March Manifesto

   The famous March Manifesto (1970)—negoti-ated by Mulla Mustafa Barzani and the Baathist Iraqi government in effect headed by Saddam Hussein—held out the promise of real autonomy for the Iraqi Kurds and thus an overall settlement of the Kurdish problem in Iraq. It consisted of 15 detailed articles. In the end, however, neither side trusted each other enough to implement the provisions, and fighting was renewed in 1974, which led to Barzani's final defeat. For many years the March Manifesto was referred to as a background for a settlement by both sides. For example, it was declared as the basis of the negotiations that took place following the Kurdish uprising of 1991.