Iraq: GOVERNMENT AND POLITICS

GOVERNMENT AND POLITICS



Overview: The Transitional Administrative Law (TAL), functioning as an interim constitution until the end of 2005, calls for Iraq to have a permanent republican, federal government system, with power shared among the central government, 18 governorates (provinces), and local and municipal governments. The autonomy of one region, Kurdistan, is specifically recognized. The U.S.-led Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) officially transferred sovereignty to an Interim Iraqi Government in June 2004. This was a first step in the process of completely rebuilding a government structure in Iraq. In January 2005, national parliamentary elections were a second step in that process. However, the establishment of a permanent government was delayed by ongoing violence by insurgent groups and by conflict over how to distribute positions in a new government among three powerful factions: the Kurds, the Shias, and the Sunnis. In March 2005, the Kurdish and Shia factions formalized their alliance in a principle of understanding. As of April 2005, procedures for drafting a permanent constitution had not been defined, but a two-thirds majority of voters must approve it once submitted. Aside from an enormous economic restoration process, major issues facing the first government include the protection of factional rights, the sharing of oil revenues between the central government and the provinces (particularly those dominated by the Kurds), the drive by Kurdistan for permanent autonomy, and the role of Islamic law in government and jurisprudence.



Executive Branch: In June 2004, Ghazi al Ujayl al Yawr was appointed interim president of Iraq, and Ayad Allawi was appointed prime minister of the Interim Iraqi Government formed by the Coalition Provisional Authority. The Transitional Administrative Law (TAL) calls for the permanent executive branch to consist of a president and two vice presidents, collectively called the Presidential Council; a prime minister; and a Council of Ministers (which in the interim government includes 36 ministries, although the TAL did not stipulate a specific number). The president and vice presidents are to be elected by a two-thirds majority of the National Assembly. The Presidential Council then chooses a prime minister (the most powerful executive position in this system of government), who must receive unanimous approval of the council followed by majority approval of parliament. If the council cannot choose a prime minister unanimously, the National Assembly is authorized to choose that official by a two-thirds vote. In consultation with the prime minister, the council then chooses the other government (cabinet) ministers. In April 2005, the following leaders of the national government were chosen: a Shia, Ibrahim al Jafari, as prime minister; a Kurd, Jalal Talabani, as president; and a Sunni, Hachim Hasani, as speaker of the National Assembly.



Legislative Branch: According to the Transitional Administrative Law (TAL), Iraq is to have a unicameral, 275-member parliament, the National Assembly. Prior to formation of that body, the 100-member Interim National Council, named in mid-2004, was the national legislative body. In the parliamentary elections of January 2005, a Shia Muslim coalition, the United Iraqi Alliance, won 140 seats (later reduced to 138 when two deputies left the coalition), the Kurdish alliance won 75 seats, and a secular bloc won 40 seats. Having largely boycotted the election, the substantial Sunni minority gained only 17 seats, but the Sunnis were in position to gain the position of speaker of parliament in a power-sharing compromise with the Shias. One of the parliament’s first duties was to draft a permanent constitution, which then would be submitted to a public referendum. The parliament also elects the president and two vice presidents and must approve those individuals’ choices for prime minister and other cabinet positions. The presidential election requires a two-thirds vote of parliament, and approval of the heads of ministries requires a simple majority. The requirement of a two-thirds majority was a key obstacle in the formation of a government following the first parliamentary election. If the constitution is approved, in late 2005 the parliament would be responsible for organizing elections for Iraq’s first permanent government.



Judicial Branch: The Transitional Administrative Law (TAL) calls for Iraq’s judicial authority at the federal level to consist of the Supreme Court (nine members, appointed by the prime minister in the interim period and by the Presidential Council in the future permanent government); the Federal Court of Cassation (appeal); and the Central Criminal Court of Iraq. Appointments to the federal system are to be made by recommendation of the Higher Judicial Council, whose members are the chief appellate judge of each of the 17 appellate districts and some judges from the Federal Court of Cassation. The council’s presiding officer is a judge from the Supreme Court. The council bears ultimate responsibility for all matters in the judicial branch. For military cases, civilian judges are named to a specially convened military court.



