Suraye political parties call for establishment of Nineveh Plain governate in Iraq

NINEVEH PLAIN, Iraq — Four Suraye (Chaldean-Syriac-Assyrian) political parties in Iraq yesterday called for the creation of a new province in the Nineveh Plain as an autonomous administration for its Suraye (Chaldean-Syriac-Assyrian) population. The demand comes after Iraqi lawmakers approved, earlier this week, the creation of Halabja as a separate governorate and amidst the impending forced takeover of the Hamdaniya district by Rayan Kildani’s Iran-affiliated Babylon Movement. The latter would mean the removal of the incumbent mayor Cissam Behnam Matti, a fierce opponent of Iranian control over the Nineveh Plain. 

A call for Self-governance

In its statement, the four Suraye political parties, being the Beth Nahrain Patriotic Union (Huyodo Bethnahrin Athroyo, HBA), Beth Nahrain Democratic Party, Assyrian Democratic Movement (Zowaa), and the Chaldean Syriac Assyrian Popular Council (Motwa), commend the decision to grant Halabja district the status of a new governorate. Their call is for Iraqi parliament to do the same with regards to a governate in the Nineveh Plain. A decision to establish such a Nineveh Plain governate would fall well within existing legislation, as decided by the Iraqi cabinet on January 21, 2014, and as incorporated in Article 125 of the Iraqi Constitution and Law No. 21 of 2008 concerning Governorates Not Incorporated into a Region.

Related: A Future for Christians in Iraq: A Proposal from Chaldean-Syriac-Assyrian Political Parties

Decentralization through governates is a principle “of a healthy democratic system,” the four Suraye (Chaldean-Syriac-Assyrian) political parties state. It is both a necessary and advantageous move for a country home to a myriad of peoples, communities, and religions. Moreover, such a new Nineveh Plain governate would promote justice and equality among all components of the Iraqi people, recognizing it as an administrative entitlement rather than a privilege for any single group. 

Nineveh Governate: ensuring political and administrative rights as a people 

The Suraye political parties conclude their statement by pointed the important role played by Suraye (Chaldeans-Syriacs-Assyrians) in their homeland of Iraq:  

“The Chaldean-Syriac-Assyrian [Suraye] people have long endured hardship and made profound sacrifices in their struggle to overcome tyranny and help establish a just, free, and democratic system that safeguards the rights of all. Now is the time to honor those sacrifices and recognize the suffering endured—not only by our people but also by the other communities of the Nineveh Plain, who have faced injustice, massacres, and forced displacement. This can be achieved by upholding their legitimate rights and protecting their cultural, linguistic, religious, and national identity. We firmly reaffirm that this constitutional, political, and historical right is absolute and not subject to negotiation.”