The Kurds in Iraq: the past, present and future

Since the end of Saddam Hussein's regime and despite the apparent stability and competence of the governing administrations, the future of Iraqi Kurdistan is critically conjoined to that of the rest of the country. Until now, no firm timetable has been set for the establishment of a fully functioning and independent Iraqi government. Unfortunately the UN and coalition forces continue to remain in dispute as to the role that multilateral institutions ought to play in Iraq's political and physical reconstruction.

For decades the Kurds of Iraq have been victims of the manipulation of their neighbours and nations further afield. The Kurds are now in a stronger position than they have ever been in their history. This report is intended to provide an outline of some of the issues affecting the Kurds of Iraq. It provides a brief exploration of the past's effect on the present and of how both the Kurds and the international community must avoid repeating past mistakes and instead to lay the foundations for an autonomous region committed to pluralistic democracy and human rights.

This report provides a scholarly analysis of the urgent and as yet unanswered questions regarding the future of the Iraqi Kurdistan that was achieved after the Gulf War in 1992.