BAGHDAD, 21 March 2008 — The top UN official in Iraq, Staffan de Mistura, warned Iraqi leaders yesterday that time was running out for them to resolve differences hampering political progress.
“They should have more dialogue among themselves because time is short,” De Mistura told AFP in an interview.
“We are all here together to work with the Iraqis but they should know, and they know but we should remind them today that the time is short for getting their own acts together as well.” Speaking on the fifth anniversary of the start of the war that toppled the regime of Saddam Hussein, De Mistura said 2008 would be a “key” year for the battered country.
“It is a key day in Iraq today. But this is a key year for Iraq more than just a day. We feel this is the year in which many courageous decisions have to be taken to show that Iraqis can go forward,” said the UN secretary-general’s representative in Iraq.
De Mistura said the recent fall in violence had offered the breathing space required for Iraqis to pass key legislation that could help end the bitter sectarian conflict which has killed tens of thousands of people.
He particularly cited the delay in passing the oil law on the distribution of the country’s vast oil wealth. “The political process is not taking enough opportunity from that window of opportunity in order to make sure that the oil law and other laws move forward,” De Mistura said.
Iraq’s PM Urges Caution
in Choosing Officials
Iraq’s prime minister yesterday welcomed the new opportunities offered by new provincial elections, which are viewed by many as critical to easing sectarian rifts that have divided the country.
But Prime Minister Nouri Al-Maliki, speaking at a cultural festival in southern Iraq, said Iraqis should be careful to choose the right people to lead the country’s 18 provinces.
His caution came a day after Iraq’s presidential council, under strong US pressure, signed off on a measure paving the way for provincial elections this fall. The elections would open the door to greater Sunni representation in regional administrations as well rival Shiite factions.
“Reconstruction and the building of services and culture cannot be achieved in the shadow of economic corruption, manipulation and the placement of dishonest people in sensitive places,” the Iraqi leader said. “These things must be reviewed before the provincial elections.” The measure approved Wednesday calls for a new local vote to be held by Oct. 1, although many details must still be worked out before the elections can be formally scheduled.
“Now we have enough time to think about who can serve the country and who cannot, who adopts the right thoughts and who adopts destructive thoughts,” Al-Maliki said during his speech in Hillah, the predominantly Shiite capital of Babil province. “We have to express our will.”
Many Sunnis boycotted the last election for provincial officials in January 2005, enabling Shiites and Kurds to win a disproportionate share of power even in areas with substantial Sunni populations.