Administrative Divisions: Iraq has 18 governorates (provinces), which are divided into a total of 102 districts.



Provincial and Local Government: The governorates have been run by governors appointed by the central government, together with directly elected provincial councils. From Iraq’s independence in 1932 until early 2005, these governments were completely subordinate to the central government. An increase in the power of provincial governments vis-à-vis the central government has been proposed in the formation of Iraq’s new permanent government structure. For the elections of January 2005, each provincial council had 41 members except for the Baghdad council, which had 51. The Transitional Administrative Law (TAL) gives those councils authority in all local matters. In the new structure, district governments also will be run by elected councils. The lowest level of subnational governance is composed of municipalities and townships.



In 2003 the U.S. Agency for International Development set up a Local Governance Program, creating citizen advisory councils at all subnational levels to serve as the basic structure of representation and liaison with U.S. authorities and the central government, and to plan restoration projects. In 2004 some 14 governorate councils, 34 district councils, 127 city councils, and 237 neighborhood councils were in existence in preparation for the election of permanent governments.



In 1992 the Kurdish Iraqi Front organized elections in which the three Kurdish provinces of northern Iraq elected the autonomous Kurdistan National Assembly. However, conflict between the two major Kurdish factions, the Kurdistan Democratic Party and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, prevented that body from meeting from 1996 until 2002. According to the TAL, the 111-member Kurdish Parliament elected in January 2005 has jurisdiction on all matters except foreign policy, diplomatic representation, security, defense, and fiscal matters including currency. The seats of that body are divided between the two major Kurdish parties, with designated seats for the Assyrian Christian minority.



Judicial and Legal System: Under Saddam Husayn, the judicial system was fully controlled by the executive branch. Between the formation of the Interim Iraqi Government Council in mid-2004 and the anticipated formation of a permanent government in 2005, Iraq is ruled by the Transitional Administrative Law (TAL), one of whose aims is to restore an independent judiciary. However, chronically poor security conditions have prevented that system from functioning on a regular basis. The legal system in place pending comprehensive renovation under a permanent government combines elements of Iraq’s pre-Baathist laws and international law. In that system, which was influenced by French, Egyptian, and Ottoman law and is considered seriously outdated, judges rather than lawyers dominate court proceedings. Decisions are made by a three-judge panel, and no juries exist. Since 2003 Iraq’s court system has been moved from the Ministry of Justice to the jurisdiction of the Higher Judicial Council, removing the influence of the executive branch that marked the Husayn regime. The system is divided into civil and criminal courts and courts of personal status (for matters to be tried under Islamic law). Criminal courts are of two types, misdemeanor and felony. The hierarchy begins with courts of first instance, then district appeals courts (existing in 17 districts), courts of cassation, and the Federal Court of Cassation, which normally is the final appeal stage. Extraordinary cases go to the highest level, the Supreme Court. In an effort to curb violent crime, the interim government reinstated the death penalty in 2004 for crimes including drug trafficking and kidnapping.



The interim government assigned an Iraq Special Tribunal, to include as many as 20 judges, to try top members of Saddam Husayn’s regime, including Husayn himself, for war crimes. Human rights organizations noted that the tribunal does not include Iraqi judges of high reputation. The investigations of this court have proceeded very slowly; as of early 2005, no defendant had come to trial. In 2004 a British program began identifying and retraining Iraqi judges and legal personnel to replenish the court system.

