Fahmi Burhan: Iraq's Election Results Will Redraw Political Maps

PUKMEDIA

Fahmi Burhan, Chairman of the General Board for Kurdistani Areas Outside the Region.

In an interview with PUKMEDIA, Fahmi Burhan, Chairman of the General Board for Kurdistani Areas Outside the Region, stated that the disputed regions are experiencing significant changes as a result of the provincial council elections. This will transform the administrative, security, and political maps."

Iraq's provincial council elections took place on December 16 and 18, 2023, in 15 Iraqi provinces. Voters in general and special voting-security forces, as well as IDPs, totalled 16,158,788. On  December 28, 2023, the Iraqi Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC) announced the election results. The PUK was the sole Kurdish party to secure seats in all four disputed provinces. The party won seats in the Kirkuk, Nineveh, Diyala, and Salah ad Din provincial councils. The PUK became Kirkuk's most popular party after winning the most votes in the provincial council elections.

Text of the interview:

*Will the provincial council elections result in administrative changes in the disputed areas?

-Overall, the disputed regions are undergoing significant changes as a result of the provincial council elections. This will cause a shift in administrative, security, and political maps. Thus, these changes can be used to address land issues, security gaps, and legal challenges faced by Kurdish communities.

*To what extent will joint work resolve the issues in the disputed areas?

-The results of the provincial council elections have the potential to address the aforementioned issues while also kicking off a new chapter in governance and collaboration.

*Where have the steps to compensate the victims of the disputed areas progressed, and why are they inadequate?

-Article 140 of the constitution is a permanent provision that will not be changed; however, its implementation is weak and does not meet our expectations. According to our analysis, the budget set aside for implementing the article is insufficient to compensate the victims. Nevertheless, we are persistently working on carrying out the initial phase of the article.

Note* The former Iraqi Ba'ath regime made significant efforts to Arabize all residents of Diyala, Kirkuk, Nineveh, and Salah ad Din, which led to ongoing territorial disputes between Erbil and Baghdad. Even though Article 140 of the Iraqi Constitution was drafted in part to address the issue, the legislation has yet to be implemented. 




PUKMEDIA