Iraq Press Roundup

Change or status quo in Iraqi provincial elections

The political sea change brought by the 2003 U.S.-led invasion of Iraq fostered a climate that considers local authority separate from the central government, al-Bayyna said Wednesday.

Provincial council leaders emerged in the aftermath of the 2003 invasion as powerful figures formed alliances with local leaders who exhibited control before the 2005 elections.

Though some of the council leaders were awash with corruption, several others made great efforts in their civil service. The corrupt, however, moved into some of the top positions in the provincial councils.

Some analysts say these officials should be kept in their positions, considering the experience gained in the past three years, while others advocate a change to bring new officials to power as Iraq progresses with reconstruction efforts, the paper of the Iraqi Hezbollah Party said.

A third group, however, advocates sweeping change by replacing all provincial council members, but this does not work across the fluid local political structure in Iraq.

It is useful, the newspaper said, to provide a fresh face to Iraqi politics while encouraging status quo leaders to act more effectively to bring a positive future to the country.

The parties in Basra: conflict of mafias

The people of Basra witness a thriving democracy in the various campaign posters in the city, but the faces behind the campaign slogans reveal an unsettling deception, Kitabat said Wednesday.

The face of the politicians behind the campaign slogans shows democracy is nothing more than a means to deceive a naive public.

Mafia-style politics are dominating the scene in Basra. The Shiite Fadhila and Supreme Islamic Iraqi Council, the two dominant parties in Basra, campaign on false promises of reforming the port city, but have quietly stole from the oil coffers for the past three years, the independent newspaper said.

Religion, meanwhile, as a motivating factor is a characteristic of weak democracies. Fadhila and SIIC are exploiting religious sentiments to encourage voter support, but the reality on the ground suggests that is only for political power.

The elections and the future of Iraq

The public mood toward the upcoming provincial elections is as varied as the statements from the candidates, al-Sabaah al-Jadeed said Wednesday.

Some in the Iraqi public assume the major parties will remain in power regardless of competency or voter support, while others see a competitive environment as an encouraging sign of democratic progress.

Despite the endurance of major political players, smaller parties could do well in the coming elections, leaving little for critics of democracy in Iraq.

There is a level of disdain for elections in what some view as a failed democratic experience in Iraq, but through education, the Iraqi people will come to understand how the elections will influence even the smallest parts of their lives.

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(Edited by Daniel Graeber)