Kurds Will Be Victorious in Disputed Areas Through Unity

Reports 11:42 AM - 2023-07-16

Voting.

The Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) wants the Kurds to run on a unified list in the upcoming Iraqi provincial elections so that the Kurds can win the governorship in Kirkuk and the most ballots in Nineveh, Diyala, and Salah ad Din provinces, where the disputed areas are located.

The former Iraqi Ba'ath regime made significant efforts to Arabize all residents of Diyala, Kirkuk, Nineveh, and Salah ad Din, resulting in the ongoing disputes between Erbil and Baghdad over these areas. Although Article 140 of the Iraqi Constitution was drafted in part to address the issue, the law has yet to be implemented. The PUK's call is an attempt to increase the number of Kurds voting in these areas in order to give the Kurds more influence and benefit other communities residing in these areas.

 

The PUK wants the Kurds to be on one list

Aras Mohammed, head of the PUK's Mosul Center, told PUKMEDIA: “Although the PUK is an influential force in Nineveh province, it is open to other Kurdish parties and wants the Kurds to participate in the provincial council elections on one list in Nineveh province to win the most seats in the provincial council.”

 

Kurdish unity will send the most representatives to the parliament

If the Kurds stay united, their votes will go to one party, increasing their representation and influence in the Iraqi parliament; if they split, their votes will be spread out among several parties, decreasing their representation and influence.

"If the Kurds are united for provincial council elections, not only in Nineveh but also in Kirkuk, Diyala, and Salah ad Din provinces, they can win the most votes and have the most representatives in the provincial councils," the head of the PUK's Mosul Center said.

"The majority of Nineveh's population is Arab, which distinguishes it from other provinces in the disputed regions," Mohammed added. "If the Kurdish community is divided into multiple parties, the Kurdish influence in the province will remain very small."

 

Kurdish unity will solve the problems of Sinjar

Sinjar's Kurdish communities and parties concur with the PUK and want the Kurds to prepare for the upcoming provincial council elections on a single list, as they believe that Kurdish unity will solve Sinjar's problems.

"The communities and political parties in Sinjar agree with the PUK and believe that the Kurds should participate in the Iraqi provincial council elections on one list," Daud Jundi Sulaiman, head of the PUK's Sinjar Center, told PUKMEDIA.

"We want to serve the other communities along with the Kurds through the unity of the Kurds in the disputed areas because they know that the Kurds have not caused conflicts in these regions but have always tried to resolve conflicts," he continued.

On July 12, 2023, a delegation from the PUK Political Bureau visited the Kurdistan Islamic Union and the Kurdistan Justice Group at the request of PUK President Bafel Jalal Talabani to bring the Kurds together for the approaching provincial council elections. 

"Our message to all political forces and parties is that for us all to participate in a clean election on one list and coalition in the disputed areas, we must prove once more that these are Kurdistani areas," said Rizgar Haji Hama, head of the PUK's Election Agency, following the meetings.



PUKMEDIA