.Iraqi Kurds hope for change in regional elections
SULAIMANIYAH, Iraq (AP) - The Kurdish political establishment faced its first real test in an election Saturday for a president and 111-seat parliament in a semiautonomous region mired in a bitter dispute with Baghdad over oil and land that threatens Iraq's stability.
Mainstream groups were widely expected to maintain their hold on power, but voters expressed hope a strong opposition challenge would lead to reforms amid allegations of corruption and financial improprieties among the entrenched political parties that have held sway in this northern area for decades.
"I do believe that we will see a more activist parliament because of the active role of the opposition party," said Hewa Ahmed Hussein, a 34-year-old merchant in Irbil.
At the heart of the push for reform was a group called "Change," which is led by Nosherwan Mustafa, a former top official in one of the mainstream parties. Its success in campaigning forced an alliance between the two dominant parties, the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan and the Kurdistan Democratic Party.
The opposition was expected to make some inroads in the parliament, but Iraq's electoral commission said it could take a week to count the results. Polling hours were extended to accommodate a large turnout for the first regional election since 2005.
The Kurds gained autonomy after rising up against Saddam in 1991, aided by a U.S.-British no-fly zone that helped keep the former dictator's armed forces at bay.
"Today is a day of revenge against the main parties," said 44-year-old Shobo Mahmoud shortly after casting his ballot in Sulaimaniyah, 160 miles (260 kilometers) northeast of Baghdad. "We are suffering from poor public services despite all the promises they made before and the support we gave to these politicians."
Nesreen Doski, a 31-year-old housekeeper, said she did not believe the leadership would change but she hoped for better policies.
"I do not think there will be a new era in Kurdistan," she said. "I guess the current leaders will keep their posts and they will improve the services being offered to the people."
The balloting comes as U.S. commanders warn that tensions between Kurds and Arabs could erupt into a new front in the Iraq conflict even as violence declines elsewhere in the country and U.S. forces prepare to withdraw by the end of 2011.
The Kurdish region has enjoyed relative calm since the 2003 U.S. invasion that ousted Saddam Hussein but ethnic rivalries have fueled attacks in nearby areas, particularly the disputed city of Kirkuk.
President Barack Obama has pressured Iraq's central government to be more flexible about sharing power and allowing provincial governments a greater role in decision-making. But the government is wary about ceding too much authority to the Kurds for fear that they will attempt to secede at some point and take the region's wealth of oil resources with them.
Political leaders had hoped to hold a referendum during the local elections on a proposed constitution, which lays claim to disputed areas outside the three Kurdish provinces, including Kirkuk. But national authorities scuttled that plan because Iraq's Arabs view it as an effort to expand Kurdish authority.
The Kurds also have clashed with the central government over a law outlining how Iraq's oil wealth should be divided among the country's religious and ethnic groups, and who has final say in developing the oil fields in the northern region.
President Massoud Barzani held up a purple finger after voting and promised to make it a priority to "restore the disputed areas to Kurdistan" if re-elected.
His nephew and regional Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani said negotiations were the answer.
"All sides should show flexibility if they want to build an independent Iraq," he said.
Security was tightened for Saturday's election and the 2.5 million eligible voters were only allowed to walk or take government authorized buses to polling centers. Polling centers were also set up in Baghdad for Kurdish lawmakers and others to cast their ballots.
Election officials said problems reported at the polls included complaints that some voters were prevented from casting ballots because their names did not appear on eligible voting rolls.
Maj. Gen. Robert Caslen, the top U.S. commander in northern Iraq, told The Associated Press he was hopeful that after the elections the Kurdish and Iraqi central governments would renew efforts to resolve the dispute.
"My challenge is that I am stuck in the middle of a tactical challenge of the Kurds and Arabs," he said. "We end up resolving temporary issues that come up."
Caslen said that if the two sides failed to resolve the issues, especially before a scheduled U.S. withdrawal at the end of 2011, the dispute could destabilize the country.
Underscoring dangers elsewhere in Iraq, two bombs exploded near the area headquarters of the Sunni Iraqi Islamic Party in Fallujah, killing at least four people and wounding 25, police said. Police imposed a citywide vehicle ban after receiving report that two more car bombs had been planted in Fallujah, the official said.
