BAGHDAD, Jan. 23 (UPI) -- U.S. and Iraqi officials say a law intended to reconcile former Baath party members with the new Iraqi government may have the opposite effect.
Officials from both countries said the intention of the new legislation is to bring low-ranking Baath party officials back into the government, but some say its implementation may further purge former members of Saddam Hussein's political party from the ranks of the central government, The Washington Post said Wednesday.
One senior U.S. diplomat told the Post, "This law is about as clear as mud."
One former Baath party member said he sees the legislation as "bait" to bring former officials out of exile, saying it is undemocratic to outlaw ideologies and political parties while allowing former militants into various ministries, the Post said.
Further complicating the legislation is the division between Sunni Baathists and Shiite Baathists, with Shiite Baathists being viewed by some former party members as favored by the reconciliation law.
U.S. officials agree saying implementation of the law, which still requires oversight by a seven-member commission, may skew the outcome to exacerbate the troubled reconciliation process.
