Iraq leader proposes reforms amid protests
Elimination of top official positions, end to party quotas among plans
BAGHDAD — Facing widespread protests against government corruption and poor services as well as calls for change by Shiite clerics, Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi on Sunday proposed a series of drastic reforms that could be a turning point in the dysfunctional politics of Iraq that have persisted since the U.S. invasion in 2003.
Al-Abadi’s proposals, which came as the war against Islamic State militants has stalled in western Anbar province, were wide ranging. They included the elimination of three vice-presidency positions, largely ceremonial jobs that come with expensive perks, and the end of sectarian and party quotas that have dominated the appointments of top officials.
The three positions are held by figures who have dominated Iraqi politics since the United States toppled Saddam Hussein’s regime: the former prime minister Nuri al-Maliki; Ayad Allawi, a Shiite whose Sunni-dominated bloc won the most seats in national elections in 2010; and Osama al-Nujaifi, a prominent Sunni leader.
“We are witnessing the end of the post-2003 Iraq,” said Maria Fantappie, the Iraq analyst for the International Crisis Group.
The protests, which began in reaction to the searing heat of Iraq’s summer — temperatures have consistently been above 120 degrees Fahrenheit — and the lack of electricity to power air conditioners, grew into a wide-scale rebuke of corruption and an ineffective political system.
Heart of grievances
The Shiite religious leaders in the holy city of Najaf quickly backed the protest movement, which seemed to emerge from a grass-roots effort rather than a political party, forcing al-Abadi to act.
Al-Abadi’s proposals were greeted with statements of support across the political spectrum, including from al-Maliki and al-Nujaifi, a reflection of the mandate al-Abadi has been given from both the demonstrators and Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, the top Shiite cleric. The reform plan was immediately approved Sunday afternoon by al-Abadi’s Cabinet, but some of the measures, including the elimination of the vice presidencies, need to be approved by Parliament, which is scheduled to vote on the proposals Tuesday.
With Iraq facing a financial crisis as oil prices drop, al-Abadi also said he would drastically eliminate government jobs and some ministries, and reduce the perks of politicians, including the large and expensive security details that political leaders have long felt entitled to.
The proposal goes to the heart of grievances expressed in peaceful rallies in Baghdad and other cities in the Shiite-dominated south of Iraq.
Statement of rebuke
Al-Abadi’s seven points of reform, which he released on his Facebook page Sunday and included reopening corruption cases against top officials, seemed to transcend the particulars and represent a wide statement of rebuke against the entire political system that has taken root since the U.S. invasion.
Notably, al-Abadi pushed for the elimination of one of the system’s hallmarks: the quotas used in the selection of top officials.