Friday,
April 6, 2012. Chaos and violence continue, Home Depot gets sued by
the US Justice Dept over the firing of a National Guard member, KRG
President Massoud Barzani visits the US and discusses Article 140 (and
more), now Nouri doesn't want Tareq al-Hashemi to return to Iraq, Ammar
al-Hakim calls out Nouri's raid on the Communist Party last week, and
more.
In
a press conference Maliki said that he had a criminal file on Hashimi
that he had been sitting on for three years, and was now ready to
prosecute him. For the objective observer, the timing of this
announcement was telling. [. . .] Confessions of Hashimi's security
personnel were aired on state television and an arrest warrent for
Hashim himself was issued and also made public on state TV -- All this
publicity on Maliki's side in order to burn the bridges and make any
political deal impossible in this country where government is glued
together with political deals.
A
day after al-Hashemi went to the KRG, Nouri issued the arrest warrant.
Tareq al-Hashemi has remained in the KRG as a guest of Iraqi President
Jalal Talabani and KRG President Massoud Barzani. Sunday he left for a
diplomatic tour of some of the neighboring Iraq countries. He has
visited Qatar and Saudi Arabia.
Providing
background on Nouri's relationships with Qatar and Saudi Arabia would
require many, many snapshots. So we'll just drop back to last week's
Arab League Summit held in Baghdad.
Abeer Mohammed and Khalid Walid (Journal of Turkish Weekly) report:
While
Iraq hoped the high-profile Arab League summit in Baghdad last week
would mark a step forward in relations with its neighbours, observers
say many regional states used the event to snub the government.
Although
officials declared the event a success, only ten leaders from the 22
Arab League member states turned up. Apart from Kuwait, no Gulf state
was represented at a high level. Saudi Arabia and Oman merely sent
their Cairo-based Arab League ambassadors.
As demonstrated by actions this week (see
Liz Sly's Washington Post report
from yesterday) the Arab League Summit changed nothing of importance
for Iraq. This despite all the money spent on it. And several
countries were able to use the summit to send a message. That message
was received loud and clear by Nouri who responded by attacking Qatar
and Saudi Arabia over the weekend -- before al-Hashemi arrived there.
And the attacks continue. Today
Alsumaria reports
that Nouri's State of Law again elevated the rhetoric against Saudi
Arabia and Qatar today as Abbas al-Bayati declared that the press for
both countries was carrying out their governments' attack on Iraq's
government.
AFP reports
that a spokesperson for Tareq al-Hashemi declared today -- as
al-Hashemi has all week -- that he will return to Iraq after he's
concluded his diplomatic mission and "that for Hasemi to remain abroad
was 'the wish of his enemies,' in a clear reference to Maliki." There
is something very comical about Nouri's attitude as the week ends.
It
started with him and his spokespeople blustering and bellowing about
how Qatar would hand al-Hashemi over to Baghdad (they didn't) and how
INTERPOL would show up if needed to remove al-Hashemi from Qatar and
bring him to Baghdad. That was never going to happen as we explained on
Sunday and
Monday
-- it is written into INTERPOL's charter that it does not take part in
political arrests and that is so that INTERPOL will be seen as
impartial. So he demanded Qatar hand the vice president over and then
demanded the same of Saudi Arabia, insisted INTERPOL would return him
and now Nouri's position is that Tareq al-Hashemi should not be allowed
to re-enter the country?
In addition to the
laughs prompted by Nouri's flip-flops, grasp that Nouri's court is
supposed to try al-Hashemi May 3rd. And Nouri's position is that
al-Hashemi can't come back into Iraq?
In Iraq, the political crisis continues and intensifies.
The
March 7, 2010 elections were followed by over 8 months of gridlock
known as Political Stalemate I. Nouri al-Maliki did not want to abide
by the Constitution or the will of the Iraqi people expressed at the
ballot box. He did not want to stop being prime minister. In 2014 (or
2015 the way Nouri drags his feet), this may be an issue again because
although when Iraqis took to the streets in large number protesting
against corruption in his government and more (February 25, 2011), he
swore he would not run for a third term, his spokespeople and attorney
have repeatedly told the press that Nouri is not bound by that and may
decide to run again.
With the White House
backing him for a second term, Nouri knew he didn't have to compromise
and could just stomp his feet in the hopes of getting his way.
In
an attempt to soothe the stubborn child, the political blocs agreed to
end the stalemate by signing off on the US-brokered Erbil Agreement.
That was November 2010. By the end of December 2010, it was obvious
that the only thing Nouri really intended to honor from that agreement
was that he would get a second term as prime minister. For months, the
other political blocs waited and waited for the agreement to be
implemented. It never way. Over the summer last year, the Kurds made
it clear that the country needed to return to the Erbil Agreement.
