The Communist Party of Kurdistan – Iraq (, alternatively written as ''Partiya Komunîst a Kurdistanê'', ) is a

Kurdish Kurdish may refer to: *Kurds or Kurdish people *Kurdish language ** Northern Kurdish (Kurmanji) **Central Kurdish (Sorani) **Southern Kurdish ** Laki Kurdish *Kurdish alphabets *Kurdistan, the land of the Kurdish people which includes: **Southern ...

political party A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular area's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific political ideology, ...

, formed in 1993 when the

Iraqi Communist Party The Iraqi Communist Party ( '; ) is a communist party and the oldest active party in Iraq. Since its foundation in 1934, it has dominated the left in Iraqi politics. It played a prominent role in shaping the political history of Iraq between it ...

branch in the Kurdish areas was formed into a separate party. The party is led by Kawa Mahmud. In both the January and December 2005 Iraqi legislative elections the party was part of the

Democratic Patriotic Alliance of Kurdistan The Democratic Patriotic Alliance of Kurdistan (DPAK) sometimes referred to simply as the Kurdistan Alliance (KA) is the name of the electoral coalition first presented as a united Kurdish list in the January 2005 election in Iraq. Elections were ...

. The party has a women's wing, the Kurdistan Women's League, whose leader Nahla Hussain al-Shaly was murdered in

Kirkuk Kirkuk (; ; ; ) is a major city in northern Iraq, serving as the capital of the Kirkuk Governorate. The city is home to a diverse population of Kurds, Iraqi Turkmen, Iraqi Turkmens and Arabs. Kirkuk sits on the ruins of the original Kirkuk Cit ...

in 2008. It also has an Assyrian wing called the Kaldo-Ashur Communist Party based in Ankawa. Kawa Mahmud became the party's secretary general, after his predecessor, Kemal Şakir, stepped down on 27 October 2017.

Positions and statements

On wars in the NAWA region

In November 2020, politburo member Ebdulrehman Faris warned of a "war among brothers" and that the regional countries would always have conspired against the

Kurds Kurds (), or the Kurdish people, are an Iranian peoples, Iranic ethnic group from West Asia. They are indigenous to Kurdistan, which is a geographic region spanning southeastern Turkey, northwestern Iran, northern Iraq, and northeastern Syri ...

. He also said that any Kurdish party causing internal tension between Kurdish parties should be condemned. In that regard, criticized

KDP KDP may refer to: Businesses *Kindle Direct Publishing, an e-publisher that bans without reason *Keurig Dr Pepper, a beverage conglomerate Political parties * Karpatendeutsche Partei (KdP; Carpathian Germany Party), Czechoslovakia * Katipunan ...

chairman Masoud Barzani's statement, that the

Kurdistan Workers' Party The Kurdistan Workers' Party, or the PKK, isDespite the PKK's 12th Congress announcing plans for total organisational dissolution, the PKK has not yet been dissolved de facto or de jure. a Kurds, Kurdish militant political organization and armed ...

would be responsible for destruction and war in the

Kurdistan Region Kurdistan Region (KRI) is a semi-autonomous Federal regions of Iraq, federal region of the Iraq, Republic of Iraq. It comprises four Kurds, Kurdish-majority governorates of Arabs, Arab-majority Iraq: Erbil Governorate, Sulaymaniyah Governorate ...

and should leave it. If the PKK would be an occupier in parts of the region, Faris argued, what then would be the buildup of Turkish troops and dozens of military bases in the region. He also highlighted the PKK's efforts of defeating the

Islamic State The Islamic State (IS), also known as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and Daesh, is a transnational Salafi jihadism, Salafi jihadist organization and unrecognized quasi-state. IS ...

, Şingal and Makhmur. Again in 2021, the party issued a statement regarding the Turkish operation at Gare mountain against PKK fighters, calling it an aggression and occupation by the

Turkish Armed Forces The Turkish Armed Forces (TAF; , TSK) are the armed forces, military forces of the Turkey, Republic of Turkey. The TAF consist of the Turkish Army, Land Forces, the Turkish Navy, Naval Forces and the Turkish Air Force, Air Forces. The Chief of ...

. In October 2023, the KCP criticized both the Turkish airstrikes against civilian targets in

Rojava Rojava may refer to: * Syrian Kurdistan, also known as Rojava, the geographical region where Kurds historically settled within present-day Syria * Democratic Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria The Democratic Autonomous Administ ...

and the Israeli attack on Gaza after the October 7 assault by

Hamas The Islamic Resistance Movement, abbreviated Hamas (the Arabic acronym from ), is a Palestinian nationalist Sunni Islam, Sunni Islamism, Islamist political organisation with a military wing, the Qassam Brigades. It has Gaza Strip under Hama ...

