Why Federalism?

The term “federalism” was never part of the political vocabulary under the old regime prior to 2003, so many people are still wary of it. Those in favour of federalism argue that it offers more power to the regions, while opponents insist it means fragmentation, division and independence. To discuss these two concepts, we in Iraq resort to violence.



Is federalism the solution to discord and violence? That is the basic question. No one has a definitive answer, because we disagree about the term itself, let alone its practical implementation. The Kurdistan region's federal experience has had some success in restoring security, but central and southern Iraq do not have the same geographical and ethnic characteristics, which must raise concerns that federalism there could create a sectarian battleground.



Supporters and opponents of federalism each have their own arguments, which should be respected. If we are all against totalitarianism, and all agree that the regions should have more power, the matter could be regulated by law so as to dampen the animosity among political groupings. The laws should drafted in such a way as to ensure that no one group controls the country’s resources and wealth, and to rule out ethnic partition. What federalism means is administrative units enjoying greater power, but with each constituent region working towards Iraqi national unity and peace.