No consensus among Iraqi officials over Sunni autonomy
By Lawk Ghafuri and Mohammed Rwanduzy
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region- Sunni leaders, including the current speaker of the Iraqi parliament have publicly slammed accusations of trying to federalize Sunni regions in Iraq following a meeting in Dubai.
Sunni political figures, among them Iraqi Parliament Speaker Mohammed al-Halbousi, met last Thursday and Friday in Dubai. The meeting was never openly announced, but soon Iraqi media reports emerged claiming that al-Halbousi was plotting the division of Iraq through Sunni separatism.
The speaker was subject to criticism days after the meeting, with Halbousi accused of “conspiring against his country” in a piece broadcast on the TV channel of al-Nujaba, a prominent faction within the Iran-backed Popular Mobilization Forces (Hashd al-Shaabi in Arabic).
“My message is to the leftovers of the political process. Don’t try political bravado against those believing in the unity of Iraq and its people, those who have the patriotism that you lack,” Halbousi said in a Monday tweet.
Shiite coalitions and rulers in Iraq believe that such a project is being driven by an external agenda that aims to divide and fragment the already fragile country.
Popular demonstrations calling for an independent region were held across Sunni provinces in northern and western Iraq in 2012 and 2013, citing alleged discrimination at the hands of the Shiite-controlled government in Baghdad.
“There is no moral or patriotic space for discussing proposals of regions, and Iraq is currently witnessing a popular, correctional movement that will remove the heads of corruption and sectarianism and bring Iraq back to its strong and united path,” Jamal al-Karbouli, another senior Sunni politician who was reportedly in the meeting, said in tweet on Monday.
“The current call for establishing a sectarian region is reactionary, no different in its reactionary status and hastiness than demanding Americans go out without taking into consideration the consequences,” said former Nineveh governor Atheel al-Nujaifi, referring to current debate surrounding the presence of US troops in Iraq.
According to the Iraqi constitution, any three provinces can build a federal region with their own monetary and administrative systems.
“There is an idea to form an autonomous region,” said Mahasn Hamdoon, an MP who represents Nineveh province, to Rudaw on Saturday. He added that the ongoing turmoil in Baghdad "is the reason why we are pondering regional federalism, and the Nineveh province is strongly supporting such ideas.”
However, a Sunni MP in Iraqi parliament, Ahmed al-Jibouri, confirmed to Rudaw on Tuesday that there is no such plan for an autonomous region.
“We have many issues with our partners in the Iraqi parliament, but we're not currently thinking about this option,” al-Jibouri said. “
Falih Ziyad, a Shiite MP who represents Muthana province as a member of the Nasr bloc, told Rudaw on Saturday that there are no public demands from Sunnis in southern and western parts of Iraq by Sunnis to establish a federal region.
“There are no public demands by people in Basra or western parts of Iraq to establish a federal region,” Ziyad said. “However if this is a plan to divide Iraq, it is unacceptable and will be refused, as we have given blood in order for Iraq to remain united,” argued Ziyad.
Sunni provinces were largely destroyed in the fight against the Islamic State (ISIS), which overran several Sunni-majority provinces in 2014. The ensuing liberation operation devastated the provinces.
Amid a lack of government funds, reconstruction has been slow, or non-existent, and the PMF wields significant influence in these areas, leading to further dissatisfaction.
A tribal leader in Anbar, residing in Erbil, told Rudaw English on Wednesday that the community wants an autonomous Sunni region, but not in the hands of the Sunni political class.
Sunnis want a region, "away from the current political system", including current Sunni leadership, Mustafah al-Dilemi, a tribal leader of the large Dilemi tribe, told Rudaw English.
“We were one of the first to call for a region...We called for a Sunni region in the [2012-2013] protests,” Dilemi added.
“They have gone bankrupt in the political process, and they can see that the process is heading towards clean elections under international supervision, so they resorted to this method, to start propagating for a Sunni region,” he added, referring to Sunni politicians.
The Sunni public “reject” this Sunni political class. "That is why; we don't want a region from them. We want it in the hands of the people of Anbar, the Sunni people," argued the leader.
Security remains perilous in Anbar province- the biggest in Iraq- which has played host to various militias and terrorist groups in recent years.
“People cannot talk. Imagine things have reached a stage whereby if an individual from Anbar comments [in support of the protests] on social media, they come and arrest him,” added Dilemi, in reference to Iraqi protests that have been ongoing since October 1, 2019.
Sunni provinces have largely been silent, due to fears that they could be accused of supporting terrorism.
Speaking against the PMF "puts your life in danger", and Arab Sunnis are under "de-facto house arrest", claimed the tribal leader.
Dilemi claimed that both "Sunni and Shiite" militias, through the "cooperation" of "representatives of Sunni areas", namely Sunni politicians, are conducting their campaign of repression.
"The [Kurdistan] Region is a successful example. That is why we encourage it," added Dilemi.
On September 2017, the Kurdistan regional government (KRG) held a constitutional nationwide referendum in Kurdistan region including Kirkuk province and the disputed areas, proposing to fully break awya from Baghdad.
In response to the referendum, the Iraqi Army, backed by Iran-backed Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) paramilitaries, invaded Kirkuk and the disputed territories, forcing the Peshmerga to retreat by October 17.
It is expected that the Shiite leaders and politicians will implement the same strategy against any referendum or steps by Sunnis to create a federal region within Iraq.