The Guardian 11 May, 2005
Delay in forming
Iraqi government criticised
The Iraqi Communist Party, in a statement issued in late April, is critical of the delay in
forming the transitional government for Iraq and the negative impact it is having on the
situation.
"It has given rise to disappointment and bitterness among the people who went to the elections
on January 30 and looked forward to a secure life and stability, an improvement in their living
conditions, alleviating their suffering and achieving progress in the face of the enemies of
democracy, the supporters of the former dictatorial regime and the dark forces allied with them
who want to drag the country back to the nightmare of dictatorship", says the
statement.
The statement says that Iraq continues to face two contradictions: with the occupation forces,
on one hand, and the anti-people and anti-democratic forces, on the other hand.
Two years after the fall of Saddam's regime, Iraq is still seeking an alternative, a national
democratic government that aspires to a democratic, federal, pluralistic alternative with state
institutions based on justice and the rule of law.
"The struggle is currently taking place between competing forces and groups manifested in
sectarian-nationalist polarisation and lack of political and election awareness. This struggle is
about Iraq's political future. It is taking place under an unstable balance of forces caused by the
lack of participation of broad sections of the population in the elections due to the deteriorating
security situation in some areas and the refusal by some forces to take part. This indicates a
potential re-alignment of forces in the forthcoming phase of the political process", says the
statement.
"Increasing numbers of the electorate now realise that the bickering between the winners is over
the distribution of positions and cabinet posts, [who are] dividing up the positions along
sectarian-nationalist lines.
This tendency has dominated the process of forming the government, along with tendencies to
monopolise political power, despite repeated declarations claiming support for "a national unity
government". Political and social formations are meanwhile deliberately ignored.
"As a result, forces of terror, that had received a severe blow in the elections on January 30,
were given a boost".
In the face of the continuing stalemate in forming the government, the ICP Central Committee
"called for speeding up the formation of a government that would comply with the aspirations of
millions of Iraqis who defied terror and went to the ballot boxes, expressing their desire to get rid
of the legacy of dictatorship and occupation and to live in security and peace, in a prosperous
democratic Iraq".