http://www.iwpr.net/?p=icr&s=f&o=360307&apc_state=henpicr
Iraqi Crisis Report
Iraq Election Focus
Anti-Baathist Campaigning Overshadows Issues
Services, security and corruption take a backseat as election centres on
Baathism.
By Ali Kareem in Baghdad (ICR No. 324, 18-Feb-10)
A campaign poster in Karbala reads "No place for Baathists". Photo by
Metrography.
View photo essay
A quick study of the election posters recently plastered up along a street in
downtown Baghdad gives an insight into the political campaign agenda ahead of a
nationwide ballot on March 7.
In the space of a city block, campaign banners read, "There is no place for
Baathists", "Revenge to the Baathists who mistreated you", and "No return of
the Baathist criminals".
Several others echo the same sentiments.
Only one poster along the road promises something different. "We will work to
solve the unemployment problem", proclaims a lonely placard nearly lost on a
wall plastered with strident rhetoric.
The prevalence of anti-Baathist sloganeering is not confined to the streets.
Television, radio and print media have run daily coverage of the campaigns
against the previous regime's party, and prominent politicians have engaged in
one-upmanship over who has the hardest line against the party, which ruled Iraq
with an iron fist for nearly three decades and is now illegal.
Leaders tainted with the accusation of Baath party links have been equally
vociferous in their own defence.
But some Baghdad residents are wondering whether anti-Baathist grandstanding
has overshadowed substantive political discussion, and if seemingly more
important issues - such as security, corruption and lack of services - have
simply been ignored.
"What about the millions of people who don't have jobs? Iraqis want security,
electricity and jobs. We were glad after the fall [of the Baath regime] in 2003
because we thought things would change," said Anwar Fadhil Kareem, 35, a
Baghdad hospitality worker with two children.
"After seven years, this hope has been lost. It would be wise and appropriate
for those in charge to do something for the people, but they're not even
talking about us."
Others in Baghdad are waiting for candidates plans and pledges for the future
of Iraq, but say few are addressing those issues.
"I haven't made my decision about who to vote for yet. I want to vote. I want
to say my word, but I don't know who to choose. Everybody is talking about the
Baath party and de-Baathification which is not my concern at all," said Moqdad
Jasim, 22, a student at Baghdad University.
"In fact, I am looking for a candidate who can promise solutions to Iraqi youth
problems - unemployment, good jobs and education."
A government committee's decision to ban 145 parliamentary candidates for their
alleged ties to the outlawed Baath party has fueled anti-Baathist sentiments
and galvanised Iraq's ruling Shia parties.
Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's State of Law coalition and its main rival, the
Iraqi National Alliance, a powerful bloc of mostly Shia parties, are
campaigning hard on platforms to eliminate Baathist influence, especially in
largely Shia areas that suffered under the former regime.
The painful memories of cruel treatment at the hands of the former regime
appear to have stirred anti-Baathist fears among some voters. But others are
sceptical of the likelihood of Baathist resurgence.
"Talking about the returning of the Baath party is meaningless. Iraq will never
see a Baath regime again. Maybe some former Baathist have infiltrated some
political parties, but they can't control Iraq forever," said Iraqi minister of
state Ali Muhammad, from the Kurdistan Islamic Union.
"I think some people to play the 'Baath card' before the election to gain more
votes," he added.
Other politicians are concerned that the choice and timing of the rhetoric is a
ploy to keep voters from asking tough questions about the current government's
accomplishments.
Mithal al-Alusi, a lawmaker from the secular Iraq Nation party, told IWPR that
the anti-Baath talk is party propaganda disseminated by Islamist parties
worried about competition from secular candidates.
"They can't talk about providing security or good standards of living because
they have already promised their people these things and then disappointed
them. The Baath issue is the only choice they have to rally support," Alusi
said.
Fadhil al-Amiri, a political science professor at Baghdad University, suggests
that the ruling political parties are hiding behind anti-Baathist rhetoric to
avoid addressing the public's demands.
"These parties claim the Baathist are returning because large segments of Iraqi
society have suffered from this party. However, these political parties realise
very well that it is no good to promise once again that they will improve
security, public services and the economy," Amiri said. "This is why they've
been downplaying the issues in their election campaigns."
But those who claim that Baathist influence remains a threat to Iraq argue that
their stance is not political.
"I admit the Baathist threat is not as big as some claim, but it is still a
dangerous and important issue," Arakan Rashid, an economic adviser to Maliki,
said. "The Baath party is banned by the constitution, but no one can deny it
doesn't exist. They have meetings and are trying to organise themselves. They
could penetrate Sunni secular groups. They are dangerous and can't be allowed
to come back."
The anti-Baathist campaign strategy is a sharp deviation for the State of Law
coalition, which ran a successful campaign emphasising services and security in
the 2009 provincial council elections. Last autumn, the Iraqi National Alliance
indicated that it would emulate this populist, non-sectarian platform. [See:
Iraq Eyes Post-Sectarian Politics]
"Things got more complicated after the ban, especially because politicians in
Iraq still lack the culture of democratic competition and peaceful exchange of
authority," said Hamdiyah al-Husseini, an Independent High Electoral Commission
official.
"The fiery accusations have negatively reflected on the democratic process and
the Iraqi citizens who suffer a lot from these political disputes."
Ali Kareem is an IWPR-trained journalist in Baghdad. IWPR editorial staffers
Abeer Mohammed and Charles McDermid contributed to this report from Baghdad and
Sulaimaniyah.
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