Iraq's
New President Just
A Figure Head?
By Dahr Jamail
03 June, 2004
The
NewStandard
Baghdad ,
Jun 1 - After a brief, frenetic political battle between the Iraqi Governing
Council and the US-run Coalition Provisional Authority, both parties
today named Sheikh Ghazi Al-Yawer president of Iraq's newly formed interim
government.
Yesterday UN representative
Lakhdar Brahimi and US administrator Paul Bremer announced that they
favored Adnan Pachachi for the presidential slot, while IGC members
strongly pushed for Al-Yawer. Those circumstances today forced both
Brahimi and Bremer to reluctantly endorse Al-Yawer, a choice Bremer
strenuously opposed on Monday.
With the move, Pachachi
promptly stepped out of the running, and the Iraqi Governing Council
(IGC) enthusiastically supported Al-Yawer as the first president of
post-Saddam Iraq.
Iraqi reaction to
the Sunni sheikh seemed to be a mix between guarded optimism and customary
skepticism. The unusual signs of hope may be attributable to the reputation
Al-Yawer has earned for highlighting and standing up against what many
see as US attempts to undermine any movement toward true Iraqi sovereignty.
Also of note is Al-Yawer's strong tribal background, widely respected
in Iraqi society.
Meanwhile, widespread
skepticism seems to stem from the disastrous security situation, continuing
economic turmoil, the lingering lack of infrastructure reconstruction
in Iraq under US occupation, and the limited amount of power Al-Yawer's
office will be granted.
Kabel Hassan, a
47 year-old tailor sitting across from a mosque on Rashid Street in
Baghdad today offered a typical, hesitant endorsement of Al-Yawer. "The
sheikh is suitable," Hassan said, "because he is tribal, he
has good culture and reputation, and knows what we need." But Hassan
quickly added: "Our commerce is in a bad situation and nobody has
jobs because of the American-led IGC. I hope it will get better with
the sheikh, insh'allah [God-willing]."
In the lead up to
this morning's announcement, the Coalition Provisional Authority's (CPA)
heavily-fortified "Green Zone" in Baghdad was rocked by several
mortar blasts over a period of half an hour. Later the Associated Press
reported that just after Al-Yawer accepted his new position, a car bomb
was detonated near a US base in Beiji killing at least ten people.
While the political
machinations were underway, a separate car bomb exploded near the Patriotic
Union of Kurdistan Party Headquarters in Baghdad killing at least 3
people and wounding over 30, according to the BBC.
President Al-Yawer,
45, lived in exile in Saudi Arabia, where he studied at the Petroleum
and Minerals University beginning in the 1980s. He also studied at Georgetown
University in Washington, DC. Born in Mosul, the civil engineer is nephew
to leader of the large Shammar tribe. Last year he was appointed to
the IGC, which was officially dissolved with today's announcement of
the interim government. Al-Yawer had taken over temporary Council presidency
after the assassination of Ezzidin Salim on May 17.
Al-Yawer has earned
a reputation among Iraqis for standing up to the Coalition Provisional
Authority (CPA) when he felt it necessary.
One act that has
earned Al-Yawer much respect from the Iraqi people was his renowned
initiative while negotiating with representatives from Fallujah during
the month-long siege of that city by US Marines in April.
During a telephone
interview with Al-Jazeera Television on April 10, Al-Yawer was openly
critical of the heavy-handed tactics employed by US Marines in Fallujah.
"We called the coalition parties and informed them about our condemnation
and we expressed our surprise at these acts," Al-Yawer said. "We
held them responsible for what they are doing and also for the safety
of the delegation." In the same interview, Al-Yawer condemned US
forces for preventing food and medical aid from reaching the suffering
residents of Fallujah.
United Press International
reported that Al-Yawer expressed his disagreement with the UN resolution
submitted by the US and the UK late last month concerning the political
transition process and the fate of coalition forces in Iraq. Al-Yawer
was reportedly disappointed that the draft failed to grant enough control
to the Iraqi government over military operations by foreign troops.
Sattar Ali Mustafa,
a 65 year-old Sunni man selling nargeela pipes in Baghdad today expressed
a familiar sense of alienation from the political process. "We
don't know the IGC so how can we know the new president?" he asked.
Showing concern over the state of the economy, Mustafa complained, "The
situation is so bad here; no water, no electricity, no security, so
what can [Al-Yawer] do?"
However, like many
other Iraqis, Mustafa demonstrated satisfaction with Al-Yawer's tribal
affiliations. "He is the sheikh of a tribe and that is accepted
by us, so I hope he can do a better job."
Much of Iraq's politics
remain tribal, particularly in rural areas where tribal sheikhs such
as Al-Yawer often mobilize the population in line with the sheikhs'
own political loyalties.
At a café
in central Baghdad today men played dominoes, sipped chai and shared
political opinions. Mohammed Ali, a 52 year-old retired police officer,
says he is relatively fond of Al-Yawer and hopeful about the new president's
potential to make a difference for Iraqis.
"The sheikh
is an honorable man who I hope will bring us security and help our economy,"
Ali said. "We all need jobs, Iraq is suffering too much. The coalition
has not done their job of bringing prosperity here like they promised.
I think the sheikh will help us very much until we can have elections.
The Americans did not come here to help -- the last year shows us this."
The new interim
government's primary responsibility will be to administer Iraq's affairs,
in particular by providing for the welfare and security of the Iraqi
people, promoting economic development and preparing Iraq for national
elections, according to Susan Phalen of the CPA Public Affairs Office.
The presidential
role to be filled by Al-Yawer is ironically an all but powerless one
under the mandate of the interim government, rendering one of the only
politicians for whom Iraqis express significant respect a mere figurehead
with no real ability to affect the changes to which they aspire.
The plan, according
to Phalen, is that the Iraqi interim government will take power on June
30 and will dissolve when a transitional government is chosen through
democratic elections to be held no later than January 31, 2005.
US National Security
Adviser Condoleezza Rice and Secretary of State Colin Powell have joined
President Bush in denying that there was ever a rift between the IGC
and Coalition authorities -- and praising the UN for its part in shaping
the Iraqi cabinet, the BBC reported.
Bush referred to
UN representative Lakhdar Brahimi as "the quarterback," and
said that Brahimi made important decisions to bring the names of the
candidates for the interim government to the table.
British Prime Minister
Tony Blair also praised the naming of the new Iraqi cabinet, while dismissing
suggestions that a "puppet" Iraqi government was to take power
on June 30.
But other perceptions
of yesterday's political turmoil differed from these accounts. The general
understanding presented by officials at the offices of both Bremer and
Brahimi was that Brahimi's word would carry the most weight. The Governing
Council, then, is widely seen as having used its final moments to undermine
Brahimi's role by taking the initiative to appoint top members of the
new government. Brahimi had said his intentions were to fill the interim
government with technocrats, but the IGC instead injected politicians
with various interests into key seats.
If president Al-Yawer
is true to his word and decides to push for an end to the occupation,
as has been reported he will do when he feels the time is right, Iraqis
may come to view him as a strong opponent of US control. But by most
accounts, Al-Yawer's lack of real power may render that opposition rhetorical,
at best.