In northern Baghdad, a bomb attached to a car exploded in Azamiyah, killing the driver and wounding a bystander, according to police. The police officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to release the information.
MyWay
Mainstream groups were widely expected to maintain their hold on power, but voters expressed hope a strong opposition challenge would lead to reforms amid allegations of corruption and financial improprieties among the entrenched political parties that have held sway in this northern area for decades.
"I do believe that we will see a more activist parliament because of the active role of the opposition party," said Hewa Ahmed Hussein, a 34-year-old merchant in Irbil.
At the heart of the push for reform was a group called "Change," which is led by Nosherwan Mustafa, a former top official in one of the mainstream parties. Its success in campaigning forced an alliance between the two dominant parties, the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan and the Kurdistan Democratic Party.
The opposition was expected to make some inroads in the parliament, but Iraq's electoral commission said it could take a week to count the results. Polling hours were extended to accommodate a large turnout for the first regional election since 2005.
The Kurds gained autonomy after rising up against Saddam in 1991, aided by a U.S.-British no-fly zone that helped keep the former dictator's armed forces at bay.
"Today is a day of revenge against the main parties," said 44-year-old Shobo Mahmoud shortly after casting his ballot in Sulaimaniyah, 160 miles (260 kilometers) northeast of Baghdad. "We are suffering from poor public services despite all the promises they made before and the support we gave to these politicians."
Nesreen Doski, a 31-year-old housekeeper, said she did not believe the leadership would change but she hoped for better policies.
"I do not think there will be a new era in Kurdistan," she said. "I guess the current leaders will keep their posts and they will improve the services being offered to the people."
The balloting comes as U.S. commanders warn that tensions between Kurds and Arabs could erupt into a new front in the Iraq conflict even as violence declines elsewhere in the country and U.S. forces prepare to withdraw by the end of 2011.
The Kurdish region has enjoyed relative calm since the 2003 U.S. invasion that ousted Saddam Hussein but ethnic rivalries have fueled attacks in nearby areas, particularly the disputed city of Kirkuk.
President Barack Obama has pressured Iraq's central government to be more flexible about sharing power and allowing provincial governments a greater role in decision-making. But the government is wary about ceding too much authority to the Kurds for fear that they will attempt to secede at some point and take the region's wealth of oil resources with them.
Political leaders had hoped to hold a referendum during the local elections on a proposed constitution, which lays claim to disputed areas outside the three Kurdish provinces, including Kirkuk. But national authorities scuttled that plan because Iraq's Arabs view it as an effort to expand Kurdish authority.
The Kurds also have clashed with the central government over a law outlining how Iraq's oil wealth should be divided among the country's religious and ethnic groups, and who has final say in developing the oil fields in the northern region.
President Massoud Barzani held up a purple finger after voting and promised to make it a priority to "restore the disputed areas to Kurdistan" if re-elected.
His nephew and regional Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani said negotiations were the answer.
"All sides should show flexibility if they want to build an independent Iraq," he said.
Security was tightened for Saturday's election and the 2.5 million eligible voters were only allowed to walk or take government authorized buses to polling centers. Polling centers were also set up in Baghdad for Kurdish lawmakers and others to cast their ballots.
Election officials said problems reported at the polls included complaints that some voters were prevented from casting ballots because their names did not appear on eligible voting rolls.
Maj. Gen. Robert Caslen, the top U.S. commander in northern Iraq, told The Associated Press he was hopeful that after the elections the Kurdish and Iraqi central governments would renew efforts to resolve the dispute.
"My challenge is that I am stuck in the middle of a tactical challenge of the Kurds and Arabs," he said. "We end up resolving temporary issues that come up."
Caslen said that if the two sides failed to resolve the issues, especially before a scheduled U.S. withdrawal at the end of 2011, the dispute could destabilize the country.
Underscoring dangers elsewhere in Iraq, two bombs exploded near the area headquarters of the Sunni Iraqi Islamic Party in Fallujah, killing at least four people and wounding 25, police said. Police imposed a citywide vehicle ban after receiving report that two more car bombs had been planted in Fallujah, the official said.
In northern Baghdad, a bomb attached to a car exploded in Azamiyah, killing the driver and wounding a bystander, according to police. The police officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to release the information.
MyWay
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