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Arab League Deputy, Iraqi Figures Discuss Reconciliation Conference

Posted on: Friday, 4 November 2005, 06:00 CST

Arab League Secretary-General Amr Musa's visit to Baghdad and the Arab League's initiative to hold an Iraqi national accord conference in Cairo in the middle of next month was discussed on .

Al-Jazeera TV's "More than one opinion" programme broadcast on 28 October. The guests, are Supreme Council of the Islamic Revolution in Iraq (SCIRI) member Dr Baha al-Wakil, in the London studio; and Association of Muslim Scholars (AMS) in Iraq official in charge of information Dr Muthanna al-Dari, in the Doha studio, via satellite. The programme was broadcast live from London and was presented by Sami Haddad.

"Sudden move"

Haddad said that the first part of the episode would be devoted to an interview with Arab League Assistant Secretary-General Ahmad Bin-Hilli, from Cairo via satellite. Haddad asked Bin-Hilli about Musa's recent visit to Iraq and why there had been "this sudden move by the Arab League more than two years after the US invasion of Iraq" and after the Arab League had been kept away from Iraq for that long. Bin-Hilli said: "I do agree with you that the Arab League has been kept away or has been absent."

He went on: "The Arab League was the body that embraced the Iraqi Interim Governing Council immediately after it was established. The Arab League gave the council the seat that Iraq had been occupying at the Arab League, and this helped Iraq regain its seat at the United Nations and the other organizations in which Iraq had been a member. This is one point. Another point is that the Arab League secretary-general tasked a team to visit Iraq in December 2003 and I had the honour to head this delegation for a 13-day visit. We submitted a comprehensive report on the situation in Iraq, both in northern or southern Iraq, after meeting with all the political forces, religious authorities and tribal heads. The secretary- general had also proposed the main elements of the initiative on reconciliation or accord at the conference that was attended by all the Iraqis in December 2004, meaning the Sharm al-Shaykh conference that was devoted to Iraq. This initiative, if you remember, was made up of six basic elements, including the convocation of the forthcoming conference. Also, Iraq has always had a place in the Arab League resolutions, whether at summit or ministerial level. All the reports that the Arab League secretary-general usually submits to the summits and the foreign ministers' meetings have always contained segments on the Iraqi developments."

"Asked to keep silent?"

Haddad asked Bin-Hilli whether the Arab League was intentionally kept away from Iraq and was asked to keep silent, as former Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmad Mahir recently said in Al-Sharq al-Awsat magazine. Bin-Hilli replied: "We cannot say there was a ban imposed on the Arab League. However, one might say that the elements and conditions for a visit by the Arab League secretary-general and for the submission of this initiative in Iraq itself might not have all been available." Bin-Hilli added: "As you know, the Arab foreign ministers met last September. They formed a committee of eight countries and the Arab League secretary-general. These countries are the Arab countries that are Iraq's neighbours, as well as Algeria because it is the current president of the summit, Bahrain because it is the president of the Gulf Cooperation Council, and Egypt given that it is the headquarters of the Arab League. This committee met at ministerial level on 2 October and tasked the Arab League secretary-general to go to Iraq with an Arab initiative. This means that the secretary-general left for Iraq in the name of all the Arab countries to present this initiative on convening a national Iraqi conference for accord and dialogue under the umbrella of the Arab League and he submitted several elements of this initiative. Now and after the secretary-general's visit, we are in the process of preparing for a preparatory meeting. This meeting is supposed to be held at the Arab League seat before the end of next November."

"Fear of Iranian influence?"

Haddad asked Bin-Hilli whether the Arab League's intervention in Iraq now had been triggered by the fear of Iranian influence in Iraq, as the United States and Britain, as well as Saudi Arabia, have stated. Bin-Hilli replied: "First of all, this initiative targets all the Iraqis without exception and without excluding any side, in order to place them under the umbrella of the Arab League and have them hold a dialogue and agree on the common denominators among all the sects and colours of the Iraqi people. This initiative does not target any country in the region or elsewhere. On the contrary, we seek support and backing from the countries in the region, including Iran, because we want the countries in the region to back this initiative."

