Prominent Kurdish Figure Says Kurdish Future is Not Optimistic in Iraq

17/10/2010 By RUDAW

ERBIL, Iraqi Kurdistan: A prominent retired Kurdish politician and intellectual says that Kurds could face tougher times in the future, their issue is yet far away from resolution, and their preference should be the Shiite parties to form a new government.

Jawher Namiq Salim, the first speaker of the Kurdistan Parliament that was elected in 1992-following the mass uprising of the Kurds against former Saddam Hussein’s regime- warned that the future for Kurds is increasingly looking not optimistic.

“Looking at the past of Maliki would not make us feel optimistic, but looking at [Iyad] Allawi, the people in his coalition and the positions that they take would disappoint us,” said Salim in an exclusive interview with Rudaw in Erbil, the capital of the Kurdistan region.

“With all the negative aspects Maliki, his coalition or [the Shiite] National Alliance have, they are incomparable to Iraqiya, its parties and figures,” said Salim adding “In reality, Iraqiya is a base for the Sunni Arab chauvinists and racists who are all former Ba’athists.”

Seven months have passed since elections were held; Iraqi political parties are yet to agree form a coalition government.

Though, Maliki looks to be able to form a government with the support of the Kurds after he has reached an agreement with the Sadr Movement, he does not seem to want that without the backing of Sunni Arabs fearing the resurgence of a sectarian conflict Iraq suffered following 2003-US-led invasion.

The Kurds, for their part, have not openly preferred any Arab candidate to others. They rather say that anyone could win their backing if they support a 19-demand paper that they have sent to the Arab wining parties.

But Salim says this way of politics Kurdish leadership does is wrong.
“They are spectators not players,” he said adding, “They say they are not part of the problem but of part of the solution.”
“On of the major problems of Today’s Iraq is Kurdish issue, though.”

As Salim prefers Maliki’s State of Law to Allawi’s Iraqiya, spokesperson of Iraqiya threatens Kurds that their support to Maliki would make Iraqiya not help resolve the issue of the disputed regions where it enjoy a strong support from Arabs and Turcomans.

“If they [Kurds] form an alliance with Maliki, they will lose, in particular, the issue of the disputed regions,” said Mayson Damalochi, spokeswoman for Iraqiya.