How the De-Ba'athification Law Will Bolster Iraqi Reconciliation

Many critics vociferously protested the massive disbanding of the Iraqi Army after the ousting of the Ba'ath Party, arguing that the jobless masses with martial experience will now turn to the insurgency in order to make ends meet. For some time, until the brutal campaign of terror waged by Abu Musab al-Zarqawi threw the nation into chaos, the Ba'ath Party and its allies in the Fedayeen Sadaam were among the chief perpetrators of violence in the country - and even with the recent, large security gains through the Baghdad Security Plan, there has been a general consensus that "peace" in the country will never be attained without a form of reconciliation between the Sunnis and Shi'ites whose sectarian violence nearly transformed into civil war in 2006.

An answer to the question of reconciliation came in the 2007 "Accountability and Justice Law", with a specific amendment on October 3rd passed by the Iraqi Council of Representatives to the Unified Retirement Law. Specifically, it allows former civil servants to combine years of public service with those while in the private sector towards their pensions. The Accountability and Justice Law, which was introduced by the Iraqi Council of Representatives, is a key step in ending the violence as it removes incentives from former Ba'ath Party officials and military commanders to join insurgencies, promising pensions and private sector jobs for those who were once in Saddam's military or service.

Some Sunnis protested the term "De-Ba'athification", however in accordance with Article 135 of the Iraqi Constitution, which states:

"First: The High Commission for De-Ba'athification shall continue its functions as an independent commission, in coordination with the judicial authority and the executive institutions within the framework of the laws regulating its functions. The Commission shall be attached to the Council of Representatives," the terminology remains.

The process of assembling this law was charged to the aforementioned High Commission for De-Ba'athification, which Article 135 also states can be dissolved by the Iraqi Council of Representatives once the work is complete by a majority vote.

With laws on the books that currently bar all former Ba'ath party members, including members of the Army, from returning to any form of government or private sector work, many reason that there is little incentive to not battle the Americans - however, an influx of jobs and financial benefits await should the law successfully pass, which has already gone over its first and second readings.

Nevertheless, after generations of terror with the ousting of the Heshamite kings, there is still a great deal of reluctance to allow many of Saddam Hussein's former instruments of violence to return, therefore the law would effectively bar 30,000 former Ba'ath party members from receiving any form of retirement benefits.

The law would act as a solid display of reconciliation between Sunnis and Shi'ites, a massive political milestone amid the many security milestones achieved by American forces in the wake of the Baghdad Security Plan, or "troop surge". However, national reconciliation, such as through this bill, has been noted as much slower than what is referred to as "bottom-up" reconciliation, which the Pentagon reports is so far moving at a much quicker pace, especially in the Sunni and now Shi'ite Awakening Councils.

Sources:

-Measuring Stability and Security in Iraq December 2007 Report to Congress
-Accountability and Justice Law - Iraq Updates
-Iraqi Constitution