Kurdistan Regional Government

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The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) is the ruling body of the area of northern Iraq called the Kurdistan Region or Iraqi Kurdistan. The KRG has been based in Arbil (Kurdish: Hewlêr) since 1992. The KRG has a parliament, elected by popular vote, called the Iraqi Kurdistan National Assembly, and a cabinet composed of the KDP, the PUK and their allies (Iraqi Communist Party, the Socialist Party of Kurdistan etc.). Nechervan Idris Barzani has been prime minister of the KRG since 1999.

Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld meets with Massoud Barzani in Iraqi Kurdistan, on April 12, 2005. Source

The main Kurdish parties and peshmerga cooperated with the US-led coalition during the 2003 invasion of Iraq that led to Hussein's overthrow. Kurdish politicians were represented in the Iraqi governing council. On January 30, 2005 three elections were held in the region: 1) for Transitional National Assembly of Iraq 2) for Iraqi Kurdistan National Assembly and 3) for provincial councils.^[1] The Law of Administration for the State of Iraq for the Transitional Period recognized the autonomy of the Kurdistan Regional Government during the interim between "full sovereignty" and the adoption of a permanent constitution.

The Kurdistan Regional Government currently has constitutionally recognised authority over the provinces of Arbil, Dohuk, and Suleimaniya, as well as de facto authority over parts of Diyala and Ninawa and Kirkuk (at-Ta'mim) provinces.

One particularly difficult issue yet to be resolved is the future boundaries of the region. Many Kurds wish it to be expanded to include the largely Kurdish cities of Mosul and Kirkuk, but this is complicated by the Assyrian, Turkmen and Arab populations of both cities and the opposition of Turkey, which is concerned about the region's potential to break away from Iraq (with possible consequences for its own Kurdish minority). The final boundaries of the autonomous region are set to be decided through a number of referendums before the end of 2007; the referendum on Kirkuk will be held on 15 November 2007.

In the wake of the ratification of the Iraqi constitution in October 2005, Iraqi Kurdistan reconstitutes itself as a Region under the new constitutional framework. Kirkuk's status with respect to the Region should, under that framework, be decided by a simple majority vote in the province.

The Kurdistan regional Government has inaugurated a movement to distinguish itself from the rest of Iraq, entitled "Kurdistan - The Other Iraq", which has some seccessionist leanings.^[2]

The region has recently established a sister state relationship with the US State of Oregon.^[3]

[edit] Opposition

The Kurdistan Regional Government at the beginning of its founding was body which the Kurdish people were fond of, but as the years of its ruling has increased, it has lost its popularity, and currently most people in Kurdistan, and Kurds outside of Iraq, are exasperated with its false democrasy, and "tribal ruling". "A Kurdish writer was thrown into prison for 30 years in a court in Kurdistan just 4 days after the Iraqi elections for swearing at the President of Kurdistan Massoud Barzani. Kurdish media networks are approaching the case nervously and some are even scared to report about the news. Some newspapers haven't even reported about this anti-democracy and human rights decision. The writer's name is (Dr. Kamal Saeed Qadir) and he was put in prison for 2 articles he wrote against the KDP. KDP's tribal mentality are not fit for today's democratic life." .^[4] Under national and international pressure, the KDP was forced to lighten the charges against him.

From Hawlati, a popular local weekly and website (in Kurdish), the KRG "suffers from unability to manage the region" due to "financial corruption" and the KRG being "completely tied to the ruling party".

The Kurdistan Regional Goverment has failed to provide the basic needs of a civilized society, electricity, water and sanitation, fuel, and most other needs. For example in the city of Sulaimanyah, "PUK's stronghold" as called by the BBC, there is a daily electricity providing of 3 hours, and most districts in the city are occasionally out of power due to the overloading of the power systems, which in turn is due to the lack of any acts to renew the power systems. The KRG highly suffers from lack of a thinking body, most of its officials were appointed to their places by relatives in the PUK.

"One might expect the Kurdistan region to be leading the way in the development of Iraq's civil society and infrastructure after more than a dozen years of self-rule. While Kurdistan has flourished on many levels, it lags behind in many areas that are essential for democratic development. In addition, corruption and government control are pervasive, leaving many Kurds feeling helpless, apathetic, and in disbelief that they are living in a "new" Iraq."^[5]

"With no functioning judicial system in place, party members and representatives go about their business free from prosecution."^[6]

"There are signs everywhere of the same government control that was practiced by the regime of Saddam Hussein. Residents in KDP-controlled territory say it is impossible to voice dissent against KDP leaders or their relatives, who are said to have profited immensely from lucrative business deals. Enterprising Kurds say that in order to open a company or secure a permit, a cut, in the form of a payoff or a stake in the business must be paid. "^[7]

The Kurdistan Regional Government has been being criticized non-stop for years, but the officials turn a blind eye on it: "As long as we are allowed to take, we do, and it won't help to change us, the next one's need to be fed as well", this a joke among many Kurdish citizens, it is a quote from a high-ranked KRG official, magnifying the corruption that is going on in that area.