Iraqi CP - On the nomination of the new Prime Minister‏

Editorial of “Tareeq Al-Shaab” (People’s Path), the newspaper issued by the Iraqi Communist Party – 14 August 2014

On the occasion of nominating Haider al-Abadi to the post of Prime Minister

We call for completing the peaceful transfer of power
and the formation of a broad national unity government

After an intense and difficult struggle among political parties and leaders, especially among the parties of the National Alliance, in addition to various external pressures and interference, the Iraqi President Fuad Masoum nominated Haider al-Abadi, the candidate of the National Alliance, to form the new government. This nomination comes after the election of the Speaker of Parliament and the President, thus signifying another important step on the path to complete the process of peaceful transition of power. This is a welcomed success for the political process which remains stumbling and requires rectification and reform.

The nomination of the new prime minister has been widely welcomed by political circles inside Iraq and on the Arab, regional and international levels. These are positive signals and reactions that constitute a significant political and moral asset for the prime minister-designate as he embarks on the formation of a government with a broad political base, as stated when he was nominated by the President.

It is certain that the new government will be facing unprecedented challenges, especially on the political and security levels as Iraq is confronting a terrorist onslaught of utmost viciousness and brutality that is targeting its existence as an entity and homeland, a people and society, and a culture and civilization. The new government will also find itself facing a heavy legacy of outstanding and deferred problems and issues that need to be urgently tackled and resolved.

In order to confront the forces of terrorism and anti-people forces, and to defeat them and their evil plans, it is necessary to adopt a new approach and style of thinking in dealing with the political forces and with the problems and issues; based on openness, dialogue, consultation, genuine participation and instilling confidence. It requires taking into account national consensus in line with the Constitution and the higher interests of the country and people, and exerting serious effort to resolve the knotty issues and speed up the implementation of solutions that are reached.

The relationship between the federal government and the Kurdistan region is of distinct importance that emphasizes the need to restore the language of dialogue and consultation, and referring to the Constitution and national common ground to tackle the existing problems and explore ways to find solutions for the benefit of everyone. There is also an urgent need to raise the level of coordination and cooperation in the military field in the face of the gangs of Isis and terrorism.

We, along with the broadest masses of our people, look forward to the forthcoming phase opening up a new page in the relations between the various political forces and working to improve the overall political climate. Joint action is needed to restore and strengthen national unity, to reject the discourse and practices that fuel intolerance and religious, confessional and ethnic extremism, and all forms of discrimination between our people, and to uphold the principle of citizenship in word and deed.

The process of forming the new government cannot overlook the lessons of the past experience which have shown unequivocally the enormous damage inflicted on the performance of the state and its institutions as a result of reliance on the logic and basis of sectarian and ethnic power-sharing. Therefore, the standards of integrity, efficiency, professionalism and dedication to the causes of the people must not be relinquished again in the process of selecting ministers and allocating of responsibilities. This applies to all state-building which needs to be reviewed and reformed, away from the prevailing approach and practice of sectarian and ethnic power-sharing.

The intensification of the war against gangs of Isis and other terrorist organisations, and the efforts to stop the brutal crimes which have claimed the lives of thousands of our people and the indigenous ethnic, religious and confessional components, also requires speeding up the formation of a broad and all-encompassing national unity government that undertakes to mobilize all the national capacities and potential against terrorism, and proceeds to dealing with the crises and problems facing the country. In this context, the Iraqi Communist Party welcomes every step that strives to achieve cooperation between the political forces that adhere to the Constitution and the political process and brings them together in order to develop joint patriotic visions and positions that find their way into the government's program.

To stress this goal and to achieve it, we renew our call for the convening of a National Conference of the forces that founded and participated in the political process, in parallel with the efforts to form the new government. This conference should review the political process, ridding it of the mistakes and defects revealed by the past experience and returning it to the proper path that leads to building a prosperous federal democratic Iraq.

We hope that those who are sceptical and opposed to the constitutionality of the process of nominating Mr Haider al-Abadi to form the government avoid anything that would threaten stability and disrupt the process of peaceful transition of power, and spare the country further crises and divisions while it is locked in a fateful struggle against the evil forces of terrorism.