.Iraqi Kurds seek change in parliamentary campaign
SULAIMANIYAH, Iraq (AP) - Kurdish candidates have begun campaigning for the first elections in four years in their semiautonomous territory in northern Iraq - and the kickoff heralds an unusually bitter campaign.
The July 25 vote for a new 111-seat Kurdish National Assembly is expected to cast a spotlight on allegations of corruption and financial improprieties among the entrenched political parties who have held sway in this northern region for decades.
The balloting comes amid increased infighting among the ethnic minority, which has been a staunch U.S. ally, as the political landscape shifts in Iraq ahead of the expected withdrawal of U.S. forces by the end of 2011.
A month of campaigning kicked off in the Kurdish region on Monday, with banners and posters plastered on buses, taxis, walls and even trees, reflecting a new sense of enthusiasm about an election that previously has been dominated by two mainstream parties now facing demands for change.
Khabat Nawzad, a 25-year-old resident of Halabja, which was devastated by a chemical weapons attack under Saddam Hussein's regime, said voters were more energized than they had been in 2005.
"I have a feeling that this election will be different from the previous one ... people are expecting a surprise in the results," he said. "People in Halabja usually criticize the Kurdish government for its lies toward the people here so I think the opposition will gain votes here."
Nosherwan Mustafa has emerged as a popular reformist candidate with an independent group calling itself simply Change.
Tired of the Kurdish two-party dominance and unable to push through reforms within the PUK, Mustafa has said he wants to draw in those unhappy with the current political landscape.
He is among a wave of independent Iraqi politicians trying to break the hold of religious parties and other traditional power brokers by tapping into frustration felt by Kurds and many Iraqis over perceived failures of the current administrations.
The trend was evident in the Jan. 31 provincial elections held in areas outside the semiautonomous Kurdish region in the north.
The Kurds separated from the rest of Iraq after rising up against Saddam in 1991, aided by a U.S.-British no-fly zone that helped keep the dictator at bay.
Their region has largely escaped the sectarian violence that flared between Sunni and Shiite Muslims elsewhere in the wartorn nation, in part because of the presence of well-trained Kurdish security forces known as peshmerga, who became battle-hardened while fighting Saddam Hussein's regime.
There are 24 political blocs vying for seats, with several opposition groups seeking to oust the two main Kurdish parties, the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, or PUK, and the Democratic Party of Kurdistan, or PDK, which have joined forces.
The two parties are also thought to pull all the strings in the region's daily affairs, including businesses and commerce. The electoral commission has recorded 2.5 million registered voters for the Kurdish vote.
Signs of tension appeared shortly after campaigning officially began on Monday as several banners were torn from the walls.
Zana Abdul-Kerim, a spokesman for one of the reformist blocs called Progress, said the smaller parties were at a disadvantage and expressed concern about the potential for fraud.
"There is a big gap between the two main Kurdish parties and the other candidates because of financial and logistical aspects," he said. "We can't compete with them. They have the government budget as well the budget from the two parties, but there is popular anger toward them."
Baram Subhi, a 22-year-old university student in Sulaimaniyah, was more optimistic about the chances for the new parties.
"There are other lists that have a great chance at winning," he said.
MyWay
The July 25 vote for a new 111-seat Kurdish National Assembly is expected to cast a spotlight on allegations of corruption and financial improprieties among the entrenched political parties who have held sway in this northern region for decades.
The balloting comes amid increased infighting among the ethnic minority, which has been a staunch U.S. ally, as the political landscape shifts in Iraq ahead of the expected withdrawal of U.S. forces by the end of 2011.
A month of campaigning kicked off in the Kurdish region on Monday, with banners and posters plastered on buses, taxis, walls and even trees, reflecting a new sense of enthusiasm about an election that previously has been dominated by two mainstream parties now facing demands for change.
Khabat Nawzad, a 25-year-old resident of Halabja, which was devastated by a chemical weapons attack under Saddam Hussein's regime, said voters were more energized than they had been in 2005.
"I have a feeling that this election will be different from the previous one ... people are expecting a surprise in the results," he said. "People in Halabja usually criticize the Kurdish government for its lies toward the people here so I think the opposition will gain votes here."
Nosherwan Mustafa has emerged as a popular reformist candidate with an independent group calling itself simply Change.
Tired of the Kurdish two-party dominance and unable to push through reforms within the PUK, Mustafa has said he wants to draw in those unhappy with the current political landscape.
He is among a wave of independent Iraqi politicians trying to break the hold of religious parties and other traditional power brokers by tapping into frustration felt by Kurds and many Iraqis over perceived failures of the current administrations.
The trend was evident in the Jan. 31 provincial elections held in areas outside the semiautonomous Kurdish region in the north.
The Kurds separated from the rest of Iraq after rising up against Saddam in 1991, aided by a U.S.-British no-fly zone that helped keep the dictator at bay.
Their region has largely escaped the sectarian violence that flared between Sunni and Shiite Muslims elsewhere in the wartorn nation, in part because of the presence of well-trained Kurdish security forces known as peshmerga, who became battle-hardened while fighting Saddam Hussein's regime.
There are 24 political blocs vying for seats, with several opposition groups seeking to oust the two main Kurdish parties, the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, or PUK, and the Democratic Party of Kurdistan, or PDK, which have joined forces.
The two parties are also thought to pull all the strings in the region's daily affairs, including businesses and commerce. The electoral commission has recorded 2.5 million registered voters for the Kurdish vote.
Signs of tension appeared shortly after campaigning officially began on Monday as several banners were torn from the walls.
Zana Abdul-Kerim, a spokesman for one of the reformist blocs called Progress, said the smaller parties were at a disadvantage and expressed concern about the potential for fraud.
"There is a big gap between the two main Kurdish parties and the other candidates because of financial and logistical aspects," he said. "We can't compete with them. They have the government budget as well the budget from the two parties, but there is popular anger toward them."
Baram Subhi, a 22-year-old university student in Sulaimaniyah, was more optimistic about the chances for the new parties.
"There are other lists that have a great chance at winning," he said.
MyWay
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