In Iraq, Nuri Al Maliki has finally wisely decided to withdraw his nomination as prime minister for another term. He will remain until the new PM, Dr. Haider Al Abadi, is voted on by Parliament and sworn in. This is a healthy development for a country with very unhealthy politics: an Arab head of government giving up his job peacefully, forced to do so through the political process. Al-Maliki’s departure, especially the mechanism of it, can be good for the future of democracy in Iraq. That depends on the kind of unifying leader Al Abadi turns out to be.
The culture of term limits and peaceful transition of power is not known or respected in the Arab world. It is now done peacefully in only three Arab states: Lebanon, Tunisia, and Iraq. Let’s hope that others will follow suit. From Bahrain to Egypt and Libya and Algeria. Who knows, maybe some day Saudi Arabia and Qatar and Syria and others will have term limits on their leaders, preferably sometime before hell freezes over. Term limits to be determined by a constitution, not by death or by an ambitious military officer staging a coup d’etat (as in Egypt) or by a not-so-brotherly prince staging a palace coup (as in Saudi Arabia and the UAE).
It is an understatement to say that Iraq has serious problems. Much of these problems have been aided and worsened by corrupt Iraqis from opposing political sides. Things look grim even with Al Maliki gone: sectarian passions have been let loose and it will not be easy calm them.
Yet some of the problems, including the new violent sectarianism, were encouraged and helped along by neighbors who had sought to reverse history back to the days of clan and tribal dictatorship and to use Iraq as a battlefield for their rivalries and their sectarian prejudices. In so doing, they have allowed killer Jihadis easy blood money and easy access to the borders of Iraq, hence to the civilian populations of Iraq who get slaughtered in their towns and cities by uninvited foreign Wahhabi terrorists.
Cheers
Mohammed Haider Ghuloum