Feb 13, 2012
A Few Thoughts on Iraqi Federalism
We've long been more than intrigued by the debate about partition in Iraq, so it was good to see this thoughtful piece by Iraq's national security adviser, Mowaffak al-Rubaie, on the option of federalism (which seems to be the preference of most everyone). He suggests organizing Iraq into the following 5 federal units:
A "Kurdistan province," including the current Kurdistan and surrounding areas; a "Western province," including Mosul and the upper Tigris and Euphrates valleys; a "Kufa province," built around the Middle Euphrates governorates; a "Basra province," including the lower Tigris and Euphrates valleys; and a "Baghdad province," built around Greater Baghdad, which may include parts of Diyala and Salah ad Din Governorates. The Kurdish region would be given a special constitutional status as a recognized society and culture with a unique identity (similar to the Canadian province of Quebec).
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It was an interesting piece.
It was an interesting piece. I think it's worth noting what he listed first in terms of interests that must be satisfied:
The proposal is interesting. If I've got my geography right the "Western Province" is an attempt to finesse the question of the potentially disputed areas under Kurdish influence.
I expect the proposed Upper House would have representation divvied up by region rather than population.
The one flaw I'd see is that I don't think the Kurds are going to give up exclusive rights to Kurdistan's gas. (I'm still smarting from when the teacher smacked me down after I made this proposal back in a PCR class in grad school.) The constitution says distribution by population but I believe that they presently have de facto control and a deal with Hunt Oil to exploit said resources. That said, this may be an opening offer, no reason to offer all the concessions up front.
Looks good to me, but then I'm not an Iraqi.