Situation and preparations

On August 2, 1990, Kuwait was occupied by the Iraqi army. This occupation brought the coalition army into action, and on January 17, 1991, the Iraqi army was expelled from Kuwait by the coalition army and was severely defeated. This defeat of the Iraqi army created a favorable ground for the opposition forces of Iraq to expand their activities. During that period, the leadership of the Kurdistan Front, along with other Iraqi parties, began political and military movements inside Iraq.

During this period, the leadership of the Kurdistan Democratic Party held several broad meetings, including the meeting in early February 1991, which was held with the attendance of members of the old and new central committees, who numbered about fifty members. In that meeting, it was decided to prepare for the return to the territory of Kurdistan and subsequently to carry out a general uprising. In that meeting, the tasks were divided under the command of President Masoud Barzani and the forces were divided into three fronts, which were the Erbil front, the Duhok and Mosul front, and the Sulaymaniyah and Kirkuk front. After all preparations were completed, on March 5, 1991, the uprising of Southern Kurdistan began, and by March 21, all areas of Kurdistan were liberated from the regime.

After the 1991 uprising of Southern Kurdistan against the Iraqi regime, the exodus of the people of Southern Kurdistan, and the establishment of the Kurdistan National Assembly and the Kurdistan Regional Government, it was decided in the March meeting of the Central Committee to hold the Eleventh Congress of the Party. For this purpose, a preparatory committee was formed, which consisted of Muhammad Mullah Qadir, Franso Hariri, Ramzi Shaaban, Khurshid Shira، Najmadin Yusifi, Shekhala Ibrahim, Barzan Mullah Khalid, Kamal Hassan, Najat Hassan, Habib Kalesh, and Ijra Saeed. By June 1993, most of the preparations for the Congress were completed, and the members were elected to the Congress, and three parties decided to unite with the Kurdistan Democratic Party, which were the Kurdistan Unity Party (HUSK - PASOK - People's Party), the Kurdistan Democratic Union, and the Kurdish Feyli Muslim Movement. With the agreement of the three Kurdish parties with the Kurdistan Democratic Party, the title (Unified) was added to the name of the Party for the second time with slight changes, and it was changed to Kurdistan Democratic Party – Unified.

Holding the Congress

From August 16 to 26, 1993, with the attendance of 2167 delegates, the Eleventh Congress was held in the Yellow Hall in Erbil, the capital of the Kurdistan Region. For the first time, a significant number of women participated in this Congress, who were 124 delegates. The news of this Congress was published daily in the media.

The Congress was held under the slogan (Peace, Freedom, and Democracy). By President Masoud Barzani the political report was read, and extensive changes were made to the program and bylaws to adapt to the new situation. The Congress also made a number of decisions, the most important of which was the decision to bring back the sacred remains of the immortal Barzani and Idris Barzani to be reburied in Barzan. It was also decided to provide grounds for the return of the largest number of refugees from Iran.

The Eleventh Congress recognized the federalism of the Kurdistan Region and supported the Iraqi National Congress – Unified, which intended to overthrow the regime of Saddam Hussein. At the level of foreign media, journalist Ms. Amina Sulla and journalist Ms. Fatima Azzouz from the Republic of Tunisia were invited to the Congress as guests. Some of the guests of the Congress included George Pickard, a member of the US Congress, David Phillips, President of the American Human Rights Association, Major General Hassan Naqib, and Dr. Ahmed Chalabi, President of the Iraqi National Congress – Unified, Tahsin Ma'la, Adnan Muhammad Nuri, Aziz Alian, Muhammad Abdul-Jabbar, Hani Fokaiki, Muhammad Muhammad Ali, Adil Abdul-Mahdi of the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq, and Munthir Lewis, Secretary of the Iraqi Socialist Party.

The structure of the Kurdistan Democratic Party, based on the internal bylaws of the Eleventh Congress, consisted of cells, main cells, organization committees, district committees, branch committees, the Central Committee, the Political Bureau, the Vice President, and the President. Also, the Central Inspection and Oversight Board was elected directly by the Congress. This was the last time that the Central Inspection and Oversight Board was elected by the Congress delegates and granted the status of leadership members, because they had received the trust of the Congress.

The Party's institutions in 1993 were the Central Organization Bureau, the Central Bureau of Culture and Media, the Central Military Bureau, the Central Administration Bureau, the Central Finance Bureau, the Central Bureau of Mass and Professional Organizations, the Central Bureau of National Relations, the Central Bureau of Foreign Relations, and the Central Bureau of Studies and Research.