Iraqiya quickly joined that call, then Moqtada al-Sadr and then
others.
Many
Iraqis -- Sunnis, Shiites and Kurds alike -- fear that the U.S.
withdrawal has given Prime Minister Nouri al Maliki, a conservative
Shiite Islamist, free rein to consolidate power and turn himself into
an intractable strongman.
Those worries were only compounded when
the White House last month named Brett McGurk the new U.S. ambassador
to Baghdad. As adviser to the past three envoys, McGurk had garnered a
reputation among Iraqi political elites as a die-hard Maliki booster
who turns a blind eye to the prime minister's emerging dictatorial
streak.
"They basically sent someone from Maliki's office," one
Sunni politician grumbled privately about the Obama administration's
choice.
In
December of last year, when Nouri went publicly nuts (deploying tanks
to circle the homes of political rivals, for example), Speaker of
Parliament Osama al-Nujaifi and Iraqi President Jalal Talabani began
calling (December 21st) for a national conference to address the
crisis. That was supposed to have taken place yesterday; however, it
was called off at the last minute.
Al Mada notes
that Iraqi President Jalal Talabani is calling for a new date to be set
for a national conference to resolve the ongoing crisis in Iraq and
that
State of Law, as evidenced by the statemetns of Hussein Shahristani, is pleased that the conference was cancelled.
In what Nouri hopes is an isolated move,
Al Mada reports
State of Law MP Jawad Albzona has withdrawn from Nouri's coalition and
stated that he would prefer to be independent which, he believes, will
allow him to better represent Iraqis by distancing himself from
political squabbles and moving towards the needs of the citizens of
Iraq. He is the second State of Law MP to announce a departure since
2010. Since December, he has repeatedly made public statements decrying
the current political crisis and asking for the politicians to work on
issues directly effecting the lives of Iraqis. An issue effecting
Iraq's internally displaced refugees is living among piles of garbage
Al Rafidayn reports.
Currently the United Nations estimates there are 1.3 million displaced
Iraqis within Iraq. On Albzona's departure from State of Law,
Al Rafidayn notes the MP declared he will remain a member of the National Alliance (a larger coalition of Shi'ite political blocs).
Meanwhile
the leader of the Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq (also a member of the
National Alliance), Ammar al-Haskim, has weighed in on two key issues.
Al Mada reports
he declared the poverty program of the last two years a failure, noting
that it has not reduced the rate of poverty in Iraq. He is calling not
only for a new program and strategy but for the budget to reflect a
strong goal to reduce poverty. In regard to the raid Nouri ordered last
week on the Communist Party's newspaper headquarters, al-Hakim stated
that when security forces violate the rights of the people negative
images are reinforced and that the role of the security forces is to
protect freedoms (not attack them). He decried the arrest of 12 people
in the raid on the Communist Party. Last week, Iraqiya leader Ayad
Allawi condemned the raid. From the
March 28th snapshot:
We'll
close by noting the disturbing news of the day and news that wasn't
picked up and front paged but should have been. Nouri al-Maliki is now
going after Iraq's Communist Party. Al Mada reports
that Nouri's security forces stormed the political party's headquarters
and arrested 12 people who were arrested and questioned about protests.
Ali Hussein (Al Mada) notes
the Communist Party has a long history of fighting for Iraq, not
against it. Hussein reports that Nouri's tanks have been sent to
surround the homes of Communist Party members in Baghdad. Those who
paid attention in December will remember that Nouri ordered tanks to
circle the homes of Iraqiya members right before he demanded that
Deputy Prime Minister Saleh al-Mutlaq be stripped of his posts and
ordered the arrest of Vice President Tareq al-Hashemi on charges of
terrorism. Both al-Mutlaq and al-Hashemi are members of Iraqiya as well
as Sunnis. Ali Hussein notes that Nouri also ordered tanks to circle
the homes of Communist Party members last year.
The
Iraq Communist Party Tweeted
last week, "Iraqi Communist Party condemns raid of its newspaper
headquarters by security forces." They state that the raid took place
late in the evening Monday and that their headquarters were ransacked
by federal police who entered claiming that they were doing a sweep of
the area for the Arab League Summit. An old weapon ("piece of junk")
was on the roof and they used this as a pretext to arrest 12 of the
people who were held overnight and only released after they signed
documents -- documents they were forced to sign while blindfolded.
While they were held, the federal police returned to the now empty
headquarters and ransacked the place.
