US Report: “Ambiguous” Clause in Iraqi Constitution Allows Coordination Framework to Institutionaliz

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[size=52]US Report: “Ambiguous” Clause in Iraqi Constitution Allows Coordination Framework to Institutionalize Sectarianism[/size]

[size=45]The American Brookings Institute raised concerns about the increasing influence of religious authority of sects in Iraq, and attempts to institutionalize sectarianism in a way that reshapes Iraqi society, undermines state authority, and contributes to strengthening the fragmentation of the country.[/size]
[size=45]A report by the American Institute recalled the “faith campaign” launched by the former regime’s president, Saddam Hussein, during the nineties of the last century, which included the construction of many mosques based on his political discourse, to become more religious in order to benefit from the growing religious wave in Iraq and the region at that time.[/size]
[size=45]However, the report indicated that such efforts remained limited to the state’s attempt to control religion and exploit it in the public sphere, while the regime continued to work against Islamic movements that it considered a threat to its existence.”[/size]
[size=45]However, the American Institute report stated that “Islamic groups, both Sunni and Shiite, gained power after the fall of the Baathist regime in 2003, and significantly reshaped social life to reflect their worldview.”[/size]
[size=45]The report stated that “many of these groups, especially the Shiite ones, participated in the elections and in drafting the constitution, and the prominent forces among them were able to dominate political life. After 2003, they were busy strengthening their authority and dealing with the armed Sunni groups, including what was later called (ISIS), and therefore these groups did not give priority to what the report called “the Islamization of laws.”[/size]
[size=45]The report warned that these forces, instead, adopted an ambiguous constitutional clause stating that “Islam is the official religion of the state and a main source of legislation,” and that laws must not “contradict the basic principles of Islam” or “the principles of democracy.”[/size]
[size=45]The report stated that “Islamic forces have tried in recent years to revive projects aimed at Islamizing laws,” pointing in this context to the decisive role played by the success of the “Coordination Framework” forces in forming the government, controlling parliament, and strengthening influence over independent bodies, such as the Communications and Media Commission, in addition to the judiciary.[/size]
[size=45]He pointed out that "such a turn of events may seem natural given that Iraq has witnessed intense conflicts over identity," noting that "most of the forces that dominated political power tried to reshape the country's identity to reflect their ideology, vision and symbols."[/size]
[size=45]In this context, the American report noted that the Shiite forces imposed the new official holiday of “Eid al-Ghadir,” and the government acted in a more hostile manner against non-governmental organizations affiliated with Western countries, closing the offices of some of them and lifting the legal cover for others, in conjunction with a campaign by groups and activists affiliated with the “Coordination Framework” against Western attempts to change Islamic culture and “promote moral decadence.”[/size]
[size=45]In addition, the report found that the Communications and Media Commission restricted some television programs and series and banned specific media commentators due to objections from the “Coordination Framework” or Shiite clerics.[/size]
[size=45]“Such efforts have recently escalated with attempts to introduce legal amendments to the Personal Status Law of 1959, which was issued during the era of President Abdul Karim Qasim,” he continued, noting that “this law came as a result of a long process that began during the monarchy to formulate a comprehensive family law that applies to all Iraqis, adopting more progressive interpretations of Islamic jurisprudence and that could also be compatible with modern standards of human and women’s rights.”[/size]
[size=45]The Brookings Institute report warned that the new amendments aim to end the state’s monopoly on regulating family, inheritance and personal status issues, by allowing individuals to return to the jurisprudence that governs their sects in such matters, while also allowing religious authorities to deal with marriage and divorce contracts and determine custody rights for children according to the jurisprudence of their sect, without the right to object from state courts.[/size]
[size=45]The report considered that the proposed law contradicts some constitutional texts, such as Article 14, which states that “Iraqis are equal before the law without discrimination on the basis of gender, race, nationality, origin, color, religion, sect, belief, opinion, economic status, or social status,” in addition to other provisions related to the rights of women and children.[/size]
[size=45]The American report added, saying: “The Shiite religious establishment’s objection to the 1959 law is not new,” noting that it was among the main reasons for the clerics’ opposition to Abdul Karim Qasim’s regime, an opposition that was not based solely on religious grounds, but rather on the fact that the organization of family affairs and personal status was a historical responsibility that had been the responsibility of the Shiite clerics, who exercised it independently of the state, and that transferring this authority to the state courts caused a weakening of the religious hierarchical influence and the revenues it generated.[/size]
[size=45]According to the report, the Coordination Framework appears to be receiving strong support from the religious establishment in its efforts, coupled with silence – likely interpreted as acquiescence – from the country’s top religious authority, Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani. Some have even described the Qassim-era law as secular, arguing that marriage, divorce and inheritance under its provisions constitute a departure from religious principles.[/size]
[size=45]The American report concluded that the goal appears to be “to establish an organized system around sectarian and ethnic affiliation in Iraq, and to reduce citizens to fixed and inherited identities,” so that sects become intermediaries between individuals and the state.[/size]
[size=45]The report concluded by saying that this has implications “for everything from political representation of citizens to rights related to marriage, custody and family affairs,” warning that the success of amending the 1959 law, based on the proposed formula, would represent an additional step towards institutionalizing the sectarian division of Iraq, which would create an authority parallel to the authority of the state, similar to what happened with the Popular Mobilization Forces, which represent a force parallel to the state in terms of security issues.[/size]
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