Electoral System: The parliamentary elections of 2005 were supervised by an interim election commission. Although some voter registration centers were closed because of violence, overall turnout in those elections, in which all Iraqis 18 years of age and older were allowed to vote, was estimated at 58 percent. An estimated 265,000 expatriate Iraqis also voted. However, the participation percentage figure was reached because of high turnout among the Shia and Kurdish populations; in some districts, only 2 percent of registered Sunnis voted. The elections of January 2005 also chose provincial councils for Iraq’s 18 governorates. Some 7,850 candidates ran for a total of 748 provincial council seats (17 provincial councils with 41 seats each and Baghdad, with 51). Kurdish voters in the provinces of Dahuk, Arbil, and As Sulaymaniyah also cast ballots for the 111-seat parliament that is part of the Kurdistan Regional Government. If a constitution were approved in the fall of 2005, the next major election would choose a permanent National Assembly. The electoral system stipulates that at least one-quarter of National Assembly deputies must be women; the first parliament had 79 women. All of Iraq's ethnic and religious communities also must be represented.



Politics and Political Parties: Although Shia leader Ayatollah Sistani has opposed the formation of Shia political organizations, two major Shia parties existed in early 2005. The Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution (SCIRI) has close ties in Iran, commands a militia force of 10,000, and seeks a strong political role for the Islamic clergy. Since its return from exile in Iran in 2003, SCIRI has projected a more pluralistic image in a successful effort to broaden its support. It has supported the United States presence in Iraq and the January 2005 parliamentary elections. The second Shia party, al Dawa, began in 1958 as an Islamic revolutionary party, existed in exile during the Husayn regime, and emerged as an advocate of Islamic reform and modernization of religious institutions. In the Interim Iraqi Government (June 2004–April 2005), al Dawa was represented by party leader Vice President Ibrahim al Jafari. In the parliamentary elections of January 2005, Shia parties formed a loose coalition, the United Iraqi Alliance, which gained 140 of the 275 seats contested.



Iraq’s Kurds are represented by two major parties, which since 2003 have cooperated in the Kurdistan Regional Government that administers three predominantly Kurdish northern provinces. Both parties have supported the U.S. presence in Iraq and played important roles in interim governments. The secular, nationalist Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) is the larger of the two parties and held one of two vice presidencies in the Interim Iraqi Government. Founded by the main Kurdish tribe, the Barzanis, the KDP has established good relations with the Turkish government. The Popular Union of Kurdistan, led by Jalal Talabani, also has a secular nationalist agenda and represents Kurds closest to the Iran border. In the parliamentary elections of January 2005, the Kurdish alliance of the two parties gained the second largest number of seats.



Several non-sectarian parties have played important roles in Iraqi politics since the fall of Saddam Husayn. The Iraqi National Congress (INC), led by Ahmed Chalabi, is a coalition with a large militia and strong ties in the southern Shia community, although Chalabi’s influence in Iraq’s governance waned significantly after 2003. The INC advocates economic privatization and a secular government. Iraqi National Accord (al Wilfaq) is led by Ayad Allawi, prime minister of the Interim Iraqi Government. Although the party was a key player in planned coups against Saddam Husayn in the late 1990s, its influence in post-Husayn politics has been modest. The Iraqi Communist Party (ICP) had its greatest influence in the 1960s, then substantially changed its agenda during the 1990s. Since 2003, the ICP has been represented in interim governments and maintains some support among secular Shias and Sunnis.



As of early 2005, Sunni parties had not participated in the interim government, although Shia and Kurd factions endorsed the naming of a Sunni as speaker of the National Assembly. The Muslim Scholars’ Association, formed in 2004, represents the senior Islamic scholars who make religious policy for the Sunni community. The association opposed the United States presence in Iraq and called for a boycott of the 2005 parliamentary elections. The association issued a conciliatory statement following the election, however. The Iraqi United Islamic Movement, led by Ahmed Kubaysi, has taken similar positions. The senior Sunni politician in Iraq, former foreign minister Adnan Pachachi, has endorsed the new government and urged Sunni participation. Several small parties represent the Assyrian and Turkmen ethnic minorities.



