Iraqis broke their democratic fast; indigestion follows

[TexasLawyer]

From the Daily Star-- Lebanon

Iraqis broke their democratic fast; indigestion follows

By Jihad N. Fakhreddine
Special to The Daily Star
Saturday, February 05, 2005


The international media reported how Iraqis defied terror to cast their votes last weekend. The irony is that while the voters did so, hundreds of the 7,200 or so candidates to the constituent Iraqi assembly did not dare make their candidacy public for fear of repercussions from terrorists keen on derailing the fledgling democratic process.

Eventually the insurgents managed to kill 37 Iraqis, which is regretfully just a little above the daily average on a non-election day. Irrespective of how the media depict the security situation in Iraq, however, suicide bombers could not have halted the election. But that merely begs another question, one directly related to a matter of major concern for most Iraqis in the post-Saddam Hussein era: Did the election, and the period leading up to it, represent something positive for the political process? On the whole, are Iraqi political institutions the better for it? The implications of any answer are not limited to Iraq alone, but to the rest of the Arab world, especially since the U.S. has sought to present Iraq to Arabs as a democratic model.

The answer appears to be a conditional "no." The Iraqi elections were surely a milestone, but regardless of the outcome and level of participation, those who opposed the timing of the election as well those who supported it, will face difficult times ahead. Iraqi political groupings are numerous, but not necessarily close to, or known, by the electorate; voting procedures are hardly optimal when it comes to proper representation; and political groups have not even taken the trouble to offer the electorates detailed political programs.

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http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=10&categ_id=5&article_id=12399

[TexasLawyer]

1. oops

meant to post in editorials. sorry