According to Kurdpress, while the Syrian Kurds have managed to win eight seats in the new parliament of this country, the difference between the two main political currents of the Kurds over how to participate in the new political structure of Syria has been revealed once again. The Democratic Union Party and the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria boycotted the parliamentary elections, but the Patriotic Council of Syrian Kurds participated in it; A situation that shows that despite the recent efforts for political unity of the Kurds, fundamental differences still exist.

The new Syrian parliament has 210 seats, two-thirds of its members are appointed through local electoral bodies and another third is appointed by the president. The transitional government of Syria has announced that due to administrative problems, the widespread displacement of citizens and the lack of identity documents for many Syrians, it was not possible to hold direct elections at the national level.

Elections were held in Haskeh province and the Kurdish cities of Kobani and Afrin, but the Democratic Union Party and forces close to it refused to participate in the process. This is despite the fact that only one year ago, the Democratic Union Party and the Patriotic Council of Syrian Kurds had agreed to form a joint delegation to negotiate with Damascus at the Syrian Kurdish Unity Conference.

Ghassan Bazo, a researcher at the Rojava Information Center, believes that the unity talks failed to resolve the main differences between the two currents. According to him, even after the Kurdish unity conference in April last year, many key issues remain unresolved and doubts about the durability of any agreement remain widespread.

Bazo says that a significant part of the Syrian Kurdish community feels that the political parties are too involved in intra-group rivalries, while ordinary people are more concerned about economic problems, security and maintaining the gains of the past years.

He also warns that many Kurds are worried that important decisions about the future political structure and constitution of Syria will be made without the effective and influential presence of the Kurds at this critical juncture. From the agreement between Damascus and the Syrian Democratic Forces to holding elections

The Kurdish regions of Hasakeh and Kobani were initially excluded from the election process because they were still under the full control of the Syrian Democratic Forces. But after the military developments in January and the advance of Damascus-affiliated forces in parts of northeastern Syria, an agreement was reached between Damascus and the Syrian Democratic Forces for the gradual integration of Kurdish-controlled areas into the central government structure, which paved the way for holding elections.

Why did the Democratic Union Party boycott the elections?

Sihanouk Dibo, a member of the General Council of the Democratic Union Party, emphasizes that this party considers the principle of Kurds' presence in the Syrian parliament necessary, but was against the way the elections were conducted. According to him, the Kurds make up about 20% of the Syrian population and should have a proportional share in the parliament. Dibo believes that the people who entered the parliament representing the Kurdish regions do not necessarily represent the national and political demands of the Kurds.

Another criticism of the Democratic Union Party goes back to the way electoral districts are divided in Haskeh province. Aldar Khalil, a member of the Presidential Council of the Democratic Union Party, has announced that unlike many Syrian provinces that were considered as a single district, Haskeh was divided into several separate districts, including Haskeh, Qamishlo and Derik. According to him, the separation of Arab and Kurdish regions has been done in a way that has actually led to the distribution of seats based on ethnic and regional considerations. Dibo also considered the population policies of the Baath Party as one of the reasons for the Kurds' protest. Referring to the extensive settlement of Arabs in the border areas of Haskeh in the 1970s, he emphasized that accepting the results of those policies and considering the Kurds as a minority in this province is a continuation of the Arabization project of the past.

Disappointment at the small share of the Kurds

Idris Nesan, one of the political figures of Kobani, says that the number of seats allocated to Kurds does not correspond to their real population weight in Syria.

According to him, many Kurds expected at least 40 seats out of 210 seats in the parliament to be allocated to Kurdish representatives. Nissan emphasizes that for this reason, a number of Kurdish parties, including the Democratic Union Party, did not accept the results of the election and demanded to boycott it.

Ghassan Bazo also believes that the eight parliamentary seats for the Kurds will not have enough political influence and that the Kurdish representatives will not have much power to influence the country's political agenda in this situation.

A different strategy of the Patriotic Council of Syrian Kurds

On the other hand, the Patriotic Council of Syrian Kurds considers participation in the parliament as a political opportunity. Shalal Gedo, head of the moderate Syrian Kurdish party and member of the secretariat of the Syrian Kurdish Patriotic Council, believes that the transitional parliament will play an important role in drafting the constitution and determining the future direction of Syria, and the Kurds should not be left out of this process.

He says that although the representation of Kurds is less than desirable, presence in official institutions is "better than nothing" and can be an important political capital for the future.

For this reason, the majority of Kurdish representatives in the new Syrian parliament belong to the Patriotic Council of Syrian Kurds or movements close to it.

Parliament seats or guaranteeing Kurdish rights?

Although the transitional government of Syria headed by Ahmad al-Shara emphasized the political and linguistic rights of the Kurds in a decree in January, the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria considered this measure insufficient and demanded that the rights of the Kurds be guaranteed in the constitution.

Sirvan Qajo, a journalist and researcher of Syrian Kurdish issues, believes that the main problem of the Kurds is not just the number of seats in the parliament. According to him, what the Kurds have been demanding for the past decades is the recognition of their national and political rights in the Syrian constitution.

He emphasizes that a few parliamentary seats or issuing a presidential decree cannot replace legal and constitutional guarantees for the rights of Kurds in the future Syria.

As a result, the current dispute between the Democratic Alliance Party and the Patriotic Council of Syrian Kurds is not only about participation or non-participation in the elections; Rather, it reflects two different approaches on how to secure Kurdish rights in post-war Syria: participation in new government structures to gain gradual influence, or pressure to achieve political and constitutional guarantees before entering these structures.