Iraqi Kurdistan: Regional Oil Law as an Example
Iraq’s Kurdistan regional government passed a regional oil law, providing it with the right to administer its own natural resources; a historical moment which is hoped to set an example for the rest of
Below is an article written by Yahya Barzanji and published by My Way News:
The measure gives the regional government the right to administer its oil wealth in the three northern governates - Irbil, Sulaimaniyah and Dahuk - as well as what it called "disputed territories," referring to Kirkuk, one of Iraq's largest crude oil hubs.
Kurdish Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani signed the law Tuesday [7 August 2007], calling it a "historic moment."
"This is the first time in
The Kurdish law is separate from the proposed national oil law, which aims to divide
The oil law is one of the so-called benchmarks in
Sunni Arabs, who are centered in regions of
Kurds and Shiites are eager for control of the resources they were largely deprived of under Saddam Hussein's Sunni-dominated rule. The Kurds also want to ensure they run development of lucrative future oil discoveries in their autonomous region.
Underscoring the divisions, the hard-line Sunni Association of Muslim Scholars issued an Internet statement rejecting the Kurdish oil law and called on foreign firms not to invest in the area. It said Kurdish leaders were part of the U.S.-led "occupation" in
In the latest draft of the national oil law, Shiite, Sunni and Kurdish officials agreed on the distribution of revenues, with the northern Kurdish autonomous region getting 17 percent of the net revenues each month, after deducting federal government expenditures.
Barzani said the Kurdish law initially will seek the same financial cut, but it was unclear how the Kurds would calculate the total Iraqi oil and gas production since nearly all facilities are crippled by warfare and insurgent attacks.
In June, the Kurdish regional government said it was planning to offer 40 new oil blocks to foreign companies.
"The Kurdish oil law addresses the needs of all Iraqis," Hawrami added. "We (the Kurds) want to set an example for all of