Kurdistan IO Email

[tequila]

Iraqi Kurdistan's downward spiral - Kamal Said Qadir, Middle East Forum.

...

During my trips in Iraqi Kurdistan, I see how grateful ordinary Kurdish citizens are to the U.S. government and American people for the establishment of the safe haven in 1991, the no-fly zone, and Iraq's liberation. But the mood is changing. Today, the Kurdish parties misuse U.S. assistance and taxpayers' money. Rather than support democracy, the Kurdish party leaders use their funding and their militia's operational training to curtail civil liberties. What angers Kurds is the squandered leverage. Instead of demanding rule-of-law, the White House has subordinated democracy to stability not only in Baghdad and Basra, but in Iraqi Kurdistan as well. Rather than create a model democracy, the Iraqi Kurds have replicated the governing systems of Egypt, Tunisia or, perhaps even Syria ....

[Jedburgh]

Written from the perspective of evaluating the situation in Iraqi Kurdistan in the context of Iraqi Kurds seeking asylum in Europe, this paper offers some insights into current conditions in the north:

Schweizerische Flüchtlingshilfe, 10 Jul 07:

The Socio-Economic Situation in the KRG Administrated Provinces Sulaimaniyah, Erbil and Dohuk

Since the end of the Kurdish civil war (1994-1998) and mostly since the fall of the Ba'athist regime in 2003, the KRG-area is relatively stable and peaceful compared to the rest of Iraq. However, the security situation remains tense and unpredictable due to a number of political factors. Despite the recent unification of the two KRG ad-ministrations, the exercise of joint control between the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) and the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) still needs to be demonstrated. But there are also socio-economic reasons for the continuing tension. Growing dissatisfaction over corruption, restrictions on human rights, malfunctioning infrastructure, electricity and clean water provision generate regular demonstrations and public unrest across the KRG-administered area......

[redbullets]

here is another vew


According to the report, the Turks are the biggest investors.

Best

tom

They are, and those profiting on either side of the border don't want this party to end early. The Chinese are in as well, and I have the photos to prove it. Most well educated highway construction crew I could ever conceive of - bumped into them on the road between Erbil and Suley.

Cheers,

[Jedburgh]

The Economist, 6 Sep 07: Iraqi Kurdistan: Does Independence Beckon?

....In the past month, virtually no insurgent violence has been recorded in Iraqi Kurdistan, bar a shocking but isolated spate of suicide-bombings that killed more than 400 members of the Yazidi sect in two villages near Sinjar, on the fringe of the area controlled by the Kurds. Otherwise, the last big attacks were in May—one in Erbil, the Kurds' capital, the other in a town of mixed population, Makhmour, on the contested western edge of the region, killing at least 30 people.

In the rest of Iraq, by contrast, nearly a thousand civilians and insurgents have been killed in the same period, along with more than 70 American soldiers. There are no American forces in Iraqi Kurdistan, bar a handful guarding a small American diplomatic compound outside Erbil. The only sizeable foreign military presence is a South Korean force of around 1,200, which spends much of its time helping with construction and IT. In short, Iraqi Kurdistan is a haven of peace in a sea of turmoil.....

[Jedburgh]

WINEP, Jul 08: The Future of the Iraqi Kurds

In February 2008, a four-member Washington Institute delegation visited the Kurdish Regional Government (KRG) in northern Iraq on a fact-finding mission. The trip proved helpful in analyzing the KRG’s political and economic situation, both domestically and internationally. Following the trip, the delegation identified seven benchmarks for U.S. policymakers and other actors looking to assess the KRG’s prospects:

■ economic development
■ political freedom
■ corruption
■ security
■ relations with the United States
■ relations with the rest of Iraq
■ relations with Turkey, Syria, and Iran

This Policy Focus includes detailed reports on each of these benchmarks.....

[Jedburgh]

CSIS, 31 Oct 08: The Kurdistan Region and the Future of Iraq

Transcript of a speech and Q&A session by Massoud Barzani, President of the Kurdistan Regional Government.