The (PUK) (est 1975) (
Kurdish : ''Yakêtî Nîştimanî Kurdistan'')
The Patriotic Union of Kurdistan has been working for
Self-determination ,
Human Rights ,
Democracy and peace for the
Kurdish People of Iraq, since its establishment on 1 June 1975.
The Secretary General is
Jalal Talabani , the Iraqi President.
Nawshirwan Mustafa is the deputy Secretary General. Umar Fatah is the
Prime Minsiter . The PUK's policy and decsion making body also lies within the Politburo, the aim of this is to achieve a Puluralistic power structure.
The PUK was a coalition of five separate political entities that united under the leadership of Jalal Talabani also known to
Kurds as Mam ("Uncle") Jalal and Nawshirwan Mustafa; the leading factions were Komala ("group") and Shorish Geran ("revolution spreaders").
The PUK received grassroots support from the urban intellectual classes of
Iraqi Kurdistan upon its establishment, this was party due to 13 of its 15 founding members being Phd holders and academics. Originally, the party was a
Leftist political movement which has progressively moved towards the centre ground and has now become a
Social Democratic party and an associate member of the
Socialist International .
In the early 1980's the PUK evolved and broadened its appeal to all sections of Kurdish society especially the rural classes . The regional Kurdish assembly elections showed that the PUK's support lies predominantly in the southern area of Iraqi Kurdistan. Since the first
Persian Gulf War , the PUK has jointly administered
Northern Iraqi Kurdistan with the
Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP).
The PUK joined with the KDP and smaller parties to form the
Democratic Patriotic Alliance Of Kurdistan as an umbrella group contesting the
Iraqi National Assembly Election, 2005 . This unified Kurdish list gained 25.6% of the vote on the first democratic Iraqi elections on the 31st of January, 2005. Jalal Talabani is now the president of the republic of Iraq.
