In focus:

Resolution for Iraq

By Galal Nassar

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The horrors of the US-UK occupation of Iraq are hardly a secret. And yet the international community, either through the UN or the International Criminal Court, is failing to take appropriate action. Occupation troops involved in serious crimes get routinely acquitted or given lenient sentences in US courts. The practice started with Abu Ghraib and is continuing with the atrocities in Haditha and other Iraqi towns. This situation is intolerable. International action is needed. Yet double-dealing continues.

The Bush administration went out of its way to get the UN Security Council to issue Resolution 1559 to pressure Syria to pull out of Lebanon and respect its independence. A few days ago, the Security Council issued Resolution 1680 that carries the same message. Regardless of the content and ramifications of these two resolutions, they have made it clear that international standards are being applied selectively. To end that sad situation, I suggest that the international community issue a similar resolution concerning a country not far from Lebanon: Iraq.

You don't need to work hard to draft a resolution about Iraq. All you need to do is reword resolutions 1559 and 1680, for the similarities between Lebanon and Iraq are obvious. I have reworked resolution 1559 to make it applicable to Iraq, and it reads as follows:

The Security Council,

Recalling the UN Charter, in particular Article 4 of Chapter 2, which calls on all members of the UN to refrain from using or threatening to use violence against the sovereignty of any state or its territorial integrity, or in any manner that conflicts with UN goals,

Reiterating its strong support for the territorial integrity, sovereignty and political independence of the Republic of Iraq within its internationally territorially recognised borders,

Noting the determination of Iraqis to ensure the withdrawal of all non-Iraqi forces from Iraq,

Noting the falsehood of the pretexts given to wage war on Iraq, including the claim that Iraq possessed weapons of mass destruction and was capable of using them, posing an imminent threat to international peace and security,

Noting that the UN secretary-general deems that the war on Iraq took place outside the realm of international legality,

Affirming its desire to restore calm, stability and territorial integrity to Iraq and provide the appropriate circumstances and climate necessary for the establishment of a democratic parliamentary system allowing Iraqis to participate in governing themselves,

Taking into account the historic role and continued influence of Iraq in the region and in the international community as a member of the League of Nations and founding member of both the UN and the Arab League,

1. Calls for the strict respect of the sovereignty, territorial integrity, unity and political independence of Iraq under the sole and exclusive authority of a Government of Iraq elected and deemed legitimate by a majority of Iraqis;

2. Calls upon all remaining foreign forces to withdraw from Iraq;

3. Calls for the disbanding and disarmament of all Iraqi and non-Iraqi militias;

4. Supports the extension of the control of a legitimate Government of Iraq over all Iraqi territory;

5. Declares its support for a free and fair electoral process to be conducted according to Iraqi constitutional rules devised without foreign interference or influence;

6. Calls on all parties concerned to cooperate fully and urgently with the Security Council for the full implementation of this and all relevant resolutions concerning the restoration of the territorial integrity, full sovereignty, and political independence of Iraq;

7. Requests that the secretary general report to the Council within 30 days on the implementation by the parties of this resolution and decides to remain actively seized of this matter.

Should the UN Security Council issue such a resolution, implementation is likely to run into obstacles. The Bush administration and Prime Minister Tony Blair would oppose it saying it would lead to further disturbances in Iraq. Bush and Blair would once again claim that their troops were sent to Iraq not to occupy it but to liberate it. The Iraqi government, on the other hand, would oppose implementation, saying that Iraqi forces are not ready and cannot restore order to the country and prevent neighbouring countries (ie Turkey or Iran) from interfering in Iraqi affairs without the help of occupying forces. Some Iraqi leaders would refuse to disband their militia saying there is a difference between militia that fought prior dictatorship and those that appeared on the scene recently.

Kurdish leaders would resist the establishment of an Iraqi government with authority across the country (in the manner prescribed in resolution 1559 for Lebanon) saying that this conflicts with the principle of federalism. The truth of the matter is that the Kurds are not defending federalism, but their desire to be independent in everything; a policy that conflicts with the territorial integrity of Iraq, the same principle Bush wants to defend in Lebanon.

The above obstacles are not, however, the reason the UN Security Council is not issuing such a resolution on Iraq. The real reason is that the US has hijacked international decision making, is using international resolutions to further its own interests, and is turning international law and legitimacy into political cover. This is why the international community will not treat Iraq in the same way it is treating Lebanon.