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04 January 2005

Iraqis Take Charge of Democratic Electoral Process

Hundreds of groups organize to participate in political process

By David Shelby
Washington File Staff Writer

Washington – The preparations for the January 30 Iraqi legislative elections differ from early democratic experiences in other transitional countries in that the process in Iraq is entirely managed and controlled by Iraqi officials, according to National Democratic Institute (NDI) President Kenneth Wollack.

“This is an election that is not being run by the United Nations, it's not being run by the OSCE.  It's unlike Cambodia, unlike Bosnia, unlike East Timor, unlike Mozambique.  This is an election that is being run by Iraqi election authorities with some technical advice from the international community,” Wollack told reporters at a January 3 briefing in Washington.

NDI and its sister organization, the International Republican Institute (IRI), are two of the lead organizations providing technical advice and training to Iraqi elections officials, political parties and civic organizations.

NDI and IRI conduct seminars and training exercises drawing on the experience and expertise of political and civic leaders from countries that have recently undergone transitions to democracy in order to encourage an informed discussion about the creation of democratic institutions.

“What all this effort has been is to try to share these international experiences and expertise, but ultimately it will be Iraqis that run it, the Iraqis that will participate in it and the Iraqis who will guarantee the integrity of the process, and it will be the Iraqis who will judge the legitimacy of the institutions that emerge from the elections,” Wollack said.

Both Wollack and IRI Executive Vice President Judy Van Rest commented on the importance of broad participation in the upcoming elections, saying that the involvement of numerous political parties and civic organizations gives the people a sense of ownership of the political process and a stake in the government.

Wollack said the purpose of NDI and IRI is not to provide instructions on how a democracy should work but rather to create forums for people to share their experiences in organizing groups within a democratic system.

“We do very little promoting of democracy, but rather, supporting those in other countries who are trying to make a transition to more open, pluralistic political systems,” he said.

NDI and IRI provide training in political party organization, coalition building, campaigning, voter education and communication with constituents.

Both Wollack and Van Rest said that the purpose of their work is not to support a single election but to support the creation of a long-term political process.

“We have no interest in the outcome of this election.  Those are issues that the Iraqi people must decide.  We are interested in a process and interested in the long-term development -- both economic and political -- of Iraq,” Wollack said.

Van Rest noted that more than 200 political parties and hundreds of civic organizations have been formed in Iraq, and Wollack said that these groups would be active in the Iraqi political process long after the January 30 elections.  He said it is important for them to learn organization, communication and leadership skills.

“That's one wonderful thing about elections.  It's not only electing your leaders, but it's also about providing an environment in which people can participate and organize,” he said.

He said that with the lifting of the dictatorship in Iraq, there has been a proliferation of political parties, civic organizations and ideas, and he added that this has been an encouraging development.

“Many people said, well, the Iraqis are going to search for a strongman,” he said, but he said that the proliferation of these groups has demonstrated “that when given an opportunity the Iraqis want to have the same thing that everyone else wants to have around the world -- they want a pluralistic political process.”

(The Washington File is a product of the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)

This page printed from: http://usinfo.state.gov/xarchives/display.html?p=washfile-english&y=2005&m=January&x=20050104162845ndyblehs0.3789942&t=livefeeds/wf-latest.html