Haddad said that many Arabs believed that the Arab League had placed itself at the service of the United States and Britain to confront any future Iranian influence in Iraq and that this was why the Arab League acted now and submitted its initiative. Bin-Hilli replied: "First of all, the Arab agenda is not necessarily that of any foreign, regional or international quarter. Second: We believe that there is a very serious crisis in Iraq. There is a sectarian categorization" and "is also violence, fighting and victims. How then can we contain these problems to render the political process a success?"

Arab polarization

Bin-Hilli analysed the situation in the region and said there was a kind of Arab polarization over Iraq. He went on: "We want the Iraqis to unite and offer reciprocal concessions. The Arab League has now made them face their responsibilities and will help them as much as it can to come up with an Iraqi viewpoint, backed by the Arab countries, and with the cooperation of regional and international parties, including the United Nations. A UN representative will visit us tomorrow for coordination on this initiative. We should also hold a dialogue with the United States, for it is the basic power in Iraq. We need to hold a discussion with it but this discussion should take place on the basis of the Arab agenda and role and the Iraqi interests, and not on the basis of any other interests."

Insurgents

Haddad asked Bin-Hilli whether, during his forthcoming visit to Iraq to prepare for the Cairo conference, he would meet with all Iraqi political forces, including the Ba'thists, the armed groups or other parties to try to get them to participate in the conference in spite of the opposition of certain Iraqi forces, including SCIRI. Bin-Hilli said: "First of all, we will meet all the political forces that want to hold a dialogue, have a political plan and an agenda for the political process. As for reconciliation with the past, this issue has been settled. We now speak about the present Iraq and about the political forces of all colours, whether these are political quarters, religious authorities or tribal heads that have a leading position now, who wish to play a basic role and seek accord for a united and modern Iraq that safeguards its identity and components."

Haddad interrupted him to ask how he can speak about Iraq's identity while the Arab League accepts the Kurdish semi- independence. Bin-Hilli said: "Iraq is a pivotal country in the region and a basic pillar in the Arab edifice and in the region. Iraq also has various components in terms of religious groups, the Kurds and other groups. The many components and colours in Iraq enrich Iraq and not the opposite." He added: "This is the Iraq for which we are working. I believe that the Iraqi brothers do agree with me on this concept."

Bin-Hilli, at Haddad's insistence, explained the Arab League's stand on dialogue with the Ba'thists. He says: "The issue of the Ba'thists has been settled in the Iraqi constitution. There are those who were symbols of the regime or committed crimes. This is one point. As for the other Iraqis who were members in the Ba'th Party, one cannot exclude them and this has been agreed upon with all the parties that we have met."

SCIRI and Arab initiative

After completing the interview with Arab League Assistant Secretary-General Bin-Hilli, Haddad turns to Dr Baha al-Wakil and asks him whether SCIRI supports the Arab League initiative. Dr Al- Wakil said: "Actually, we welcome the Arab initiative in principle. This is because Iraq is an Arab country and a member of the Arab group. We are proud of this, and Iraq was one of the founders of the Arab League and attended all the past summits. In principle, we welcome the initiative." He added, however, that "there are comments to be made on it". He explained: "One of the comments, for example, is that this initiative has come late. We would have liked the Arab League to have entered Iraq at an early stage to witness first hand the crimes and the daily terrorism from which the Iraqis suffer. But the Arab League - I respect Mr Bin-Hilli who mentioned that the Arab League has had previous initiatives - has made these initiatives from afar and not from within Iraq." He said: "We blame the Arab League for coming to Iraq just now since the downfall of the former regime."

