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ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Kurdish ruling and opposition parties in northeast Syria (Rojava) have agreed on a list of demands, which includes federalism, that will be presented to Damascus later this month, two opposition officials said on Friday.
Rojava’s ruling Democratic Union Party (PYD) and the opposition Kurdish National Council (KNC/ENKS) held a meeting in Qamishli on Tuesday with mediation by Mazloum Abdi, commander-in-chief of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and American officials. The two sides are working to set aside their long-held grievances and agree on a unified stance to strengthen the Kurdish voice in the new Syria.
Jadan Ali, ENKS representative in the Kurdistan Region, told Rudaw on Friday that they have agreed on a final draft of demands to be presented to the new administration in Damascus by a joint committee from the ENKS and PYD later this month.
The PYD and ENKS have “reached an agreement and ended all disputes,” Ali stated, adding that the PYD is now consulting their “friends.” He expects the results, “glad tidings,” will be publicized after Kurdish New Year (Newroz) celebrations that end on Sunday.
Ali and Faysal Yousef, ENKS spokesperson, told Rudaw that federalism is one of their demands.
“We Kurds all want a decentralized, federal, multi-ethnic, and multi-religious Syria,” Yousef said.
The interim constitution adopted by the transitional government in Damascus cements authoritarian rule and has drawn criticism from Syria’s minority communities who have demanded it be re-written.
The PYD and ENKS have been bitter rivals for years and previous attempts at reconciliation have failed.
Abdi said on Tuesday that their meeting was “the first step in a series of meetings to achieve Kurdish unity. For the establishment of a diverse and democratic Syria, where the rights of all components are guaranteed, we are insistent on making this dialogue successful.”
The SDF is the de facto army of Rojava and Abdi has been a key mediator of the intra-Kurdish talks.
Sulaimani Oso, a member of ENKS leadership who attended the meeting, told Rudaw English on Tuesday that “we will meet again after Newroz celebrations” to form a joint committee that will represent all Kurds in talks with the new authority in Damascus.
The PYD and ENKS signed an agreement, mediated by Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) leader Masoud Barzani, in the Kurdistan Region’s Duhok province in 2015 to end tensions and share power in Rojava. However, the deal was never implemented and each side blamed the other for its failure. Both sides have engaged in a war of words, accusing each other of treason.
The new talks were initiated after the fall of the Bashar al-Assad regime and increasing threats on the Kurdish enclave.
The KDP’s Barzani, who has strong ties with ENKS and whose opinion is highly respected by the umbrella group, held his first public meeting with Abdi in Erbil on January 16 to discuss Kurdish unity in Syria. Days later, Abdi met with ENKS representatives striking an agreement to dispatch a joint Kurdish delegation to initiate talks with Damascus.
Barzani and Abdi also spoke on the phone last week. They emphasized Kurdish unity in the political process in Syria, according to a statement from Barzani’s office.
Barzani also highlighted Kurdish unity in a Newroz message.
“On this occasion, we hope for an end to the suffering of the Kurdish people in Syria, and that Kurds, with a unified position and peaceful measures, can reach a conclusion with other Syrian parties that serves everyone's interests,” he said.
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