24 Facts About Nawshirwan Mustafa

Nawshirwan Mustafa was an Iraqi Kurdish politician who served as the General Coordinator of the Movement for Change and the leader of the opposition in the Kurdistan Region from 1 April 2009 to his death on 19 May 2017.

Nawshirwan Mustafa was born on 22 December 1944 in the old quarter of Sulaymaniyah, Iraq, the son of Mustafa Emin Khider.

Unlike Kurdistan's other prominent political leaders Masoud Barzani and Jalal Talabani, Mustafa hails from a city, not a village, and is not a member of a tribe, Nawshirwan built his reputation on being a republican who opposed family rule and hereditary political parties.

Nawshirwan Mustafa attended the Royal King Faisal school in Sulaymaniyah and was taught foreign languages by private tutors at an early age.

Nawshirwan Mustafa went on to study political science at Baghdad University and international law at Vienna University.

Nawshirwan Mustafa joined KDP in 1960 where he was active in the youth branch.

Nawshirwan Mustafa allied himself with Barzani's opponents in the politburo and resigned from the party before the KDP split, he did not accept hereditary nature of the party.

Nawshirwan Mustafa published the Razgari magazine in 1968, which represented the views of nationalists calling for greater autonomy for Kurds.

Nawshirwan Mustafa was Secretary General of the clandestine Komalai Ranjdaran known as Revolutionary Organization of Toilers of Kurdistan or Kurdistan Toilers League which was dissolved into the PUK in 1992.

In 1970 Nawshirwan Mustafa was sentenced to death by the Revolutionary Court in Baghdad.

Nawshirwan Mustafa oversaw and conducted the operation, which resulted in the liberation of all the major cities, ending with the liberation of Kirkuk on 21 March 1991.

Nawshirwan Mustafa is known as the architect of the uprising because he oversaw the liberation of Kurdistan of Iraq for the first time since the creation of the state of Iraq.

In 1983, Nawshirwan Mustafa led the PUK forces to attack the Communist Party of Iraq's main base in the village Pistasan, killing 150 communists.

Nawshirwan Mustafa has had a long history of pushing for free media in the region.

In March 2007, Nawshirwan Mustafa established the Wusha Corporation in Sulaimaniyah.

Nawshirwan Mustafa established the Wusha Corporation which consisted of, Kurdish News Network, TV news channel, Rozhnama, weekly newspaper, Sbeiy.

Nawshirwan Mustafa founded Gorran in 2009 and was its leader until 2017.

Nawshirwan Mustafa built his reputation on being a republican who opposed family rule and hereditary political parties.

Nawshirwan Mustafa challenged not only Talabanis but Barzanis, by describing them as outmoded tribal leaders and that they run the Kurdistan Region along the same dictatorial lines of an ex-Soviet republic and is, in effect, a one-party state in control of every aspect of life.

Nawshirwan Mustafa disapproved of Talabanis close alliance with Barzani and disliked Barzanis for historical and ideological reasons and accused the Barzanis of enriching themselves from Kurdistans economy.

Nawshirwan Mustafa has refused to meet Talabani despite his various requests.

Nawshirwan Mustafa faced a defamation lawsuit from the KDP that was aimed at setting a precedent that will negatively affect the press in the region and would have a negative effect on journalists.

Nawshirwan Mustafa died in his hometown of Sulaymaniyah in the early hours of 19 May 2017 and was buried on 20 May 2017.

Gorran has become everything Nawshirwan Mustafa was against, for example he was against corrupt, family-run political parties, and political parties becoming a family based company.