IRAT CONFRONTING THE OCCUPATIe Jane Kelly interviewed Hani Lazim of the Iraqi Democrats against the Occupation K What is your assessment of the role of the National Assembly J Frey be die to proace and what kind of construtian if any will they be able to produce? HL Initially the role of the National Assembly (NA) is to write a new constitution and to vote for an interim government. Its duration is less than a year, which can be extended for six months. The political process is limited and controlled by the so-called 'Bremer' State Administrative Interim Law. This Assembly should not be looked at in terms of a majority that can make policy or pass laws or write articles for a constitution, for it is a 'rubber-stamping' body which is called upon to sign a document agreed by consensus between three major groups with intense suspicion of each other. The legacy of the Bremer Law is that, no matter what majority is achieved in the assembly, a consensus has to be agreed involving all groups. It acts therefore as a veto, as consensus can rarely be achieved. In most cases a so-called agreement can only be reached by the Americans twisting arms and pulling ears; above all they determine the real consensus. It took over three months for Dr Ibrahim Al Jaafari to form a government: a government that has no control over the country's borders, natural resources, budget or security. The fact is that the NA meets in the Green Zone under the protection, or rather humiliation, of the US army. 12
JK Are there any developments of military, fixed wing aircraft, tanks and The NA is organized into different committees. Some of these have a room meet in neither nor sit on, so in effect they chairs to are not able to meet. One of these committees is supposed to fight the extraordinarily rife corruption in the state administration, where billions of dollars have simply evaporated or sunk in a great desert sands. JK What is the political balance of forces in the Assembly and what role does the Al-Sadr group play? HL The NA does not consist of political forces but is organised along the following lines: The largest, with just over 51%, (1) is the Patriotic Coalition (mainly Shia Arabs) consisting of two Parties (Al Jaafari Al Dawa Supreme Council for Islamic Revolution in Iraq (Sciri) Ahmed Al Chalabi's group, Iraqi National Congress and Alfahdilah Party and some individuals from supporters of Al Sadr; (2) The Kurdistan Coalition has 27% (the two main Kurdish parties KDP Barazani and PUK Talabani, with very small representation for the Assyrians and others). The Kurds constitute less than 18% of Iraq population and according to the UN oil for food program their portion was 15%; (3) Dr. Iyad Allawi, Iraqi Accord Party has 20%; (4) The Iraqi Communist Party has two members out of 275. Politics in the NA is very varied, especially in the first group as it contains political persuasions from Chalabi's group which is diehard pro-US (the Pentagon in particular), pro-privatization, and supports the neo-cons, to Al Sadr supporters who oppose the US presence and all the occupying forces and who represent the down-trodden, barefoot Islamist fighters. Then there is everything in between. Coalition In the Kurdistan the contradiction is that the Barazani and Talabani Parties are repressively coerced to stay together. They are competing to control the oil rich province of Kirkuk and against the rest of the Assembly. Allawi's group has mostly ex-Baathists, and the other groups do not support them holding any senior post in government because of their colourful Baathist past, plus a few ex-Arab Nationalists. There is a strong alliance between the Kurdistan and the Shia Patriotic Coalitions who run the limited show. JK What role does the Al Sadr group play outside the Assembly? HL The Al Sadr group, if you can call it a group, is a loose coalition. Its constituency is what was traditionally Communist working class, the very poorest Shia Arabs in Iraq. They are either fighting, or demonstrating, or most recently demanding the withdrawal of foreign troops from Iraq. They work closely with Sunni organizations to maintain the unity of the Iraqi people despite all attempts by the occupying forces to encourage a civil war. They have a core of twenty-one members and together with other Assembly members signed represents one of them), The a declaration demanding a short timetable for the occupation troops to leave Iraq. Initially they had 83 signatures that rose to 103 by the time it was presented to the Al Jaafari government. Today (27/07/05) Al Jaafari timidly asked Rumsfield for a timetable for withdrawal of the troops. JK What is your assessment of the Iraqi National Foundation Congress? HL They have good intentions for struggle against the occupation but failed to be either a mass movement or a military fighting force. The goal to build a coalition dependent on an organized mass movement, requires dedication and sincerity in the political line and mass action. They need to be very clear in condemning both the old regime and its practices, and the neo-Islamist terrorists; they do in this latter case condemn it, but take little action. They are largely Arab Nationalists and Iraqi Patriots. They recently started to work with the Al Sadr movement. JK Can you say something about the trade union of the Southern Oil Company workers? HL It is a representative, independent and patriotic anti-privatization and anti-occupation trade union that has over 30,000 members and covers all the area south of Baghdad to Both the workers and we their supporters have to be extremely vigilant about the US methods of buying or killing whoever is in the way of their ugly oil greed. working class organisation like this in heavy bombers were used. other parts of the country? 1 For more information contact: http://www.basraoilunion.org HL Yes, several trade unions are springing up and getting organized but they are still very weak and there is pressure from the government which recognizes one trade union which is a front for pro-occupation parties including the supposedly left wing. The weakness comes from very high unemployment in the region of 30 to 40 percent, low wages, lack of safety and security and basic amenities like water, electricity and petrol, in one of the oil richest land on this globe! The professional associations are the best organised, like the lawyers, doctors, etc. The Basra port's workers are well organized and came out in support of the Southern Oil workers' demand for better wages and against privatization. JK Can you make an assessment of the state of the resistance and its different components? HL The resistance is made up of groups of different shades but in general people look to those who attack the occupation forces and their protectors and collaborators militarily or by peaceful means. The occupation, US and the Israeli Mossad in particular, organize death squads and terrorist tactics to sow confusion and try to split the Iraqi people who are against the occupation. Personnel from the old regime and some of its organizations are involved in some of the worst masses hesitant to fully support the armed resistance, especially when these Baathists have not apologised to the Iraqi people for the crimes they committed during their rule. Most, if not all, Iraqi patriots do not want to work with the old fascists who are calling for Saddam's return to power. The US wants the Baathists without Saddam and is negotiating with them. These negotiations will lead nowhere as the old order is gone forever and will not be accepted by the Iraqi people. Iraqis are increasingly confronting the occupation in bold defiance on many fronts, both inside the Assembly and outside in demonstrations and workers strikes including the oil workers, doctors, and human rights groups, and militarily in recent battles around Al Qa'm, Karabla, Hadeatha, Rawah, Tel Afar, Samara, Ramadi and many other places, where large number of occupation troops, helicopters and 13