, calling both Turkey and Israel "occupying states". The party also called for the establishment of a no-fly zone in northern Syria and on the international community to make efforts to protect the rights of both the

and

Palestinian Palestinians () are an Arab ethnonational group native to the Levantine region of Palestine. *: "Palestine was part of the first wave of conquest following Muhammad's death in 632 CE; Jerusalem fell to the Caliph Umar in 638. The indigenous p ...

people. On 12 February 2024, the KCP released a statement, in which

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

and "militia groups" were called out for attacks on the

and for inflicting demographic change in the disputed territories of northern Iraq. In that regards to the security in the Kurdistan Region, the party spoke about a dangerous phenomenon of "anonymous killings, femicides, suicides, arrests of journalists and civil activists" as well as obstacles to their efforts.

On elections in Iraq and the Kurdistan region

On 29 July 2023, the KCP called on the Kurdish parties to overcome their differences for the 2023 Iraqi governorate elections in the Disputed territories of northern Iraq and form an unified list. The party stressed a 'historical responsibility' to protect the unity of the Kurdish people, especially in the areas outside of the control of the autonomous

Kurdistan region Kurdistan Region (KRI) is a semi-autonomous Federal regions of Iraq, federal region of the Iraq, Republic of Iraq. It comprises four Kurds, Kurdish-majority governorates of Arabs, Arab-majority Iraq: Erbil Governorate, Sulaymaniyah Governorate ...

. It criticized the

Kurdistan Democratic Party The Kurdistan Democratic Party (), usually abbreviated as KDP or PDK, is the ruling Political party, party in Iraqi Kurdistan and the senior partner in the Kurdistan Regional Government. It was founded in 1946 in Mahabad in Iranian Kurdistan. ...

for refusing to form an alliance with the

Patriotic Union of Kurdistan The Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK; ) is a political party active in Kurdistan Region and the Disputed territories of Northern Iraq, disputed territories in Iraq. The PUK describes its goals as self-determination, human rights, democracy a ...

. On 26 October 2023, Kawa Mahmud called on elections in the

to be held as soon as possible, as the regional parliament and provincial councils had been dissolved by the federal court, as the mandate had ended. This, Mahmud argued, would be a threat to Kurdistan, in particularly because of unpaid salaries and oil exports the region is dependent on. To overcome this crisis, he called on cooperation between all Kurdistani parties.

On protests and social issues

On 5 February 2024, the KCP tried to hold a protest in

Erbil Erbil (, ; , ), also called Hawler (, ), is the capital and most populated city in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. The city is the capital of the Erbil Governorate. Human settlement at Erbil may be dated back to the 5th millennium BC. At the h ...

in support of the protesting teachers who had not received their salaries for months. This triggered a massive buildup of security forces around the party's headquarters. In reaction, the party released a statement, saying the authorities are violating civil rights, are stealing the money from the citizens and should step down from power. They rejected the official reasoning of "security concerns" for not receiving the permission for their march demanding the full payment of the salary of teachers, civil servants and pensioners. As the security forces had hindered the protest from reaching its destination, the party had instead decided to hold the speeches in front of its headquarters. On 12 February 2024, the party spoke of a worldwide "capitalist economic crisis" putting stress on the middle class and claimed that the lack of alternative programs for justice and equality has led to the rise of dangerous ideologies such as

Nazism Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During Hitler's rise to power, it was fre ...

and radical

Islamism Islamism is a range of religious and political ideological movements that believe that Islam should influence political systems. Its proponents believe Islam is innately political, and that Islam as a political system is superior to communism ...

Cooperation with other parties

The party is part of the so-called ''Joint Working Committee of the Left of Kurdistan'', alongside the

Kurdistan Toilers' Party The Kurdistan Toilers' Party (, also known as Zahmatkeshan) was founded in 1985 by Qadir Ezîz and Ebdulxaliq Zengene and balen abdulla as a splinter of the short-lived alliance ''Kurdistan United Socialist Party'' (HSYK), which had included th ...

and the

Movement of the Democratic People of Kurdistan The Movement of the Democratic People of Kurdistan (, abbreviated as MDPK) is a Kurdish communist political party formed in 1995. The party is led by Mam Xidir. The party is part of the so-called ''Joint Working Committee of the Left of Kurdistan' ...

. Said committee released a statement in August 2022, calling on the elimination of "absolute centralism" in Iraq, as well as the adoption of a separate constitution for the

and the elections for the

Kurdistan Region Parliament The Kurdistan Regional Parliament, also known as Kurdistan Parliament – Iraq (; ), or simply Perleman, is the parliament of the Kurdistan Region in Iraq. It is made up of representatives from the various parties, lists or slates that are elec ...

and the regional councils to be held on time. Furthermore, the statement calls on the government to stop further privatizations, to provide the salaries of public servants on time and to adopt reforms that improve the economic and social development of the people of Kurdistan.

Electoral activities

In the 2023 Kirkuk governorate election, the KCP formed a joint list together with the

. This alliance also received endorsement from the Kurdistan Society's Freedom Movement. For the 2024 Kurdistan Region parliamentary election, the party joined an electoral alliance together with the

and the Kurdistan Social Democratic Party. The alliance is called the Kurdistan Region Coalition.

References

External links

*
Press-releases of Kurdistan Communist Party – Iraq at Solidnet.org
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kurdistan Communist Party - Iraq Political parties in Kurdistan Region 1993 establishments in Iraq Communist parties in Kurdistan International Meeting of Communist and Workers Parties