By Miran Husen
Although the Kurdistan Region is part of the Middle East and Iraq, and is located in an area that has become an arena for national, religious, and sectarian conflicts, what distinguishes the Kurdistan Region is that it has always been a place for coexistence among different religions, nationalities, and sects. We can proudly say that the Kurdistan Region is a peaceful meadow for coexistence between various nationalities, religions, and sects, while religious and ethnic minorities face challenges throughout the Middle East in general and other parts of Iraq in particular.
The main reason for this coexistence can be attributed to the nature of the Kurdish people as a nation, who have always been tolerant towards all nationalities and religions that were neighbors or lived in Kurdish areas throughout history. Orientalists who visited Kurdish regions and foreign writers testify that Kurds are one of the nations that historically had the least conflict with other religious and ethnic components living in Kurdish areas, and if any incident occurred, it was due to external instigation.
Besides the tolerant nature of Kurdish individuals as a nation, another factor relates to the mindset of the political elite and the policy of the Kurdistan Regional Government after its establishment along with the Kurdistan Parliament in 1992. They have always worked on including religious and ethnic components in Kurdistan through their participation in regional government cabinets and allocating quota seats for nationalities and religions in the Kurdistan Parliament and local councils.
Therefore, the Kurdistan Regional Government and the Kurdish people must work tirelessly to maintain the Kurdistan Region as a peaceful and stable area for all components, and never allow any undesirable incidents that could tarnish Kurdistan Region’s reputation. Small issues or problems should not be allowed to disrupt the brotherhood between Kurds and ethnic components or between religions in the Kurdistan Region, and enemies and opponents of the Kurdistan Region should not be given the opportunity to create problems between the components of the Kurdistan Region.
The Kurdistan Regional Government must work more than ever to maintain this coexistence, taking steps to strengthen and reinforce this harmony between all religions and nationalities. They must always work to find common ground between all residents of the Kurdistan Region.
Religious and ethnic coexistence should be made into a subject in primary education to establish a culture of mutual acceptance among all residents of the Kurdistan Region, especially religious components. Religious leaders should emphasize in their speeches the elimination of extremist discourse in society and tolerance towards other religions living in Kurdistan. Laws should be enacted that impose strict penalties on any actions that disrupt brotherhood between components.
ne of the other duties that the Kurdistan Regional Government must undertake in its next cabinet is protecting this religious and national coexistence, so that the Kurdistan Region can benefit from it internationally and introduce the world to Kurdistan Region’s unique brotherhood experience in the Middle East, at a time when the vast majority of Middle Eastern countries are accused of mistreating religious and ethnic minorities.