Iraq’s Allawi: ‘elections must not be based on sectarianism’
▶ Ahead of Iraq’s elections, vice president Ayad Allawi tells Mina Aldroubi of the challenges of sectarianism
A suicide attack on a political party headquarters in Iraq killed four people and injured seven, including a candidate in polls set for next month, officials said yesterday.
ISIL claimed the attack in Anbar province, primarily home to Sunni Muslims.
One of the attackers reportedly detonated his explosive belt while political leaders were in a meeting at the campaign headquarters.
The second detonated his belt shortly after but did not cause any casualties.
In December, Baghdad declared victory against ISIL, but experts say the extremists are still hiding along the porous border with Syria and in parts of the Iraqi desert.
In an exclusive interview with The National, Iraqi Vice President Ayad Allawi said terrorism, sectarian divisions and corruption were among the main obstacles in the path toward rebuilding the country.
In the lead-up to the first parliamentary elections since the official defeat of ISIL, Mr Allawi talked about the issues that are hampering the country’s democratic process and political independence.
He emphasised the need to reconsider electoral mechanisms and make them more conducive to a fair voting system.
Mr Allawi also blamed the rise of ISIL on the country’s lack of unity and warned that the region could continue to see itself affected by both extremism and sectarianism.
If peace is not achieved, he said, Iraq was bound to lose its battle against the insurgents.
“They will disperse and solidify themselves and this will be added on to Iraq’s many problems,” Mr Allawi said.
Iraq will not solve the crises it faces unless it maintains an inclusive political process, overcomes sectarian divisions and rids itself of foreign interference, the Iraqi Vice President Ayad Allawi told The National during a visit to Dubai.
On May 12, Iraqis will cast their votes in the first parliamentary elections since the country’s victory over ISIL. However, the state is still being hindered by issues that are debilitating its democratic process and political independence.
Mr Allawi said that foreign intrusions in Iraq are obstructing efforts to bridge the sectarian divide and stressed that the country’s political process must be based on a common national identity.
“We don’t want an election based on sectarianism. We want an inclusive political process,” he said. “However, the environment in Iraq is very sectarian, rigid and intimidating, with armed militias on the rise and the disenfranchisement of people continues.”
For years Iraq has been caught up in the region’s sectarian divisions. But tensions were further exacerbated when Tehran manipulated its ties with Iraq’s Shia majority and emerged as the country’s major foreign power broker.
Mr Allawi said he advised the Iranian ambassador in Iraq that he should not encourage his government to meddle in the country’s internal affairs. “We know that there are senior Iranians based in Iraq who have an internal influence. This is not healthy. I speak to most leaders of the Shiite and Sunni blocs, they don’t want to see any foreign government getting involved.”
In addition to external meddling, Mr Allawi cites problematic institutions, poverty, security and terrorism as key factors behind Iraq’s political failure. “There needs to be a rectified process that is not based on decisions taken in Tehran or Washington or anywhere else,” he said.
In the 2010 elections, Mr Allawi won more seats than Nouri Al Maliki – his fiercest competitor and a close ally of Iran – but fell short of a majority. He accuses Iran of blocking his bid to become prime minister.
But, the 73-year-old vice president said, he did not “harbour any animosity towards Iran or the neighbouring states” but instead urges the international community to “let Iraqis choose their leaders and representatives”.
Tehran denies any interference in Iraqi politics and says it has provided military assistance only to Shiite paramilitary groups in their fight against ISIL.
But with ISIL defeated, the future role of the militias presents a challenge for the central government, as many Iraqis voice concern over the participation of pro-Iranian movements in the elections.
Mr Allawi pointed out that the militias, also known as Hashed Al Shaabi, present two troubling elements. One, he said, is that “they have become a legal entity in the state and the other is the unknown – what they are doing, and the fact that they are intimidating and harassing people”.
The vice president believes the failure of Iraq’s political process is a consequence of the downfall of Saddam Hussein and the consequent United States occupation.
“The state was dismantled, which opened the way for intervention by various countries in Iraq’s affairs; then people started to revert back to their tribes, [their] region. Without rectifying this political process Iraq will be a big loser,” he said. Iraqis, he said, are disgusted by sectarianism and the politicising of religion.
Born in 1944, Mr Allawi, a secular Shiite Arab from a prominent family, became the
We know that there are senior Iranians based in Iraq who have an internal influence. This is not healthy
first Iraqi prime minister after the US-led invasion of 2003. He led a coalition government committed to a secular future for Iraq.
“We have a lot of sympathy from the Iraqi people because we are non-sectarian,” he said.
“The diversity of our population is a source of strength, not a source of destruction.”
However, Mr Allawi said the present political conditions and the mechanics of the upcoming elections are not conducive to a fair voting system.
“The Independent High Electoral Commission is a repetition of the previous one, it’s based on sectarianism. There are signs that indicate foreign meddling [in the election process] from neighbouring countries such as Iran and Turkey. This is not in the favour or interest of the Iraqi people.”
Mr Allawi’s bloc has been advocating for fair and transparent elections, after the country ranked 166 out of 176 in Transparency International’s Corruption Perceptions Index last year. He also rejected Mr Al
Maliki’s call for an all-majority government, claiming it would result in a sectarian majority.
“Politicians try to camouflage it by saying it’s a political majority, but we all know that it’s sectarian. We don’t believe in this at all,” he said. “We are not ready for a majority rule government, we need to establish institutions based on non-sectarian policies first.”
Another challenge, perhaps one of Iraq’s most pressing issues, is that of corruption.
“Iraq is a very rich nation, unfortunately, according to the UN, more than one third of the population lives under the poverty line, which is unbelievable,” Mr Allawi said. The only way to successfully eradicate corruption was to unify Iraqis in the building of institutions and in the development of the country’s economy.
Mr Allawi is now pressing to abolish government institutions like the integrity commission, which aims to prevent and to investigate corruption, and to replace it with an independent audit office. In 2015, he nominated 40 international companies to conduct forensic auditing but his request was rejected.
Mr Allawi believes that the country’s lack of unity also paved the way for the rise of ISIL and said the region could continue to be affected by ISIL and sectarianism. “I advised the central government that we need to pool our intelligence with all countries that enjoy and advocate moderation.”
He emphasised that if peace was not won then Iraq could lose its battle against the insurgents.
“They will disperse and solidify themselves and this will be added on to Iraq’s many problems,” he said.