- (BAGHDAD) - Ten days after taking office, Prime Minister
Iyad Allawi is poised to give himself sweeping powers to declare martial
law in parts of Iraq. Many Iraqis may welcome the new emergency law as
a means to combat the insurgency and curb crime. But the Iraqi government
has repeatedly postponed its unveiling, because of US concerns that it
grants Mr. Allawi too much power.
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- According to a draft copy of the law, Iraq's interim
prime minister will be able to close off entire towns and cities, impose
curfews, restrict communications, and limit travel in and out.
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- Once signed by Iraqi leaders, the emergency law would
give Allawi power to declare martial law for a set period of time, either
in specific areas or nationwide. To impose martial law in a specific area,
Allawi would have to get approval from his 32-member cabinet. To declare
it nationwide, he also needs approval from the Iraqi president and two
vice presidents.
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- There's no mention of the cabinet or the president having
the ability rescind the law.
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- If martial law is declared, according to this draft,
Allawi would have the power to:
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- * Take command over all police, intelligence, army, and
other security forces in that area.
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- * Create special civilian courts for people accused of
major crimes - anything from murder, rape, and kidnapping to destroying
government property - if the criminal courts are swamped.
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- * Appoint civilian or military administrators in areas
under martial rule.
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- * Release any defendant from custody, if Allawi deems
it necessary for reasons of security.
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- * Monitor and restrict mail, telegrams, and wireless
communications in affected areas.
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- * Freeze the assets of anybody accused of crimes that
undermine national security, as well as those who are accused of providing
shelter, funding, and assistance to suspected insurgents.
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- The Law for Defense of National Safety, states that it
will only be used "in case of a grave threat to the country's internal
or external security, or in case of an armed action that threatens the
government's stability." The law, along with another measure offering
a general amnesty for insurgents, was supposed to be announced Monday.
Moments before the press conference began, Iraqi officials postponed it.
But officials say they expect it to be unveiled Wednesday.
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- To become law, the draft will have to be signed by Allawi,
Iraqi President Ghazi al-Yawer, two vice presidents, the deputy prime minister,
and all ministers. They are expected to sign it despite objections by some
that it grants Allawi too much power.
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- In Iraq, where kidnappings, assassinations, and robbery
are now routine, many Iraqis have become hungry for strict law and order.
"We hope there will be martial law," says Evan Esho, a Baghdad
resident. "If the police and the security hang these criminals - five
of them, every day, in the street - then things will get better.
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- "It's not about human rights," adds Mr. Esho,
who describes himself as an "almost-engineer" (he confesses he
recently flunked his final exams). "We all believe in freedom. But
we want the government to rule this country with an iron hand."
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- Fueling such sentiments are the almost daily attacks,
often on Iraqis. A car bomb exploded Tuesday in a town northeast of Baghdad,
killing 13 people who were attending a wake for the victims of a previous
attack, the Associated Press reported.
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- But other Iraqis reject the idea of martial law, seeing
it as an extension of the US-led occupation and a reprise of Saddam Hussein's
regime. "If there is martial law, there will be arbitrary searches
and arrests," says Abu Ghayeb al-Kubaisi, a chicken farmer. "They
will use the excuse of fighting terrorism or national security. If someone
has an enemy, he will use that as a pretext for getting this person arrested."
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- Mr. Kubaisi had just spent three hours at a checkpoint
on Baghdad's outskirts. A resident of Ramadi - a prime candidate for martial
law - he described baking in the 120-degree sun while Iraqi troops held
him at the checkpoint. "I think they took them to Egypt and Israel
to teach them Israeli methods," he says with disgust. (Egypt has been
under emergency law since 1981).
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- Indeed, in many Arab countries, emergency laws, once
declared, have dragged on for years or decades. "Emergency rule is
often the Achilles heel of Arab constitutional systems," says Nathan
Brown, an expert on Arab legal systems at George Washington University
in Washington. "In many countries, emergency rule becomes a permanent
state that allows rulers to bypass the constitutional order completely."
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- In Iraq, say some analysts, emergency law is particularly
risky now. The interim government wields a shaky authority. And with the
country's national assembly not yet convened, there is no legislative body
to act as a check on the executive branch.
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- "There is no parliament yet, so there is virtually
no possibility of oversight of the use of emergency powers," says
Professor Brown. "Even where oversight exists in theory, the weakness
of constitutional institutions generally means oversight in practice is
quite weak. In Iraq, it seems to be totally absent."
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- The new amnesty law would offer a full pardon to insurgents,
including those who have participated in attacks against US troops, provided
they were not involved in "murder and rape of Iraqis." The draft
says nothing about the murder of foreigners.
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- (c) Copyright 2004 The Christian Science Monitor. All
rights reserved.
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- http://www.csmonitor.com/2004/0707/p01s04-woiq.html
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