IRAQ: De-Baathification measure draws lawmakers' ire

Sunday’s session at the Iraqi Parliament resembled a typically rowdy gathering of the British Parliament during Question Time with the British Prime Minister, in which backbenchers (or members of the parliament who are not ministers) boisterously pepper the country’s leader with queries. The sessions usually become quite heated.

While Sunday's session was not targeted at the Iraqi Prime Minister, numerous “Right Honorable” Iraqi lawmakers descended into yelling and finger-pointing among themselves.

The issue at hand concerned reforms that would ease curbs on former members of Saddam Hussein’s Baath party rejoining Iraq's civil service and military.

The so-called De-Baathification measure, along with legislation sharing the country’s oil wealth, has been identified by Washington as a key political strategy for uniting opposing factions and stemming sectarian violence. Thousands of predominately Sunni Arab Baathists were fired from government and military jobs after Saddam was toppled during the U.S-led invasion of Iraq in 2003.

Coming to agreement over whether to allow them to regain positions in the civil service ranks appears headed for political gridlock.

Many Shiite Muslim lawmakers believe the bill to reinstate former Baathists is too lenient and would essentially provide amnesty to former Saddam supporters, and allow them to again occupy powerful positions. Many Shiites oppose this, because they were persecuted under the Baathist regime.

Other lawmakers cited the need to put the past behind so the country could move forward. 

There was shouting and fist-thumping as some politicians questioned the constitutionality of the proposed bill and whether all the necessary legal procedures had been followed before reading the draft.

Speaker of the Parliament Mahomud Mashhadani was so annoyed by the ruckus that he threatened to have one rowdy lawmaker thrown out of the proceedings.

Many more fireworks are expected during future debates on the contentious De-Baathification issue.

— Ann M. Simmons in Baghdad