If Iraq were not in the grip of such terrible violence, the country’s newly elected politicians could have time to agree on a national unity government. However by the same token, were it not for the insurgency, a government of national unity would probably not be on the cards. Iraqis must now see that the political process can work, while bombs and bloodshed advance no cause but that of evil.
Time therefore is not on the side of Iraq’s new legislators. The sooner they can form a government embracing all interest groups, the sooner they can prove the country can seize its own destiny by peaceful means. The leading Sunni group in the new Parliament, the Iraqi Accordance Front has, however, complained the election vote was rigged. They will not start talking about joining a national unity government until the United Nations has reviewed the election results. Very limited fraud did indeed take place as the Election Commission has admitted. Nevertheless whatever adjustments may be necessary, no one really believes that they will affect the overall result, in which the Shiite-dominated United Iraqi Alliance did better than expected, not least in Baghdad. Supporters of both the IAF and the secular Iraq National List of former Prime Minister Iyad Allawi originally took to the streets demanding the election be rerun. Happily, leaders of both groupings have backed away from the idea, insisting only that the UN “review” the results, which it is preparing to do.
However, even this brief delay is unwelcome. It must be hoped that whatever their public pronouncements, the IAF and INL leaderships are already involved in unofficial negotiations on the shape of the national unity government. It took nearly four months from this January’s election for a Transitional National Assembly before an administration was formed. Such an inordinate delay cannot be permitted again. The good news is that Iraqi politicians from all communities have already discovered that they can work together, both in government and in drafting the country’s new constitution. The only way to defeat the violent forces that are trying to pull the country apart is to once again manifest an effective unity of purpose.
Sunni politicians should also bear in mind that if they delay the formation of a broad-based government, they would be endangering the very principle they most value: The country’s unity. One of the early duties of the new legislature will be to make promised amendments to the constitution to address Sunni fears over a breakup on communal lines. The longer the political process is allowed to drift, the stronger will be the push, by Shiite militias in particular, to take power into their own hands. The militias’ infiltration of the police during the interim government demonstrates the need for the early emergence of a coherent and efficient government. It is unrealistic to hope that any political bloc will cut absolutely the deal it wants. What is real, however, is the immense danger of failing to form a working administration as quickly as possible.
