Why have the Kurdish people still been unable to secure their rights?
Salih Zhajlayi | Exclusive to iKurd.net
Translated by iKurd.net from Kurdish Awene
In the fourth part of this discussion, I spoke about the role and importance of charismatic leaders, especially during periods of national liberation. I felt it was very important to discuss the leaders of the September Revolution, which began in Southern Kurdistan in 1961, to determine whether any of them possessed the qualities of a charismatic leader. In Part Four, I discussed Mulla Mustafa as a Kurdish leader of that period. In this part, I want to discuss another Kurdish leader.
Massoud Barzani, the son of Mulla Mustafa
Mulla Mustafa had several sons, but after his death, only Idris and Massoud emerged as his successors. However, shortly after Mulla Mustafa’s death, his son Idris also passed away, and Massoud Barzani became the leading figure of the Barzani family.
Today, Nechirvan Barzani, the eldest son of Idris Barzani, appears to be his father’s political successor. He plays an important role both within the Kurdistan Regional Government and within his own family. Masrour Barzani, the eldest son of Massoud Barzani, also appears to be his father’s successor. He, too, plays an important role both within the Regional Government and within his family.
In the view of informed and educated people, Massoud Barzani, his sons, Idris Barzani, and the other members of their family share Mulla Mustafa’s views and follow his path in leading the Kurdish people, pursuing freedom, and achieving their goals.
Although they now live in circumstances very different from those in which Mulla Mustafa led the revolution, they have still not moved beyond a tribal mindset, which is incompatible with modern politics. This is because their own interests, those of their tribe and clan, and those of their close associates have always mattered far more to them than the collective interests of the Kurdish people.
Therefore, whether they like it or not, and whether the public approves of them or not, they have become obstacles to the Kurdish people securing their rights. The collective interests of an occupied, divided, and oppressed people cannot be reduced to the interests of a single family and tribe.
Our discussion focuses on charismatic leadership among a people deprived of their rights. We have argued that Mulla Mustafa, despite all his struggles, efforts, fame, and reputation, was unable to earn the title of a charismatic leader. In the same way, given his current mindset, Massoud Barzani has not been able to become a charismatic leader, nor is he likely to become one.
Unfortunately, Massoud Barzani had far greater opportunities than his father to become an outstanding Kurdish leader because the global political situation was very different from that during his late father Mulla Mustafa’s time.
However, because of his short-sightedness in politics, his strong attachment to his own family and tribe, and his tendency to view the general interests of the entire nation through the lens of his own family’s interests, he has neither become a charismatic leader nor shown any real prospect of becoming one. In Part Four, we discussed all the qualities of a charismatic leader, but Massoud Barzani possesses very few of these qualities.
The same appears to be true of his eldest son, Masrour Barzani, who is now the head of the Kurdistan Regional Government and whom Massoud Barzani is seeking to establish as his successor. In other words, he is being positioned to become the leading figure of the Barzani family.
There is little hope or clear prospect that he will become a charismatic leader who enjoys public support. Instead, he is following exactly in his father’s footsteps, which is incompatible with modern politics.
Why has Massoud Barzani been unable to become a charismatic Kurdish leader?
After the 1991 popular uprising by the people of Kurdistan, Massoud Barzani was presented with a golden opportunity to become the leader of all Kurds. Unfortunately, instead of taking advantage of this opportunity and using it to serve the nation, he made hundreds of other serious and damaging mistakes.
I am not discussing Massoud Barzani’s mistakes here simply to criticize or mock him, because every human being, including every world leader, makes mistakes. No one is free from error. The problem with Massoud Barzani, however, is that he listens to no one, does not learn from his mistakes, and continually drags the Kurdish people into complicated crises.
Here, I will discuss only two of President Barzani’s most damaging mistakes. In an article I wrote some time ago, I discussed two major strategic mistakes made by Massoud Barzani and two major strategic mistakes made by Mam Jalal. Since those mistakes are directly relevant to this discussion, I will revisit President Barzani’s two mistakes here. Later, when discussing Mam Jalal, I will also explain his two mistakes.
President Barzani’s First Major Strategic Mistake
Holding the referendum
Ever since the Kurdish people began their struggle in Southern Kurdistan, bringing Kirkuk back into the territory of Kurdistan has been a goal and a strategic objective. For the KDP, Kirkuk was the heart of Kurdistan, while for the PUK, it was Kurdistan’s sacred land. Unfortunately, in the end, Kirkuk became a victim of the disagreements between the PUK and the KDP.
Every Kurd must understand that, at this stage, no country in the world is willing to formally recognize Kirkuk as part of Kurdistan. Their interests do not align with such a move, and doing so would mean the breakup of Iraq, which they would not accept.
However, if the Kurds had acted wisely and rationally and assessed the situation carefully, then even if Kirkuk had not formally become part of the Kurdistan Region, its Kurdish identity could still have been recognized, and it would not have been occupied as it is today.
Massoud Barzani’s biggest mistake was making the decision to hold the referendum unilaterally, based on his own judgment, without listening to intellectuals and others concerned about the nation’s future, and without heeding the request from the United States. At the time, the U.S. Secretary of State had written a 700-word letter to President Barzani, asking him to delay the referendum for just one year and promising to do whatever was necessary to support him.