Add a
third political leader to the list. In DC yesterday, Kurdistan
Regional Government President Massoud Barzani was asked if Nouri's
authoritarian ways were reason to be concerned as he consolidated
complete control of the security forces and Barzani responded, "The
new Iraqi army needs to be built on the basis of being the army of the
country, not an army of an individual. So to be an army that belongs to
the people of Iraq and the state of Iraq in accordance with the
Constitution and the laws. And also the Iraqi army should not
interfere in the internal political differences of the country. "
ABC News notes,
"Barzani, who was in Washington to meet with President Obama and Vice
President Joe Biden, said that unless Baghdad resolves simmering
disputes involving its ethnic and political factions, the situation
would be ripe for an autocratic government."
Hurriyet Daily News adds,
"The Obama administration has pressed Kurdish Regional Government (KRG)
leader Masoud Barzani to re-engage with Baghdad amid high tension over
the status of fugitive Iraqi Vice President Tariq al-Hashemi.
Al-Hashemi arrived in Saudi Arabia on April 4 and accused his country's
prime minister of waging a systematic campaign against Sunni Arabs in
Iraq."
Today's Zaman reports:
"Barzani
visited the US to complain about Maliki," said one diplomat on Friday,
speaking on condition of anonymity. Barzani met with President Barack
Obama and with Vice President Joe Biden separately on Wednesday, and
told them that Maliki is consolidating power in a dictatorial way. He
said Obama and Biden reassured him that the United States would remain
committed to cooperation with Kurdistan and committed to helping Iraq
solve its serious internal political problems.
[. . .]
Bilgay
Duman, an expert on Iraq from the Ankara-based Center for Middle
Eastern Strategic Research (ORSAM), stated that Barzani's reception by
high-ranking US officials should be perceived as a warning to Maliki to
abandon his sectarian-based policies in the country. Iraq is suffering
from severe instabilities due to daily clashes between Shiite and Sunni
groups, which escalated after US troops withdrew from the country in
December. The KRG is striving to maintain balanced ties with Iraq's
rival Sunni and Shiite groups as they vie for influence in the country
following the US withdrawal. Turkey is very critical of Maliki, saying
the Shiite prime minister is using the arrest warrant against Hashemi
to sideline Sunni political groups in the administration and hoard
power for dominance of the Shiite bloc.
"The
stance of Arbil and Ankara against Baghdad are very much in line, due
to the fact that both are disturbed by Maliki's dictatorial
government," affirmed Ali Semin, a Middle East expert from the Turkish
think-tank -- the Wise Men Center for Strategic Studies (BİLGESAM). He
added that the US is now trying to forge ties between KRG and Turkey in
order to secure the unity of Iraq.
So that we're all on the same page, the 2005 Iraqi Constitution includes Article 140:
First:
The executive authority shall undertake the necessary steps to complete
the implementation of the requirements of all subparagraphs of Article
58 of the Transitional Administrative Law.
Second:
The responsibility placed upon the executive branch of Iraqi
Transitional Government stipulated in Article 58 of the Transitional
Administrative Law shall extend and continue to the executive authority
elected in accordance with this Constitution, provided that it
accomplishes completely (normalization and census and concludes with a
referendum in Kirkuk and other disputed territories to determine the
will of their citizens), by a date not to exceed the 31st of December
2007.
The census and referendum are to
take place no later than December 31, 2007. Nouri al-Maliki becomes
prime minister in 2006. He took an oath to the Iraqi Constitution. He
never ordered the census or the referendum before the end of 2007. His
first term ended with him unable/unwilling to abide by the Constitution
he took an oath to uphold. There has been no census or referendum. He
is and remains in violation of the Constitution.
With
that understanding, we'll now note what KRG President Massoud Barzani
declared yesterday in DC at the forum put on by the Washington
Institute for Near East Policy on the issue of Kirkuk and Article 140.
President
Massoud Barzani: Article 140 is a Constitutional Article and it needed
a lot of discussions and talks until we have reached this. This is the
best way to solve this problem. It's regarding solving the problems of
the territories that have been detached from Kurdistan Region. In
fact, I do not want to call it "disputed areas" because we do not have
any disputes on that. For us it is very clear for that. But we have
shown upmost flexibility in order to find the legal and the
Constitutional solution for this problem. And in order to pave the way
for the return of these areas, according to the Constitution and the
basis of law and legally to the Kurdistan Region. And we have found
out that there is an effort to evade and run away from this
responsibility for the last six years in implementing this
Constitutional Article. And I want to assure you that implementing
this Constitutional Article is in the interest of Iraq and in the
interest of stability. There are people who think that time would make
us forget about this. They are wrong. Time would not help forget or
solve the problem. These are Kurdish countries, part of Kurdistan and
it has to return to Kurdistan based on the mechanism that has been
stipulated in the Constitution. And at the end of the day, as the
Constitution stipulates, it's going back to what the people want to
determine. So there is a referendum for the people of these areas and
they will decide. If the people decide to joing Kurdistan Region,
they're welcome and if the people decide not to, at that time, we will
look at any responsibility on our shoulders so people would be held
responsible for their own decisions.
