By Kay Scrimger
November 22, 2004

On October 14, four Iraqi officials met with Conference of Mayors staff at the USCM office in Washington (DC). The visitors, invited to the United States under the auspices of the Department of State's International Visitor Leadership Program, were Omar Mohammed Amin Al Rahmani, Chairman of the Baghdad provincial council; Sheikh Mohammed Baqer Al Suhail, Chairman of the Baghdad city council; Qader Hama Jan Azez, mayor of the city of Sulaymaniyah; and Abdulrahman Mustafa Fatah, governor of Kirkuk.

Ed Somers, Chief of Staff, and Kay Scrimger discussed the Conference's mission and activities as well as federal_state-local relationships in the United States. The Iraqi officials described the local government network now developing in Iraq — the Association of Local Governments in Iraq, which held an initial meeting at the end of September 2004.

The Iraqis also discussed the current relationship between the Iraqi central government and local governments. Of special interest was the distinction between local government in the Kurdish region, where Sulaymaniyah is located, and other local governments throughout the nation. During the reign of Saddam Hussein, local governments in the Kurdish area were allowed more of an opportunity to develop and flourish than those in the rest of Iraq.

Conference staff and the Iraqis also exchanged information about lobbying techniques, including the engagement of the media, as a way to put pressure on the central government.

The two-week program in which the Iraqi officials are participating focuses on fostering mutual understanding, encouraging peace-building, and the establishment of partnerships with specific U.S. cities. Kirkuk will be paired with Dallas; Sulaymaniyah with Tucson; and the Province of Baghdad with Denver. Following their visit to Washington (DC), the itinerary called for the Iraqis to visit those cities to begin to map out future cooperation and partnerships.