A new push for an Independent Kurdistan

[MODU]

This is a pretty interesting presentation.  And while I doubt it would be anywhere as easy as the KNC President makes it sound, it would be interesting to see how things would change in the Middle East if they suceed.

"Kurdish quest for independence and prospects for statehood"

KNC 18th Annual Conference
Washington D.C.
March 17-19, 2006

Mr. Chairman
Distinguished Guests
Ladies and Gentlemen

I am honored to welcome you on behalf of the Kurdish National Congress. I want to thank and welcome each and every one of you, especially those who have come from Kurdistan, Europe, and Canada and from out of State.

After the liberation of Iraq, the killing of Mr. Rafeq Alhariri, former PM of Lebanon, by Syrian government agents, the election of Ahmed Najadi as president of Iran and Turkey’s quest to enter the European Union opened up the opportunity for the first time in our history to demand our right of self-determination to be respected.

The new wave of democracy in the area will bring stability to the Middle East, where human rights, freedom and democracy are missing from the policy of the regimes in the area.

(Cont...)  Semi-long article[/i]

[MODU]

A follow-up article explaining the complexities of attempting a separation from four different countries to recreate Kurdistan.

"Iraq: The Kurdish Factor"

Iraqi President Jalal Talabani said Feb. 28 that he deeply regretted interim Iraqi Prime Minister Ibrahim Jaafari's unilateral decision to make a state visit to Turkey. He added that the Iraqi government is not committed to any agreement reached between the prime minister and Ankara.

Talabani is slightly more than perturbed that Jaafari is acting on his own accord before even being reconfirmed as Iraq's prime minister. Moreover, Jaafari's visit to Turkey will be followed within days by a visit from radical Iraqi Shiite leader Muqtada al-Sadr. Jaafari and al-Sadr are widely perceived by Kurdish leaders as the Shiite leaders least friendly to the Kurds in the government-formation talks. Jaafari's trip to Turkey has jabbed a sharp thorn into these negotiations, providing an opportunity for the Sunnis and Shia to serve their mutual interest by using the talks to contain the Kurds.

The Kurds are responding to the talks by pointing out that as outgoing interim prime minister, Jaafari does not yet have the authority to carry out negotiations with the Turks, even though he is prime minister-designate of Iraq's new full-term government. Talabani's remarks, in fact, underscore a deep rift between the Shia and the Kurds at a time when the Shia are also experiencing tenser-than-usual relations with the Sunnis.

(Cont...)

[Cubby]

Well I don't know about everyone else but I view with favor the establishment in Kurdistan of a national homeland for the Kurdish people.

The only problem is that Turkey is one of our most important allies and they'd despise us if we helped form a Kurdistan that would take part of their territory. I have a deep respect for the Kurds, they have built their own quasi-state thats worked fairly well while the rest of Iraq falls apart. For over a decade now they've shown that they are capable of governing reasonably (as opposed to the Shiites). Sure there has been some conflict between them but that happens in every society.

[Jacobtm]

I can never understand why a group of people who feel disenfranchised in the country they're a part of can't form their own country.

I hope the Kurds get their own country. Screw Turkey and their psuedo-freedom.

[Undisguised Sockpuppet]

Absolutely not. We already have enough divsion and ethnic based countries in the worodl.

[WMS]

Absolutely not. We already have enough divsion and ethnic based countries in the worodl.

You can never have enough division and ethnic-based countries in the world!

[phk]

We should partition Iraq into three new states, though it would piss off the Saudi's that they have to deal with a Shiite country on thier border.

[Frodo]

We should partition Iraq into three new states, though it would piss off the Saudi's that they have to deal with a Shiite country on thier border.

Hardly an original idea, but I do agree with you.  It's worth noting that the Ottomans divided what is now Iraq into three provinces when it was still within their empire -we would do well to go one step further and give each independence or, at the very least, autonomy with an extremely weak central government and a constitution that bears a strong resemblance to our Articles of Confederation. 

[Jacobtm]

Absolutely not. We already have enough divsion and ethnic based countries in the worodl.

Like Italy and Germany?

That's how nearly every moderately sized country in the world (with indigenous human populations) started, on ethnic lines. Especially in the case of the Kurds, seeing what a great job they've done, I see no reason not to support their efforts to create a state.

The only types of countries that encompass many different ethnicities are countries like China and Russia, which were united under Dictatorial rule, and those countries which have allowed for all sorts of people to immigrate into them.

If it's a stable, prosperous country (as Kurdistan is a stable/prosperous region in Iraq), then what does it matter if it's ethnic-based?

[MODU]

We should partition Iraq into three new states, though it would piss off the Saudi's that they have to deal with a Shiite country on thier border.

I would go with a more "trinity" centered idea . . . where they are three states (like our 50 states) sharing a single central government.  That way, each state could set up their own local laws (if they want to be Islamic or not) for their states.