Gorran demands meeting, deal between leading Kurdistan parties

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – A leading member of the Change (Gorran) Movement pushed on Tuesday for a multi-party meeting to ink a deal on the distribution of posts in the future government of the Kurdistan Region.

Gorran came in third place in elections held in September, securing 12 seats in the 111-seat regional parliament. In first was the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) with 45 seats and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) won 21.

Just over five months after polls, the leading parties appear to be finally nearing a deal to form the government, with the KDP leading the initiative to enter talks with various entities and facilitate the process.

The KDP finalized a deal with Gorran on Feb. 18, but talks have stalled with the PUK, who demanded a comprehensive agreement, inclusive of issues unrelated to government formation. Nevertheless, the KDP-PUK deadlock ended on Monday, as they signed what appeared to be a memorandum of understanding following a meeting between the leadership of both parties, described by the PUK as “historic.”

Now, with the KDP having accommodated both the PUK and Gorran on government formation, a meeting between all three parties seemed to be in order to bind the partnership between them for the coming term. The PUK and Gorran, in more direct competition than either is with the KDP in cities like Sulaimani, have yet to hold any meetings together.

“Certainly, the parties… must meet to write the government’s program,” Gorran leadership member Ali Hama Salih told Kurdistan 24.

He said that his party will work towards a possible convention between all sides in the coming week. The KDP seems to be in favor of such a meeting, with a senior party leader affirming that it is a necessary step in forming the new government during an interview with Kurdistan 24 on Tuesday.

Sheikh Atta Ahmad, the KDP official, said, “The [separate] deals of the KDP with both the PUK and Gorran must be turned into the foundation for holding a trilateral meeting.” 
Editing by John J. Catherine