A plan to form a Kirkuk militia similar to the Sunni Awakening Council is being vehemently rejected by Kurdish party members.

During the last few weeks, Kurdish and Iraqi media have revealed attempts by the Iraqi government to establish militias by recruiting tribal elements in the most controversial Iraqi province of Kirkuk. The plan is to gather members of Kirkuk's Arab, Turkmen, and Kurdish tribes within the framework of the so-called Majalis Isnad, or the Supporting Councils. The idea is welcomed by some parties, especially Arabs, while the Kurds not only reject it-but such forces remind them of similar forces that operated in the bitter 1980s.

The politburos of the two main Kurdish parties, the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), announced their opposition to the plan on November 8 during a meeting in Erbil chaired by Kurdistan Region Vice President Kosrat Rasul Ali and KRG Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani.

This plan is similar to the Sunni Arab tribal forces, where the government arms and pays tribes to establish groups of gunmen to support the Iraqi military and police forces in the fight against insurgents. Meanwhile, Kurdish powers see this project as a political play against Kurds.

The Erbil meeting concluded with a statement: "once again, the issue of establishing Supporting Councils in Kurdistan and the disputable areas has been renewed by the Iraqi prime minister. The KDP, PUK, and other groups allied with the KRG have already expressed their position of rejecting such a dangerous plan, which is just another form of 'Jashayati.' We confirm the same position now."

Jashayati is a name used by Kurds given to Kurdish tribal battalions formed by Saddam Hussein to fight Peshmarga in the mountains in the 1980s. Elements of those battalions, who were called "Jash," alongside the former Iraqi army fought against Peshmarga and took part in Anfal crimes, which victimized thousands of Kurdish villagers. After the 1991 Uprising, when Peshmarga took over most parts of Kurdistan, the Jash were forgiven according to a general amnesty; many of them joined the Kurdish parties.

Establishing Supporting Councils "contradicts the Constitution's and Iraqi Parliament's laws," read the statement. "Establishing such groups of gunmen contradicts the will and policies of most of the Iraqi political parties, which ask for dissolving militias."

As the KDP and PUK consider Supporting Councils a danger to the new Iraqi democracy and the civil society, they also called upon the Kurdistan Region Government to outlaw anyone or any tribe in the disputable areas from joining those tribal armed establishments.

But Sunni Arab Parliament member Muhammad Tamim Al-Juburi announced that the Supporting Councils bring "security and stability" to Kirkuk.

"The Supporting Councils in Kirkuk will help to impose security, law and order in the province?.Those who reject forming these councils are the ones causing problems in Kirkuk," said Al-Juburi, who belongs to the Arab Bloc for National Dialogue in an interview with "Newsmatique" on Monday. He added" "Those who control the province's council attempt to keep the security situation in their hands in order to maintain control over the province."

The Kurdish Brotherhood list makes up the majority of the council, which is also chaired by a Kurd.

"The security situation in Kirkuk is supple and controlled by several security agencies that follow some parties?.Thus, we need councils to retain security in the province."

The tribal forces will worsen and complicate the security situation in the disputable areas, said Gen. Jabar Yawar, spokesman for the Kurdistan Peshmarga commandership.

"For settling their tribal conflicts, the tribes of those areas would join those councils. For settling their problems, they may misuse the government forces and arms," he added. Rather than this, those councils would renew Jashayati norms within the Kurds and further complicate the issue of disputable areas, said the general.

Also, head of the Kirkuk provincial council, Rizgar Ali, announced that the council informed Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri Al-Maliki that "the province does not need the establishments of Majalis Isnad." He added that the formal security forces in Kirkuk are capable and the security situation is now stable in Kirkuk.

Ali called on al-Maliki to "dedicate the sums that [are supposed] to be spent on Majalis Isnad on building and reconstruction projects in Kirkuk."

By Ako Muhammed

© The Kurdish Globe 2008

 

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