On Monday, Kurdistan Region, the only autonomous area in Iraq, will hold a referendum on the question of independence. The vote will have no legal force. Its purpose is to fortify the argument for eventual independence by demonstrating that self-determination enjoys popular support. The plebiscite has been decreed illegal by the Iraqi government, and the governments of Turkey, Iran, Britain and the United States have all urged the Kurdish Regional Government to scrap it.
Yet Massoud Barzani, the region's president, refuses to budge. He has lavished vast sums of cash on Washington lobbyists to advance the case for the referendum. Closer to home, he has disregarded or derided regional protests and thumbed his nose at the government in Baghdad. Mr Barzani insists that the referendum is for the good of the Kurdish people. This claim falls apart on closer inspection. The Kurdish yearning for sovereignty is a long one, but the region controlled by Mr Barzani is only one part of the "Greater Kurdistan" that nationalists hope one day to erect.
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More from Opinion on the Kurdish referendum
The genie of Kurdish independence will be hard to put back in the bottle
From Kirkuk to Catalonia, referendum votes leave much to be desired for those after autonomy
Cartoon: Shadi Ghanim's take on the Kurdish referendum
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Mr Barzani's insistence on conducting a referendum in his bailiwick will likely have the effect of frustrating rather than accelerating the creation of such a state. The autonomy that has allowed Iraqi Kurds to build a proto-state will be imperilled by the retaliatory measures that Mr Barzani's referendum will invariably trigger. Turkey and Iran, trying to contain Kurdish secessionist sentiment within their own borders, will look for ways to choke off what they regard as the fount of incitement. The Iraqi government, having shed blood to make gains against ISIL, is not too keen either to indulge Mr Barzani's destabilising theatre. Mr Barzani is threatening to redraw Iraq's map just as the country is beginning to unite after years of strife.
The question of what constitutes Iraqi Kurdistan is a matter of dispute. Millions of Iraqi Arabs live alongside Kurds in areas claimed by Mr Barzani. Baghdad owes them the responsibility that all states owe their citizens; to allow Mr Barzani to claim their lands is to abdicate its fundamental duty to defend Iraqis. So why is Mr Barzani going ahead with the referendum in spite all these problems? Strengthening his own hold on power, rather than leading his people to some promised land, is the true reason for this referendum. Iraqi Kurdistan is a museum of disappointments. Unfinished buildings dot the landscape. Government employees complain about unpaid wages. Everyone complains about mismanagement by the government.
In 2015, Mr Barzani junked the constitution and stayed in power even after his term in office ended. This referendum’s true purpose is to weaken his rivals in the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan party and make gains in the parliamentary and presidential elections scheduled to take place on November 1. Mr Barzani has decided to subordinate the good of his people to his own ambition. The Kurdish people will be the true losers of Monday’s referendum.
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Jigra
Starring: Alia Bhatt, Vedang Raina, Manoj Pahwa, Harsh Singh
Company profile
Date started: December 24, 2018
Founders: Omer Gurel, chief executive and co-founder and Edebali Sener, co-founder and chief technology officer
Based: Dubai Media City
Number of employees: 42 (34 in Dubai and a tech team of eight in Ankara, Turkey)
Sector: ConsumerTech and FinTech
Cashflow: Almost $1 million a year
Funding: Series A funding of $2.5m with Series B plans for May 2020
COMPANY%20PROFILE%20
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The specs: 2018 Audi R8 V10 RWS
Price: base / as tested: From Dh632,225
Engine: 5.2-litre V10
Gearbox: Seven-speed automatic
Power: 540hp @ 8,250rpm
Torque: 540Nm @ 6,500rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 12.4L / 100km
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BUNDESLIGA FIXTURES
Saturday, May 16 (kick-offs UAE time)
Borussia Dortmund v Schalke (4.30pm)
RB Leipzig v Freiburg (4.30pm)
Hoffenheim v Hertha Berlin (4.30pm)
Fortuna Dusseldorf v Paderborn (4.30pm)
Augsburg v Wolfsburg (4.30pm)
Eintracht Frankfurt v Borussia Monchengladbach (7.30pm)
Sunday, May 17
Cologne v Mainz (4.30pm),
Union Berlin v Bayern Munich (7pm)
Monday, May 18
Werder Bremen v Bayer Leverkusen (9.30pm)
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Zimbabwe v UAE, ODI series
All matches at the Harare Sports Club:
1st ODI, Wednesday, April 10
2nd ODI, Friday, April 12
3rd ODI, Sunday, April 14
4th ODI, Tuesday, April 16
UAE squad: Mohammed Naveed (captain), Rohan Mustafa, Ashfaq Ahmed, Shaiman Anwar, Mohammed Usman, CP Rizwan, Chirag Suri, Mohammed Boota, Ghulam Shabber, Sultan Ahmed, Imran Haider, Amir Hayat, Zahoor Khan, Qadeer Ahmed
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
Started: 2020
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Entertainment
Number of staff: 210
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
If you go...
Etihad Airways flies from Abu Dhabi to Kuala Lumpur, from about Dh3,600. Air Asia currently flies from Kuala Lumpur to Terengganu, with Berjaya Hotels & Resorts planning to launch direct chartered flights to Redang Island in the near future. Rooms at The Taaras Beach and Spa Resort start from 680RM (Dh597).
THE SPECS
GMC Sierra Denali 1500
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Power: 420hp
Torque: 623Nm
Price: Dh232,500
APPLE IPAD MINI (A17 PRO)
Display: 21cm Liquid Retina Display, 2266 x 1488, 326ppi, 500 nits
Chip: Apple A17 Pro, 6-core CPU, 5-core GPU, 16-core Neural Engine
Storage: 128/256/512GB
Main camera: 12MP wide, f/1.8, digital zoom up to 5x, Smart HDR 4
Front camera: 12MP ultra-wide, f/2.4, Smart HDR 4, full-HD @ 25/30/60fps
Biometrics: Touch ID, Face ID
Colours: Blue, purple, space grey, starlight
In the box: iPad mini, USB-C cable, 20W USB-C power adapter
Price: From Dh2,099
More from Rashmee Roshan Lall
Tori Amos
Native Invader
Decca
SPECS%3A%20Polestar%203
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