Barzani to Bush: What Baghdad did to us, people of Texas would have never accepted

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region (Kurdistan 24) – The President of the Kurdistan Region, Masoud Barzani, attended the largest rally in support of 'Yes' vote for the Kurdistan Region's upcoming referendum in Erbil on Friday and shared one of his stories with former US President George W. Bush.

Tens of thousands of people in Erbil attended the rally, shouting slogans for independence while waving the national flag of Kurdistan.

The Kurdish leadership plans to hold a referendum on independence for the Kurdistan Region on Sep. 25, a move on which senior Kurdish officials say there is no turning back.

President Barzani addressed the enormous crowd, laying out Baghdad's behavior toward Erbil and why the Kurdistan Region has chosen the path toward independence.

Mentioned in his speech was his 2006 meeting with then President Bush at the Ain Assad air base in the Iraqi province of Anbar, for which other Iraqi political leaders were also present.

“He told me 'We the people of Texas and the Kurdistan Region have many things in common. We both have our own flags and oil. We are brave and smart. We believe we are strong with Washington DC, and you the people of the Kurdistan Region are strong with Baghdad',” Barzani recalled.

“In response, I told him 'dear Mr. President, what Baghdad has done against the people of the Kurdistan Region [thoroughout history]...had Washington DC done the same to the people of Texas, you would have never returned to Washington DC',” Barzani conveyed to the thousands-strong crowd.

The Kurdish President expressed his disappointment in Baghdad's treatment toward the Kurdistan Region, stating that Baghdad does not believe in a true partnership despite Erbil's continuous efforts and compromises.

“Where on earth will you find a nation that has been massacred several times, with genocidal campaigns held against this nation, which killed over 182,000 of its people and destroyed thousands of its villages? After all of this happening to the Kurds, Kurdish leaders looked to the authorities in Baghdad as brothers and asked to be partners. Yet they insulted us and told us that we're living at their expense,” Barzani exclaimed, referring to the obstacles the Kurdistan Region's leaders overcame in their work to establish cordial relations with Iraq, from 2003 onwards.

He also added that there is now a popular culture of discrimination in Baghdad and other southern provinces of Iraq where “Whoever insults and stands against Kurdistan [Region] receives more votes in the elections. How can we continue to live in a society like that?”

Accusing Baghdad of turning into a “sectarian government” and treating the people of the Kurdistan Region as second-class citizens, he affirmed the Kurdistan Region's people have the right to decide on their future and refuse to be subordinates any longer.

“It is true that stepping toward independence carries risks. But waiting and letting others decide on our behalf is far riskier than making that choice ourselves,” he told the cheering crowd.

The Kurdish President emphasized dialogue and negotiations between Erbil and Baghdad will continue, to allow for outstanding disputes to be resolved peacefully and to build good future relations as neighboring states.

Editing by G.H. Renaud