Historic Importance of Gorran's Ankara Visit

Both the public and private sectors cooperate closely with the party in power and those who are close to them.
 
And in order to avoid criticisms and reactions from the ruling party, they stay away from the opposition. An Ankara-based think tank, the Center for Middle Eastern Strategic Studies (ORSAM), does not do this. Without making any distinction between the ruling and opposition parties, it holds meetings with both sides and publishes the opinions and views of dissidents as well. To this end, Movement for Change, also known as Gorran, the main opposition party in Iraqi Kurdistan, visited Ankara on Aug. 13-16, where they co-organized a workshop with ORSAM on Aug. 13 called “Political Developments in the Iraqi Kurdistan Authority and the Future of the Relations between Turkey and the Iraqi Kurds.”
 
Founded in 2009, Gorran brought new dimensions to the political life of Iraqi Kurdistan. It emerged and matured as an intellectual movement, finally becoming a party supported by Iraqi and Kurdish diaspora intellectuals. It sends messages of democratization, budget transparency, administrative reforms, dealing with corruption and enhancement of civil society to the Kurdish people. It rejected the idea of basing its political action on tribal identity. Members even rejected signaling their tribal affiliation in their names. Furthermore, Gorran created a research center affiliated with the party organization. Nearly 90 percent of working people receive salaries from the state in Iraqi Kurdistan. The Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) have enterprises and factories. They are able to distribute money to the voters. In such an environment, Gorran did not want to be part of the establishment in Erbil or Baghdad. They did not go after a huge number of votes despite their strong voter base.
 
In 2009, little was known about Gorran. There was no solid information except from some prominent figures who parted ways with the PUK. The Noşirvan Mustafa-led Gorran movement, based in Sulaymaniyya, contributed to a decline in support for the Masoud Barzani - Jalal Talabani alliance from 90 percent to 53 percent. In the parliamentary and presidential elections held on July 25, 2009 in Iraqi Kurdistan, the party came second after the KDP-PUK alliance. They caused a big surprise by receiving 23.62 percent of the vote. Currently, Gorran has eight of a total 325 seats in the Iraqi parliament and 25 of a total 100 in the Iraqi Kurdistan parliament.
 
In Iraqi Kurdistan, a constitution was adopted by the parliament in 2009, however, a referendum should also be held for its entrance into effect. Gorran asks for a referendum after additional amendments to the constitution and pays special attention to relations with Turkey, which they do not see as an alien country. They say that the Turkmen population should have a position of deputy presidency in Iraqi Kurdistan. To this end, they strongly support the settlement process in Turkey. If Ankara successfully completes the settlement process, they believe that peace will be rebuilt with Turkey's assistance. Iraq is in a state of chaos. In July alone, 3,000 were killed in terror attacks. Iraqi Kurdistan is an oasis of stability and security in Iraq. For this reason, Gorran believes that Iraqi Kurdistan is on the edge of instability. They believe that only Turkey could protect them from any potential collapse and turmoil. Gorran's Iraqi Parliament Deputy and Group Chair Dr. Latif Muhammad said: “We have had so many bad days in Iraq that we have barely saved our spirit, let alone our culture.” Turkey continues to make peace with itself. If Mevlana Jelaluddin Rumi's “Mesnevi” is being translated into the Kurdish language in a conservative city such as Konya, where Kurdish people do not even constitute 10 percent of the population, this means that bold and irreversible steps have been taken.
 
Politics sometimes works against the interests of the people. Without political interference, peoples, religions and sects may exist together. For this reason, we need to build confidence in the Middle East first. An unsaid or unexpressed view cannot be tested. We need to investigate what lies behind opinions. New dynamics that pay attention to confidence building will emerge in the Middle East. And Gorran is one of the most important new dynamics.