The Audacity of Kurdish Hope

Kosrat Rasul’s recent statement that the Kurds have the right to a state brought to the forefront a question that the Kurds, their allies and their foes are dreading to consider: If Iraq does not work, what should the Kurds do?
Kak Kosrat, deputy secretary-general of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, spoke of the ultimate dream of most Kurds: The option of having a state. In the past, and especially since the liberation of Iraq, Kurds have been either shy, quiet or very diplomatic about the issue, taking the stance: “We have the right to a state but right now we can’t have it.” 
The other voice that is in almost every Kurd’s mind (especially those of the leaders) yet is not often stated publicly is: “We would if we could.”
The public on the other hand says, “We have the right to a state, and we would if we could.” But contrary to the leaders, the voice in their heads says, “Right now we can’t have it.”
This discrepancy between the people and the leadership — and between the leaders themselves — over the future of Kurdistan could cause a crisis in the region similar to what we have faced in the past. The difference this time is that people could take to the streets.
If Iraq continues to fail as a country – and it seems destined for failure — the Kurdish options will be limited to either declaring a state or becoming part of another country.
If we consider the first option, the vital question that the Kurds, leaders and people would have to ask themselves is whether they are capable of surviving as a state or not. Do they have the human, economic and geopolitical resources to run and protect a state as expected by today’s standards of governance, freedom and democracy?
The other option for the Kurds is to be part of another country, but with new rules. These rules would be the conditions for being part of any new state: equality, security and prosperity. 
Looking around our neighborhood, one can easily rule out both Syria and Iran. Syria will be chaotic for quite some time when the current revolution prevails; it will take a while before it recovers and becomes a safe and prosperous country where its people are treated equally. Iran on the other hand is not safe; the country is an international pariah and treats its own Kurds and other minorities as second-class citizens.
This leaves us with our new older sister/brother, Turkey. Of all the neighbors, Turkey is the most suitable partner for Iraqi Kurds to bond with, provided it settles its own Kurdish issue. The Kurdish question seems to be the only source of Turkey’s instability and lack of security. Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan has made all kinds of promises to solve the Kurdish issue domestically, and he has made some positive gestures across the border in Arbil. All of these are helping Turkey get rid of its Kurdish phobia.
But all of these are options that need to be discussed in Kurdistan. While there is general public support and understanding of the various options, the region’s political leadership (government and opposition) need to be in agreement about these options and their followers need to be made aware of them as well.

This entry was posted on July 4, 2011 at 7:15 am and is filed under Op-eds, Reports. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.