iraq's Deputy PM Barham Salih on
Provincial Council Election Law
31.7.2008
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Baghdad Al-Iraqiyah Television in Arabic on 29 July
interviews Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Dr. Barham
Salih.
July
31, 2008
Asked about the Provincial Council Election Law and
the rejection it faced because Article 24 was passed
secretly, Salih says: "There were real problems with
the procedures, especially with voting on a single
article of the law and attaining the legal quorum in
the Council of Representatives. Khalid al-Atiyah and
Arif Tayfur, the two deputy speakers, objected to
this procedure. The management of the parliament
must be on clear bases and enjoy the confidence of
the people and the members. What was passed on that
day did not strengthen the confidence between the
parliamentary blocs or the confidence of the
citizens in the Iraqi Parliament."
Salih says that the Provincial Council Election Law
is important. But the Kirkuk issue, sensitive as it,
should have been handled separately and not thrust
into this law. |
Dr. Barham Saleh Iraq's deputy premier |
However, Salih says,
what happened on that day proved our sound
constitution. The constitution, he adds, was applied
and the problem was tackled by its mechanisms, which
means, he says, there are guarantees in running the
country and no side can force others to follow its
whims.
Defending President Talabani's position on Iraqi
issues, Salih says: "Of course, President Jalal
Talabani is a Kurd. But he is the president of the
Republic of Iraq and everyone far and near testifies
that he tackles all issues,www.ekurd.net
including Kirkuk, with a
sense of patriotism and national responsibility. His
position on this issue is not just because he is a
Kurd. I hope that in discussing Kirkuk or any of
these issues people will not view them as if they
concern the Kurds only and not others as well. We
have agreed on the constitution, which is the
guarantor of Iraqi unity."
"In my opinion," he says, "Arabs, Turkmen, Shi'is,
Sunnis, Christians, Muslims, and Kurds are called
upon to respect this constitution. This law was
rejected by the presidency, and I am not a spokesman
for the presidency, but my reading of the
clarification given to the Council of
representatives is that it was based on a realistic
interpretation of the constitution."
"Let us now come to the political aspect. In my
opinion, we have a big problem in Kirkuk and this
problem is well-known. It represents, in my opinion,
a basic issue that must be determined according to
the mechanisms in the constitution. Kirkuk is
important for Kurds, Turkmen, Arabs, and in fact the
whole of Iraq."
Continuing, Salih says: "We as Iraqis, and I as a
Kurd, also say that we must reach a solution. We
must not maintain a situation that has continued for
40 years. Whoever recalls the recent past will know
that Saddam Husayn used racist tactics to change the
demographic structure of Kirkuk through an operation
he falsely called Arabization. I expect my Arab
brothers to come forth even before the Kurds to
defend Kurdish rights and demand the restoration of
justice and normalcy in Kirkuk. The issue should not
be presented as if it is the Kurds who demands
justice in Kirkuk and the Arabs want to maintain
Saddam Husayn's violations. This does not mean that
the Kurds can exploit the injustice they suffered in
the past to hurt the other components living in
Kirkuk. We must have a concept based on mutual
understanding and accord to resolve the Kirkuk
problem. But it must be on a clear basis, which is
the constitution and Article 140 we agreed upon."
Asked how the Kurdistan Coalition views the Kirkuk
issue, Salih says: "I have been in constant touch
with my brothers in Kurdistan; in Arbil and Al-Sulaymaniyah.
I have also been following public opinion trends
there. What concerns me in my post in Baghdad is
that what happened was not good for strengthening
the concepts of accord and the Iraqi national plan.
