Sunni Arabs make up the majority of Nineveh’s population, while the Kurds are the largest minority group there.
In the local elections held in 2005, Kurds gained 31 of the 41 seats on the provincial council, giving them control over local politics and security. In the 2009 elections, power swung towards the Sunni Arab population, whose representatives won 22 of 37 council seats.
Kurdish council members subsequently boycotted local government, a move which obstructed development plans for Nineveh.
Despite these frictions, signs emerged last month that relations between the two groups might be improving.
In a step aimed at reducing tension, provincial governor Atheel al-Nujaifi, a Sunni Arab, moved to give Kurdish council members a greater say. While the distribution of council seats will remain the same, decisions will now be reached by consensus rather than a straight vote.
“The differences of the past have disappeared,” Nujaifi said. “A positive relationship with the Kurds will be good for Nineveh’s people – both groups can now cooperate to provide a better standard of living for the people.”
The governor insisted that Sunni Arab interests had not been compromised by the change.
“We have not abandoned the rights of our people,” he said.
Dindar Abdullah, the Kurdish deputy head of the provincial council, said everyone in Nineveh stood to benefit from reconciliation.
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