Iraq’s national reconciliation and accountability law

In a desperate attempt to end the sectarian violence in Iraq through reconciliation with Sunni resistance groups, the Iraqi government has issued a draft of the “Law of Accountability and Justice,” according to a Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty article last Friday. The draft calls for the revision of the de-Ba’athification law established by the Coalition Provisional Authority in 2003. The names of the individuals and groups involved in the development of the law have not been revealed due to the sensitivity of the issue and the potential for retaliation.

Leaders of the groups are tending toward reconciliation with the government, as incompatibility with al-Qaeda goals and tactics increase. One leader of the Mujahedin Army in Iraq told Al-Jazeera television, “Once these factions, along with all good mujahedin, see that negotiations serve the interest of the country, the people, and the nation, they will not hesitate to do so, will not hide it, and will take this option immediately.”

Not all groups in Iraq are pleased with the draft though. Some Shiite and Kurdish leaders expressed criticism by saying, according to the article, “it is wrong to welcome former Ba’athists, who persecuted Shia and Kurds, back into the fold of Iraqi politics.” These same critics believe that sectarian violence will increase as a result of the draft. Even Ahmad Chalabi, the de-Ba’athification Commission leader, said it is too early to present the law to parliament since the wounds of the victims of the Ba’ath Party have not healed yet. The final decision on the law will come from parliament itself.

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