Mass Media: After the end of full state control in 2003, a period of considerable growth occurred in Iraq’s broadcast media. In 2005 about 80 radio stations and 25 television stations (all of the latter in the state-run al Iraqiya network) were broadcasting in Arabic, Kurdish, and Assyrian. The broadcast media presented both positive and negative positions on participation in the national elections of January 2005. Since the end of media oppression in 2003, newspapers in Iraq have presented a variety of views on critical issues. The daily papers with the largest circulation, all published in Baghdad, are Al Mada, Al Mutamar, Al Sabah, and Al Zaman (also published in London). Al Mutamar is the official organ of the Iraqi National Congress, and Al Sabah often reflects the positions of the interim government. The Iraqi News Agency is the main domestic news agency; major foreign news agencies with offices in Iraq are the Anadolu Ajansı of Turkey, the Associated Press of the United States, the Deutsche Presse-Agentur of Germany, the Informatsionnoye Telegrafnoye Agenstvo Rossii-Telegrafnoye Agenstvo Suverennykh Stran (ITAR-TASS) of the Russian Federation, Reuters of Britain, and Tsinhua of the People’s Republic of China.



Foreign Relations: Because of the primary roles taken by the United States and Britain in deposing Saddam Husayn and establishing interim governments to replace his regime, Iraq’s relationships with those countries, particularly the United States, will remain paramount for the foreseeable future. Government and nongovernmental aid from the United States will continue as a crucial support in reconstruction. Formulation of more precise foreign policy priorities will await the seating of a permanent government. In the short term, Iraq’s relations with Western and Far Eastern economic powers are determined by debt forgiveness and reconstruction assistance, which have come from many quarters.



Relations with Iraq’s Sunni Arab neighbors have been conditioned by their degree of support for the 2003 regime change that empowered Iraq’s Shia majority. For example, Jordan’s ambivalent role toward the overthrow of Saddam Husayn cooled Iraq’s normally close relations with that country. In March 2005, Iraq’s relations with Jordan worsened when an ostensibly Jordanian suicide bomber killed 125 Iraqis. Traditional territorial disputes with Kuwait have been quiet in the early 2000s. Iraq retains important commercial agreements with both Jordan and Kuwait. Since 2003, relations with Syria and Saudi Arabia have been harmed by what is seen as those countries’ poor border security, which has allowed insurgents to move into and out of Iraq.



Iraq’s relations with Iran, always complex, have depended on the approach taken by Iran’s Shia government toward factional politics in Iraq. Since 2003 Iran’s aims have been to prevent the resurrection of a strong, threatening Iraq while avoiding a collapse of Iraq into a civil war that might spread eastward. The optimal outcome for Iran would be establishment of a Shia-dominated government with at least some Islamic principles. As of early 2005, Iran had not overtly used its extensive Shia connections within Iraq to destabilize interim governments, although that strategy remained available and Iran has supported a Shia party, the Supreme Council for Islamic Revolution, in Iraqi politics. An important regional issue is water sharing with Syria and Turkey, which have restricted the flow of the Tigris and Euphrates into Iraq by building upstream dams. In 2005 resolution of that issue awaited formation of a permanent government in Iraq.

Membership in International Organizations: In 2004 Iraq was a member of the following international organizations: Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa, Arab Fund for Economic and Social Development, Arab Monetary Fund, Council of Arab Economic Unity, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Group of 77, International Atomic Energy Agency, International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol), International Development Association, International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, International Finance Corporation, International Fund for Agricultural Development, International Labour Organization, International Maritime Organization, International Monetary Fund, International Olympic Committee, International Standards Organization, International Telecommunication Union, Islamic Development Bank, League of Arab States, Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries, Organization of the Islamic Conference, Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, United Nations, United Nations Committee on Trade and Development, United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization, United Nations Industrial Development Organization, Universal Postal Union, World Customs Organization, World Federation of Trade Unions, World Health Organization, World Intellectual Property Organization, World Tourism Organisation, and World Trade Organization (observer status).



Major International Treaties: Among the multilateral treaties to which Iraq is a signatory are the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention; Convention on the Prohibition of Military or Any Other Hostile Use of Environmental Modification Techniques (signed but not ratified); Geneva Conventions; Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons; and United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.