governmentality

Early Voting Begins in Iraq

Iran's FM Responds to Clinton's Dictatorship Comment

Iran didn't like Hillary Clinton's military dictatorship comments from yesterday one bit. And, today, the Foreign Minister fired back.

"They themselves are involved in a sort of military dictatorship and have practically ignored the realities and the truths in the region," Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki said, according to ISNA news agency, as he held talks with Turkish Foreign Minister over Iran's nuclear deadlock.

"America has a wrong attitude towards the issues in the Middle East and it is the continuation of their past wrong policies," he said.

Mottaki doesn't only think the U.S. is hypocritical, he doesn't appreciate Clinton stirring up problems in the neighborhood.

"We are sorry for Mrs Clinton...for trying to divert public opinion in the region towards unreal and untruthful matters," Mottaki said.

Read the full report at al-Arabiya.

Iraqi Parliament Debates Banned Election Candidates

Last month, I posted (here and here) about a controversial decision over whether or not more than 500 candidates linked to Saddam Hussein should be allowed to run in next month's elections.

Yesterday, the Iraqi parliament was supposed have an emergency session to debate the decision, but the speaker called off the session due to a necessary judicial report. Others suggest the delay was due to the fact that only 75 of the 275 MPs were present. 

From al-Arabiya:

There were demonstrations on Sunday against the overturn of the ban in Baghdad and the dominant Shiite cities of Basra and Najaf.

Several hundred protesters congregated outside Baghdad provincial government headquarters, carrying banners that read "No to the return of criminal Baathists," and "No Baathists or Saddam."

Read the full report here.

Iraqi IT Interns Coming to the U.S.

Yesterday, the State Department announced the beginning of their new Information Technology internship exchange program for Iraqis. The program, originally announced in October, brings six interns to work in U.S. companies for 12 weeks.

Among the leading companies participating in the pilot program are AT&T, Howcast, Mercy Corps, Engine Yard and Blue State Digital. During the 12-week internship program, the interns will meet with government officials, visit such leading universities as the University of California-Berkeley, Stanford University, the University of Maryland and develop hands-on experience at leading companies such as Google and Twitter.

I'm assuming these internships are geared toward young executive types. And it sounds like a program with good access to industry leaders, but will six interns at a time be enough to have an impact in Iraq?

What do you guys think?

Illegal Arms for Iran Traced to New Zealand Company

Iraqi President Questions Decision to Ban 500+ Candidates

Last week I posted about Iraq's electoral commission banning more than 500 candidates from running in their March 7 election.

Today, Iraqi President Jalal Talabani is questioning the legality of the commission's decision, according to al-Arabiya.

"We asked in an official letter to judge Madhat al-Mahmoud (president of the Iraqi Supreme Court) that he rule on the legality of the integrity and accountability committee," Talabani told reporters in Baghdad.

"Our question is: 'Is the organization that took this decision legal?'"

Read the full report here.

Syria to Iraq: Take Care of Your Refugees

Syria's Foreign Minister Fisal Mekdad doesn't understand why, if only 50,000 of 1.5 million Iraqi refugees in Syria have returned to Iraq that Iraq doesn't step up on taking financial care of the ones who remain.

From al-Arabiya:

"We find it strange that the Iraqi government is not doing its duty and is exercising every method to shy away from taking responsibility toward its nationals," Mekdad said.

Iraq has invited refugees back, but offered only a few million of the $750 million pledged by governments worldwide last year to help the refugees. More than $350 million came from the United States.

[...]

"Ever since the Iraqi refugees began arriving in Syria in 2003, the Iraqi government, despite having the means, only gave $15 million to help its citizens in Syria," Mekdad added.

Read the full report here.

Iraqi Draft Law Attempts to Keep Doctors from Fleeing

A new draft law in Iraq is attempting to keep doctors in Iraq, by allowing them to carry weapons for self-defense and putting in place a law that would over-turn a tribal tradition where the family of a patient who dies while in a doctor's care demands payment.

Doctors have been fleeing at an increasingly high rate since 2003 due to a their position in Iraqi society making them prime targets and the simultaneous lack of security.

The draft law foresees a possible prison sentence of three years or a fine of no less than 10 million Iraqi dinars (around $8,000) against anyone who demands a tribal settlement from a doctor.

"The draft law is a gesture from the Iraqi government for doctors and specialists ... to protect them from attacks and the tribal demands resulting from their medical work," government spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh said in a statement.

Read the full Reuters report here.

Iraq Bans Another 500 From Running in March Election

Iraq's electoral commission banned 500 politicians and parties from running in the March 7 election. Democracies are built slowly, but with a list this long, it's hard to imagine even building political trust.

From AFP:

"We decided this afternoon to exclude around 500 names and political entities from the list of candidates," said Hamdia Husseini, a senior official with the Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC).

Husseini did not specifically mention the Baath party, but said the excluded candidates "fell under the law of the committee of justice and integrity" which bars Saddam loyalists from taking part in elections.

She said those who had been barred had three days to appeal the decision, during which time they could also present an alternative list of names to contest the March 7 vote.

Read the full story here.

Blackwater Weapons Seized in Iraq?

I'm not sure how I missed this over the weekend, but apparently Iraqi police raided private military contractor compounds and seized control of guns, ammunition and other military equipment, according to a Reuters report.

It's not yet clear which contractors were on the receiving end, but Iraqi security insists that they were not reacting to the Blackwater court decision and that they were focusing on companies who are not permitted to operate in Iraq legally.

"All those companies with their work permits expired are not allowed to move one meter inside Baghdad, or own one piece of weaponry," Baghdad security spokesman Qassim al-Moussawi said.

He would not reveal how many unlicensed contractors were on the target list, or their names.

Authorities raided the headquarters of a foreign security contractor, whose name could not be immediately confirmed, on Friday night and confiscated 20,000 rounds of ammunition and more than 300 armored shields.

In another location they found 400 rifles, helmets, radio devices and more than 35 vehicles believed to belong to the same company, officials said. No one was arrested.

Read the full report here.

And I'll contact Jeremy Scahill and see if he has any further reports to share.