Barzani
is not calling for any additional steps to resolving the issue of
Kirkuk, he is only asking that what was already agreed to and written
into the Constitution be followed. In addition to taking questions,
Barzani delivered a speech at the forum and you can see
yesterday's snapshot for that.
President
Massoud Barzani: As far as the second part of your question, the Erbil
Agreement. In fact, the agreement was not only for the sake of forming
the government and forming the three presidencies -- the presidency,
the Speakership of Parliament and premier. In fact, it was a package
-- a package that included a number of essential items. First, to put
in place a general partnership in the country. Second, commitment to
the Constitution and its implementation, the issue of fedarlism, the
return of balance of power and especially in all the state
institutions,the establishment in [. . .] mainly in the armed forces
and the security forces, the hydrocarbons law, the Article 140 of the
Constitution, the status of the pesh merga. These were all part of the
package that had been there. Had this Erbil Agreement been
implemented, we would not have faced the situation that we are in
today. Therefore, if we do not implement the Erbil Agreement then
there would certainly be problems in Iraq.
Again,
the political crisis did not start over the accusations Nouri hurled at
Saleq al-Mutlaq and Tareq al-Hashemi. The failure to follow the Erbil
Agreement -- the document ending Political Stalemate I -- is what
caused the current crisis -- a crisis that has now lasted over a year
and four months.
Turning to the United States, yesterday
Caitlin Duffy (Forbes) reported
of Home Depot, "The home improvement retailer's shares are once again
hitting fresh multi-year highs, with the stock up 1.4% on the day at
$50.56 as of 12:35 p.m. in New York trade. Call activity on Home Depot
suggests at least one strategist is gearing up for the bullish momentum
to continue in the near term." But how long will the outlook remain
bullish as word leaks out about a new lawsuit? The US Justice Dept
issued the following yesterday:
WASHINGTON
-- The Justice Department announced today the filing of a complaint in
U.S. District Court in Arizona against Home Depot U.S.A. Inc. for
violating the employment rights of California Army National Guard
soldier Brian Bailey under the Uniformed Services Employment and
Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 (USERRA).
The
department's complaint alleges that Home Depot willfully violated
USERRA by terminating Bailey's employment because of his military
service obligations. Bailey, an Iraq War veteran, worked at a Home
Depot store in Flagstaff, Ariz., as a department supervisor while at
the same time serving in the California Army National Guard. Throughout
his employment with Home Depot, Bailey took periodic leave from work to
fulfill his military obligations with the National Guard. According to
the Justice Department's complaint, Bailey was removed from his
position as a department supervisor after Home Depot management
officials at the Flagstaff store openly expressed their displeasure
with his periodic absences from work due to his military obligations
and further indicated their desire to remove him from his position
because of those absences.
Bailey
initially filed a complaint with the Labor Department's Veterans'
Employment and Training Service, which investigated the matter,
determined that the complaint had merit and referred the matter to the
Justice Department. The Justice Department's Civil Rights Division
subsequently decided to represent Bailey in this matter and filed this
lawsuit on his behalf.
USERRA
prohibits employers from discriminating against National Guard
soldiers, such as Bailey, with respect to employment opportunities
based on their past, current or future uniformed service obligations.
Under USERRA, it is unlawful for an employer to terminate an employee
because he has to miss work due to military obligations.
Among
other things, the suit seeks compensation for Bailey's lost wages and
benefits, liquidated damages and reinstatement of Bailey's employment
with Home Depot.
"The
men and women who wear our nation's uniform need to know that they do
not have to sacrifice their job at home in order to serve our country,"
said Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights
Division. "The Civil Rights Division is committed to aggressive
enforcement of USERRA to protect the rights of those who, through their
bravery and sacrifice, secure the rights of all Americans."
"The
National Guard is composed primarily of civilian men and women who
serve their country, state and community on a part-time basis," said
Acting U.S. Attorney Ann Birmingham Scheel. "National Guard members,
and their employers, should know that we will employ all of USERRA's
tools to protect the employment rights of those in uniform while they
sacrifice time away from their families and jobs for training and
active duty."
This
case is being handled by the Employment Litigation Section of the
Justice Department's Civil Rights Division and the U.S. Attorney's
Office for the District of Arizona.
Additional information about USERRA can be found on the Justice Department websites www.usdoj.gov/crt/emp and www.servicemembers.gov, as well as the Labor Department website www.dol.gov/vets/programs/userra/main.htm.
12-434
Civil Rights Division
