Editorial: Central and Southern Federalism

Iraq's central and southern regions suffered deeply under the former regime; they from suffered killing and destruction, and their rights and freedoms were taken away. There are now more than 380 mass graves (from mass killings under former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein's regime.) People from those regions wanted the government to rescue them but they have only suffered more violence and torture. The Kurdistan region, which did not suffer as much as the middle and south, became a federal region. Some of Saddam's followers who hold power now look at central and southern federalism as an attempt to split Iraq, but they do not object to announcements from Kurdistan that it should separate from Iraq. We support the call of (Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq leader) Abdul Aziz al-Hakim to establish federalism in middle and southern Iraq. Establishing federalism in these regions will lead to a balanced and reformed Iraq. This is the ideal solution for all of Iraq's problems and will give the people of these regions the rights that they deserve.