What we might wish for on the eve of 2013

By Mufid Abdulla:

Erbil

Erbil

For some people on the outside it might have looked like an easy time but, for ordinary Kurds in the south of Kurdistan, 2012 was a challenging year. Nonetheless (and despite the problems we have sometimes had in getting at the real truth), we can still see that our people are ‘up not down’.

Iran was threatened by America and Israel. Turkey was riven with internal turmoil and, above all, Syria has endured uprising and bloody civil war, for 20 months now, against the most brutal dictator in the world. In the south of Kurdistan, we have had to contend with the threat from the Shia-dominated government in Baghdad.

Iraq premier Maliki recently deployed fifty per cent more soldiers against Kurds than Saddam did – he has sent one-and-a-half corps, or 30,000 troops, into the Kurdish areas not controlled by the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG). However, Maliki knows that he cannot really fight brave Kurdistan. We are sure he has been advised not to tangle with the well-prepared KRG forces. In fact, a retired senior Kurdish army general told me that, “Iraqi forces will last only 24 hours if they enter into any war with the Peshmarga”

What will inspire this nation to work harder in 2013 is the quest for a new way of life blessed with dignity and prosperity. On our road to our nation state we need to do many things. One of them is to agree on a unified language from the many dialects spoken even in our region of Kurdistan.  We must give more power to the Kurdistan parliament to run this country, listening to the voice of the people and not just the demands of political parties. We also need to do something if Baghdad continues to wrangle over Kurdistan’s prosperity and its justified place on the world energy map. It makes little sense for us remain part of a country, Iraq, which has made no progress since Saddam’s overthrow by US forces in 2003.

But the heart of our problem lies less in neighbouring enemies and more at home. Our people do not take our old leaders, with all their promises and Strategic Agreements, seriously. Their legacy is Corruption. We lack good leaders in government, in parliament and as candidates for the political parties.

Despite all the international support for Ocalan, our people in north Kurdistan have endured heightened repression and abuse by the Turkish state. But the political struggle led by Ahmed Turk, Leyla Zana and their friends has gained momentum and I am optimistic that 2013 will be a decisive year for their struggle – otherwise the resistance of our peace-loving nation in the north will scorch the entire Turkish state.

Undoubtedly our nation in the west of Kurdistan has advanced greatly in the course of the conflict which dominated 2012. As revolutionaries continue to push for the removal of the Assad regime in Syria (and despite the dangers deriving from the divisions in the Syrian opposition), there is now the real prospect of a new KRG in the west in 2013.

Every nation has a different approach to the new year. According to Japanese tradition, for example, you have to settle all your outstanding debts before then. My wishes for the south of Kurdistan in 2013 include the hope that our media will not give any more oxygen to discredited leaders. Our Chinese-style leaders of all the political parties, including the opposition, should come out from their windowless rooms and give way to a new generation. Our oil resources should be invested to build our infrastructure, and especially to develop our schools and universities. We need a new culture that rewards innovation.

Finally, thank you – every one of our growing number of readers, writers and supporters of KT, all over the world. We assure you that we aim to make the KT message louder than ever. And, to survive and thrive, we will need all kinds of support from good people.

Copyright © 2012 Kurdistantribune.com

2 Responses to What we might wish for on the eve of 2013
  1. Baqi
    December 31, 2012 | 13:21

    All Kurdish political parties work together and set up the infrastructure to pave the way for our independence.

  2. kuvan
    December 31, 2012 | 15:48

    2012 was one of the worst year of my life,full of pain misery,hurt and desperation.Planing for a big constructive change in my life in a very short time.

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