But, unfortunately, not just a hundred times, but a thousand times, President Barzani did not listen even to the United States.
President Barzani’s short-sightedness lay in failing to recognize that, for an issue of such importance, he should have secured the support of the United Nations and at least several major world powers. Only then should he have made the decision to hold the referendum. Instead, without any of these guarantees, he made the decision unilaterally. As a result, the Kurds lost more than half of their territory, and we witnessed the suffering of so many people in Tuz Khurmatu, who were killed, massacred, and displaced.
Did you not see with your own eyes how, during that period, an Iraqi soldier put a noose around the neck of a Kurdish farmer simply because the farmer had defended his land against occupation? And now, instead of punishing the soldier, they have punished the farmer with a fine of one million dinars, which a patriotic Kurd has paid on his behalf.
What does Massoud Barzani say to himself when he sees such painful scenes? Even now, he expresses no regret. Instead, he takes pride in that decision and considers the referendum proof of Kirkuk’s ownership. This is because he continues to conduct politics with a tribal mindset. In a tribal system, the tribal chief is never considered to be wrong.
Massoud Barzani’s Second Major Strategic Mistake
In 1964, a conflict broke out between the Political Bureau faction and Mulla Mustafa. To this day, the Kurdish people continue to suffer from the consequences of that division. It led to many major and heartbreaking tragedies, too numerous to count. Describing them all would require dozens of books.
After Mulla Mustafa’s death, disagreements emerged between Massoud Barzani on one side and Mam Jalal and Nawshirwan Mustafa on the other. Over time, both Mam Jalal and Nawshirwan Mustafa passed away, leaving Massoud Barzani alone on the political stage of the Region, without any rivals.
Although the political field was now open to President Barzani, even to this day he has been unable to become the leader of all Southern Kurdistan.
The question is: why?
If President Barzani had possessed a broad vision and been free of a spirit of revenge, he should have recognized that both of his rivals had passed away and that he was now the only major figure left on the political stage.
When Kak Nawshirwan passed away, Barzani should have immediately gone to Sulaimani, attended the mourning ceremony, and then taken both of Kak Nawshirwan’s sons by the hand and visited Mam Jalal’s home. He should have said to them:
“Throughout the years of the revolution, your father and I were rivals. We fought against each other and caused great harm to the Kurdish cause. Now, they are both gone, and I have no rivals left.”
These words would have conveyed the message: “I do not consider you my rivals. In other words, you are not on my level.”
He should then have promised them, “From this day forward, I will consider you my nephews, and I will put an end to these disputes once and for all.”
After that, he should have instructed Nechirvan and Masrour to undertake a series of projects in the Sulaimani area. For example, they could have completed the Chamchamal water supply project, finished the dual-carriageway roads connecting Sulaimani to Kalar and Sulaimani to Ranya, and completed Sulaimani’s 100-meter-wide road.
At that time, none of the PUK leaders was in a position to replace Mam Jalal and Kak Nawshirwan. Neither Bafel nor Qubad was in a position to fill the roles of Mam Jalal and Kak Nawshirwan. Over time, President Barzani could have become the true leader of all Southern Kurdistan.
But, a thousand times unfortunately, President Barzani was not even willing to attend Kak Nawshirwan’s mourning ceremony. This suggests that he was very pleased by Kak Nawshirwan’s death because he had been rid of his second rival.
When the Iranians saw this situation, they decided to bring the PUK onto their side and use it whenever they wanted. They therefore instructed Iraq’s Shiite political forces to prioritize Mam Jalal’s sons, support them, and strengthen their position within the Iraqi government. In other words, they wanted to prepare them to oppose the KDP whenever necessary.
That is exactly what happened. Today, look at how Bafel Talabani stands against Massoud Barzani and openly challenges him.
If the current situation in the Kurdistan Region had occurred during Mam Jalal’s lifetime, with elections held two years earlier and no government yet formed, he would have visited President Barzani and made compromises for the sake of Kurdish interests.
But look at the situation today. Bafel Talabani is even tougher than his father.
What I have explained above shows that even when President Barzani has no rivals, he creates them for himself. This goes back to his tribal background. He has still been unable to move beyond tribal boundaries and change his approach. He should stop thinking about revenge, strengthen the unity of his people, try to treat all citizens equally, stand by them in their struggles, and think about the future of the nation.
Unfortunately, President Barzani has wasted all his golden opportunities and has failed to become a truly charismatic leader.
As things stand today, he appears unable even to preserve unity within his own family, where serious disagreements persist. When he eventually passes away, it would not be surprising if major conflicts emerge among members of his family, because the family has grown and its competing interests have multiplied.
I hope nothing like that happens, because it would not serve the interests of the Kurdish people either.
Salih Zhajlayi, one of the political figures in Sulaimani city, Iraqi Kurdistan, and formerly the Deputy Head of the General Assembly of the Gorran (Change) Movement, is currently working independently in Sulaimani.
This article was originally published in the Kurdish language in Awene Newspaper on October 15, 2026.
The opinions are those of the writer and do not necessarily represent the views of iKurd.net or its editors.
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