May 6, 2010Allawi recently called upon the UN Security Council to intervene as the various blocs “The Iraqiya list's call upon the Security Council to intervene in Iraq's impasse and another potential Allawi-headed UN-mandated government ... After a month of painful negotiation, described by Prime Minister, Nouri al-Maliki as ‘sterile’, a new coalition formed of the State of Law list and Iraqi National Coalition is finally expected to redraw Iraq’s political map and allow the country to move forward politically.
The coalition of the two lists forms the largest parliamentary bloc ever in Iraq, with the two lists occupying 159 of the 325 parliamentary seats. The formation of the coalition, announce on 4 May, was unexpected and put an end to the constant predictions and counter-predictions over the shape of the new parliamentary bloc that will form the next Iraqi government.
The Kurds have also expressed their willingness to join the coalition, complicating matters for and putting more pressure on Iraqiya, whose leader, Iyad Allawi, will be forced to abandon his dream of becoming Prime Minister and settle for a lower-ranking ministerial portfolio.
Allawi recently called upon the UN Security Council to intervene as the various blocs squabbled and bickered and got nowhere with forming a governing coalition. It is believed that it was this step that pushed the State of Law and the National Coalition together, as both a feared a repeat of the 2004 situation when Allawi took power after the UN stepped in to form the government.
This prospect convinced the National Coalition that they should abandon their demand to agree on the name of the new Prime Minister before negotiating on the formation of a coalition. Faleh al-Faysd, a leading member of the National Coalition was quick to play down these claims. “The two parties were very close to each other right from the beginning,” he said. “The Iraqiya list’s call upon the Security Council to intervene in Iraq’s affairs has nothing to do with the formation of the coalition.” Ali al-Adeeb, of the State of Law bloc, said the formation of the new coalition was “an important step towards the formation of the government and towards ending the country’s current crisis.”
He criticised those who accused the coalition of being based on sectarian grounds, adding that the constitution “has guaranteed political blocs’ right to form coalitions in order to reach their political aims. However, some parties insist on accusing others with sectarianism while they themselves practice it.” “The two blocs were one bloc in the last parliament and during the two election rounds that took place in Iraq in the past years.
They will have the exclusive right to select the new prime minister from among members of the two blocs because they were able to gather 50% of the parliament seats,” said Adeeb, who headed the State of Law negotiation delegation. Al-Adeeb, whose name was once circulated as a potential alternative Prime Minister to Nouri al-Maliki, stressed that Iraqiya would definitely be invited to participate in the new coalition. “It is the Sunni expression and it has presence in 5 provinces with Sunni majority,” he said. He continued to express optimism about the length of time it will take to form a new government. “The coalition map is now much clearer and the coming days will allow parties to reach agreements on all their outstanding issues. This should lead to a speedy formation of the new government.”
The Kurdistan bloc, which recently met in Erbil to unify their stance on parliamentary alliances, should prove a key supporter of the new coalition, as Kurds hope to install Jalal al-Talabani in the post of President. To do so, they need the support 217 of the 325 parliament members. If all the Kurds vote together alongside the State of Law and National Coalition, they will be just one seat short of the majority needed to approve Talabani’s Presidency.
The Kurdish parties have formed the backbone of Iraqi political alliances since the outset and sent a clear signal to the new coalition expressing their readiness to rejoin on 14 April. President Talabani visited his former political opponent, Ibrahim al-Jaafari, and told him that the Kurds were waiting for the Shia to name their candidate for Prime Minister, so they can support the nomination. Talabani was criticised for his words, especially by members of the Iraqiya list, but many observers believe his intention was to speed up the formation of a political alliance following the elections.
While Iyad Allawi heads a secular list made-up of a mix of Sunni and Shia politicians, his background caused many Shia to fear that he could be a ‘Trojan Horse’, bringing Sunnis back to power in Iraq.
The new coalition, which is clearly Shia in identity, is a clear counter against this prospect. One of the biggest surprises is the abandonment by the Sadrists, who won 40 of the National Coalition’s 70 seats, of its hardline stance on cooperation with Maliki. However, with international intervention looming and another potential Allawi-headed UN-mandated government, divided on sectarian and ethnic lines, rather than on share of the popular vote, it is thought the Sadrists saw the need to compromise to maintain a strong share of important ministerial portfolios.
Nothing detailed was released regarding talks held between Ibrahim al-Jaafari, Jamal Jafar and Moqtada al-Sadr in Iran but they only began when Allawi threatened the internationalisation of the electoral dispute. The prospect of complete exclusion from a salvation government, as happened in 2004, meant the Sadrists had to accept membership of a coalition they had previously promised not to join.
http://www.niqash.org/content.php?contentTypeID=75&id=2670&lang=0
also ~ bumped
(Excellent) Is it really al-Maliki who is a candidate of Iran? Don't think so ...