Members of the Central Committee of the Eleventh Congress:

  1. Nechirvan Barzani
  2. Sami Abdulrahman
  3. Jawhar Namiq Salim
  4. Hoshyar Zebari 
  5. Fazel Mirani
  6. Yunus Rojbayani
  7. Franso Hariri
  8. Roj Nuri Shaways
  9. Qadir Qadir
  10. Teacher Saad Abdullah
  11. Ezadin Barwari
  12. Hama Haji Mahmoud
  13. Karim Shingali
  14. Dr. Jarjis Hassan
  15. Kamal Kirkuki
  16. Ali Shingali
  17. Qadir Jabari
  18. Lieutenant Shwan
  19. Sayed Kaka
  20. Omar Botani
  21. Azad Barwari
  22. Jalil Fayli
  23. Shawkat Sheikh Yazdin
  24. Omar Osman Mergasori
  25. Salahaddin Ibrahim Qadir, Salah Dalo
  26. Brusk Nuri Shaways
  27. Ramzi Shaaban
  28. Lieutenant Karim
  29. Darwish Agha
  30. Zaeem Ali
  31. Abdulaziz Tayeb
  32. Nizamadin Guli
  33. Arif Tayfur
  34. Masoud Salayi
  35. Muhammad Mullah Qadir
  36. Abdullah Agrin
  37. Shirin Amedi

Reserve members of the Central Committee:

  1. Mahmud Muhammad
  2. Zeravan Nerwayi
  3.  Mamosta Amin Qadir
  4.  Dr. Nasih Ghafur
  5. Akbar Haidar
  6. Azad Qaradaghi
  7. Barzan Mala Khalid
  8. Kamal Hassan Chawmar
  9. Nuri Hama Ali

During the Congress, the members of the Central Inspection and Oversight Board were elected by the direct vote of the representatives, who were Falakadin Kakayi، Habib Muhammad Karim، Rashid Sindi، Ismail Mala Aziz, Ali Jaf, Dr. Muhammad Salih Jum'a, Muhammad Ma'ruf, Muhammad Qazi and Ali Qasim Shangali .

By the members of the Congress, unanimously for the third time, President Masoud Barzani was elected as President of the Kurdistan Democratic Party - Unified and Ali Abdullah as Vice President. Later, in the meeting of the Central Committee, from August 29 to 31, 1993, the new Politburo was elected, which consisted of Nechirvan Barzani، Jawhar Namiq Salim، Sami Abdulrahman، Hoshyar Zebari، Fazel Mirani , Dr. Roj Nuri Shaways, Dr. Jarjis Hassan, Azad Barwari, Za'im Ali, Hama Haji Mahmud and Lieutenant Karim.

In this Congress, for the second time in the history of the Party, the Immortal Barzani Medal was awarded by President Masoud Barzani to nine of Barzani's leaders, commanders, and companions.

Sources:
  1.  History of the Kurdistan Democratic Party, Congresses and Conferences (Program and Internal Regulations), Kurdistan Democratic Party Encyclopedia Board, Volume Two, (Erbil - Roxana Printing House - 2021).
  2.  Muhammad Mala Qadir, Khabatnama, A Brief History of the Party and the Immortal Barzani, Third Edition, (Erbil - Aras Printing House - 2012).
  3.  Ali Sinjari, We Have Returned to the Mother Party, Al-Shu'la Newspaper, mouthpiece of the Kurdistan Democratic Union - Iraq, Issue 29, early July 1993.
  4.  Habib Muhammad Karim, History of the Kurdistan Democratic Party - Iraq (In Key Stations) 1946 - 1993, (Duhok - Khabat Printing House - 1998).
  5.  The Kurdistan Democratic Union holds an important unification conference and decides to dissolve itself and return to the Kurdistan Democratic Party, Al-Shu'la Newspaper, mouthpiece of the Kurdistan Democratic Union - Iraq, Issue 29, early July 1993.
  6.  Declaration of Unity between the Kurdistan Democratic Party and the Kurdistan Unity Party, Khabat Newspaper, mouthpiece of the Kurdistan Democratic Party, Issue 685, Wednesday, July 28, 1993.
  7.  Sha'ban Ali Sha'ban, Some Political and Historical Information, Third Edition, (Erbil - Rojhalat Printing House - 2013).
  8.  Salah Badraddin, The Syrian Kurdish National Movement, Part Two, (Erbil - Kawa Association for Kurdish Culture - Rojhalat Printing House - 2018).
  9.  The Kurdistan Democratic Party holds its Eleventh Congress, Al-Mu'tamar Newspaper, Media Office of the Iraqi National Congress, Issue 15, August 19, 1993.
  10.  Kurdistan Democratic Party - Unified, Program and Internal Regulations of the Eleventh Congress, (No place - No year).
  11.  Congress, announces the results of the election of the Central Committee of our Party, Brayati Newspaper, organ of the Kurdistan Democratic Party - Unified, Issue 1729, Erbil, Friday, August 27, 1993.
  12.  Program and Internal Regulations of the Kurdistan Democratic Party decided upon at the Eleventh Congress of the Party which was held on August 16-26, 1993, (Khabat Printing House - Duhok).