"What is more serious is the trend in the Kurdish
leadership towards merger in the Iraqi national
plan. This trend faced a great deal of questioning
and doubts from the Kurdish public. They ask: Are
our Arab allies really serious about the concepts of
national accord and national unity based on accord
and respect of the constitution? "What [Vice
President] Adil Abd-al-Mahdi did and what I expect
[Vice President] Tariq al-Hashimi will do also is to
transform the issue from a Kurdish-Arab issue to a
national issue. The objection to the law did not
just come from the Kurdish president of the
republic. Hopefully, sensible and wise Arab voices
that are concerned about the future of this country
will be able to address the Kurdish public and offer
guarantees. In the end, there are also guarantees in
the constitution. I hope that we will not dig deep
as Kurds or other Iraqi opponents into our own
national or sectarian trenches,www.ekurd.net
since this will be a big
disaster. There is the national margin, and I mean
that the Kurds have an interest in the success of
the democratic national plan in Iraq. This plan
ensures a special place for the Kurds, just as it
ensures it for the other components. We must benefit
from that experience and it must not be repeated.
And in the end, God be praised, the constitution has
proven its feasibility and that there are guarantees
in it that prevent unilateral action or ignoring a
basic part of the Iraqi social and political
equation.
Following a short interval, anchorman Hammadi asks
members of the audience in the studio to pose their
questions.
An unidentified member wonders about the staunch
Kurdish stand on the Kirkuk issue and says why don't
the Kurds make a concession on this issue by joining
the national plan? I believe like many others that
this is an initial step towards the independence of
Kurdistan, he says. Another member says why isn't
there a political accord on the Kirkuk issue?
Responding, Salih says: "I will begin with the
second question. Certainly, there must be an accord
on these issues. This is the basic principle. This
is why I said earlier that there cannot be a
Kurdish, Arab, or Tukrmen solution to Kirkuk. There
can only be an Iraqi solution, which we agree on.
"We agreed on a mechanism in the constitution to
normalize the situation and settle this issue on the
basis of a consensual, legal, and legitimate
mechanism. What happened that day was contrary to
the concept of accord, although there was an agreed
upon provision that was followed. This is a
violation of the spirit of the constitution, because
the constitution is based on accord and the
principle of democratic consensus.
"I return to the first question by the brother who
says that Kurds are only concerned about their
personal interests and do not cooperate within the
Iraqi national plan. I disagree with you on this. We
might differ in defining the Iraqi national plan. If
your definition of the Iraqi national plan and Iraqi
patriotism is ignoring the Kurdish peculiarity and
Kurdish affiliation, I tell you right now that no
Kurd will join this Iraqi national plan. If Iraqi
patriotism means the genocide, deportation, and
Arabization campaigns carried out by Saddam Husayn,
certainly no Kurd will not join this concept of the
Iraqi national plan."
He adds: "Second, the Kurds have the right to
self-determination like all peoples of the world,
including the establishment of a state." He adds:
"Through their elected parliament, the Kurdish
people agreed that the exercise of this right lies
in a democratic federal Iraq."
Continuing, Salih says: "I here in Baghdad as Iraqi
deputy prime minister have a duty to serve Basra,
Al-Anbar, Madinat al-Sadr, Al- Kazimiyah, and Al-A'zamiyah,
just as I serve Al-Sulaymaniyah. But, if by serving
Al-Sulaymaniyah you say that I give priority to
Kurdish interests over Iraqi interests, this is
wrong. There is an inherent link. The interests of
the Kurds lie in the advancement, stability, and
security of Iraq. This is because we live in this
environment and the events have proven that Kurdish
leaders have dealt with the Iraqi national plan on
the basis of this logic."
Replying to a question, Salih denies the charges
that the Kurds want to secede from Iraq and says:
"The Kurds have made the decision to be part of
democratic federal Iraq and to be among the builders
of this state."
Salih reiterates that the Kirkuk problem was created
by Saddam's ethnic cleansing policies and it is up
to the Arabs in Iraq to reassure their Kurdish
brethren, especially in Kirkuk, that new Iraq will
not go back to those policies.
