Commentary
Amid celebrations of bilateral ties was a deeper focus on stability in the Middle East.
Amr Hamzawy
Source: Getty
Article
De-Baathification Saga Verdict
The Iraqi ad-hoc appeals panel, established to examine the Justice and Accountability Commission’s decision to ban over 500 candidates from the upcoming parliamentary elections, has concluded its work and has reinstated only 26 candidates.
Published on Feb 25, 2010
The Iraqi ad-hoc appeals panel set up to examine the banning of over 500 candidates by the Justice and Accountability Commission has concluded its work, reinstating only 26 candidates. Initially, the appeal panel unbanned all candidates provisionally, reserving the right to re-examine the cases of those who won seats in the election. Responding to outrage by Iraq’s major Shi’i political parties as well as to political pressure, including from Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, the panel announced that it had gone beyond its legal responsibilities when it thought it should examine all bans and that it only needed to consider the 177 cases where candidates had appealed. Those cases could be examined and resolved before the March 7 elections. A few days later, most of the 177 banned candidates were excluded from the investigation process on the grounds that they had not filed their appeals properly; only 37 cases would be investigated. On February 11, Ali al-Lami, the head of the Justice and Accountability Commission, announced that 26 candidates (out of over 500) had been “unbanned” and could run.
The ban on Saleh al-Mutlaq and Dhafer al-Aani, two of the most critical Sunni players in the Iraqi National Movement coalition was maintained. The banning decision apparently only applies to individuals, not to the parties they lead, contrary to what had been said earlier. Nonetheless, Saleh al-Mutlaq first decided to withdraw his entire party and to boycott the elections in protest against alleged Iranian interference, but later changed his mind. On February 25, Mutlaq stood by Ayad al-Allawi’s side and announced that his party would run “for the sake of change.” To stress the cohesion of all its members, the Iraqi National Movement has formed a legal team to defend its banned candidates. Although hard hit by the bannings, the Iraqi National Movement appears to remain strongly in the running.
Carnegie does not take institutional positions on public policy issues; the views represented herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of Carnegie, its staff, or its trustees.
More Work from Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
- The Two Key Takeaways From Xi’s Egypt Visit
- Gas and Peace: Can Energy Trade Contain Egypt-Israel Conflict?Commentary
Can economic ties help contain conflict between Egypt and Israel, or do they simply postpone confrontation? Drawing on the German-Russian experience, the article examines how the gas deal creates mutual dependence, keeps channels of cooperation open, and raises the cost of conflict, without necessarily delivering lasting peace.
Nourhan Hefzy
- As a Former Defense Minister Revolts in Ukraine, Is Zelensky’s System Fracturing?Commentary
The greater threat to Zelensky comes not from Fedorov alone, but from the convergence between the former defense minister’s political campaign and the anti-corruption investigations moving ever closer to the presidential administration.
Balázs Jarábik
- Fedorov’s Challenge to Zelensky Could Upend Ukrainian PoliticsCommentary
With his public call for new elections in Ukraine, ex-defense minister Mykhailo Fedorov has opened Pandora’s box.
Konstantin Skorkin
- Russia’s Rubber-Stamp Duma Elections Are Exposing Schisms in Putin's RegimeCommentary
In the discussions made possible by the State Duma election campaign, one question is being asked more and more loudly. “What next?”
Andrey Pertsev