Following another short interval, anchorman Hammadi
says that Kurds are said to be behind the disruption
of the Oil and Gas Law by concluding oil contracts
in the Kurdistan region. Salih says: "Certainly,
there are problems between the Iraqi Kurdistan
region and the Iraqi Oil Ministry. We agreed in
February 2007 on a draft law, which was passed in
the cabinet with the approval of the Kurdistan
Coalition. But this draft law also depended on the
approval of the National Oil Company Law, the Oil
Ministry Law and other essential supplements."
Salih says that all the Kurdish leaders are now in
Baghdad to resolve this issue. He also says: "The
entire country needs the Oil Law and I will tell you
why. Iraq has large oil resources. We are still
exporting only 2 million barrels a day. We want to
greatly improve the oil sector. If we managed it to
develop it through new modern methods we could
increase production to 6 million barrels a day. In
light of the high oil prices, this will be a source
of big revenue for the country. Every province and
district in Iraq will have a share from the
augmented revenues."
He adds: "As I said, the Kurdish leaders are in
Baghdad now. We will enter into serious talks and
discussions with the other parties, not just on the
Oil Law. In my opinion, we also need to discuss the
methods of running the country. It is clear that we
have inherited many problems from the previous
period. In that period, we faced security
challenges. God be praised, all indications are the
security situation has improved and we have overcome
the most dangerous phase of these challenges. This
does not mean that we do not still have problems in
some areas. But, by overcoming these security
problems, the country will open up to a chain of
other economic and political challenges. It is time
the national leaders met and discussed all issues:
Our oil relations, the method of running the country
and how to prevent the recurrence of the problems
that occurred last week. In my opinion, the country
is heading for transformations that call for
dialogue."
Asked by an audience member if the US-Iraqi Security
agreement would be signed as submitted or would the
observations made on it in parliament and elsewhere
be considered, Salih says: "I was among those who
took part in preparing the first draft. I say to you
and to history that the US side did not present any
draft or proposals." "Portraying the situation as if
it is a US demand, pressure, or proposal is contrary
to the truth," he says, adding: "Please accept these
words as the truth. The agreement was based on Iraqi
national concepts."
Asked about government performance, Salih says: "Of
course we need to ponder government performance. As
deputy prime minister, I will speak frankly about
this issue. Government performance must be better
than it is now. We may have had good excuses in the
past pertaining to the security situation and the
security challenges that prevented us from
fulfilling our duty as required. But, now with the
improvement of the security situation, the Iraqi
citizen expects his government to do better." Salih
admits that the quota system may have led to the
appointment of incompetent ministers. But it is
hoped that performance will improve with time, he
says...
Salih concludes with the following optimistic note:
"Actually, after the recent incidents and the
dialogues that took place between the political
blocs, a new situation has been created calling for
optimism. The return of Al-Tawafuq Front brothers
[to the cabinet] was also important. Hopefully, this
spring will be a lasting one, because in light of
the challenges we are facing, Iraq is in need for
real understandings. We have differences - and I am
not voicing slogans or anything of the sort - we
have problems and we have differences, but the
challenges awaiting us are also opportunities. We
must get together.
"I say, in light of the national plan that embraces
the Kurds, Arabs, Shi'is, Sunnis and others Iraq is
perhaps the only country in the world that can give
the Kurds more than they want and give the Arabs,
Shi'is, and Sunnis, more than they want. God has
endowed this country with resources that do not
exist in any other country - Natural resources, holy
shrines, agriculture, water, nature, and a giving
people. But I seriously say that it is time we rose
above our disputes, which could be important, but
the opportunities and scopes for progress that await
us are vast. This is closely linked to the method of
leadership and administration. I do not doubt that
the team that is ruling this country is doing its
best to serve this homeland."
Originally published by Al-Iraqiyah TV, Baghdad, in
Arabic 1905 29 July, 2008.
Copyright, respective author or news agency, Al-Iraqiyah
TV, Baghdad | BBC Monitoring
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