Haddad asked Al-Wakil to name the forces and parties that SCIRI does not want to attend the Cairo conference. Al-Wakil replied: "Most of the politicians, including [former Premier] Dr Iyad Allawi, [Premier] Dr Al-Ja'fari, SCIRI, and the other religious parties have all said there is a red line with respect to the participation of the Ba'thists."

AMS and dialogue

Turning to Dr Muthanna al-Dari in the Doha studio, Haddad asked him to reply to what Al-Wakil said about the Ba'thists not being allowed to participate in the Iraqi accord conference. Al-Dari replied: "The national forces and the political parties that are members of the government presented many demands during their meeting with the Arab League assistant secretary-general. These conditions, demands and bases express the viewpoint of these forces on this initiative. For example, there is the question of who will attend the conference. There are many issues that are more important than this issue, which I believe has been raised by some of the political factions in order to upset the conference. For example, the issue of the Ba'thists was raised and was blown out of proportion. The issue has nothing to do with the Ba'thists but with the occupation. The Cairo conference is not a conference for reconciliation. We too reject this word and say that reconciliation takes place among the sons of the country when they disagree, without the interference of any third party. What is taking place here is that there is an occupying power and it is the source of the problem. The basic demand on which the conference should be held is to end the occupation by setting a timetable for this. The national forces that oppose the occupation and that call for this should attend on this basis."

Resistance and terrorism

Haddad asked Al-Dari what criteria should be adopted to distinguish between national resistance and terrorism. Al-Dari said: "This is what we have been calling for from the beginning," adding that "the national resistance should be accurately defined and terrorism should also be accurately defined, so as to settle this issue. Every time a solution to the Iraqi issue is sought, some quarters come and stigmatize the resistance with terrorism. We say that in Iraq, there is resistance against this occupation and it started immediately after the occupiers entered Iraq. This resistance is being carried out in military and non-military forms. These are factions in the arena and their names are known to everybody. There are people who are being killed, as you said earlier. The 2,005 US soldiers were not killed by political speeches or statements or as a result of National Assembly meetings. They were killed by forces that chose the armed option. Therefore, we say that there are yardsticks. If the other parties become convinced or try to convince themselves that there is resistance, then they have to hold meetings and seek to define this issue. But to reject this issue outright from the beginning and say that there is no resistance and that all that takes place in Iraq is terrorism is a wrong approach.""We must first admit that there is resistance. Then, we can discuss the perimeters of this resistance, where it starts and where it ends," Al-Dari said.

Haddad asked Al-Dari whether the AMS considers Abu-Mus'ab al- Zarqawi and groups like him as terrorist or resistance groups. Al- Dari replied: "The issue is not how to label this or that group. We say that there are actions we consider as resistance and that there are actions that are terrorist actions. We describe the actions that are terrorist actions as such and we fear no one when we say this. The AMS secretary-general has previously defined terrorism as comprising six forms of terrorist actions, starting with the terrorism of the occupation forces, the terrorism of the security agencies, and we spelled out the many forms of terrorism, including the fact that some resistance groups carry out terrorist actions. We are frank in saying this. There are major mistakes that cannot be condoned and as a shari'ah body we have to correct things and we have many explicit stands on this. But it appears that many people do not want to listen to this talk and to continue place us in a specific corner. This is why I repeat and say that terrorism in Iraq should be defined and in exchange for this we must set down rules. Will the other parties accept attending the Cairo conference on the basis of these rules, meaning the rule that there is resistance and also terrorism? If this is the case, then the picture can be clarified."

Haddad asked Al-Dari whether the AMS still insisted on its conditions for attending the Cairo conference in light of the fragmentation of Sunni ranks and the agreement of the Iraqi Islamic Party to participate in the recent referendum and the December elections. Dr Al-Dari replied: "The AMS was not the one that set these conditions and bases. These bases are those that should be taken into consideration in any national reconciliation or national accord operation in accordance with the viewpoint of the national forces that oppose the occupation." He continued: "We believe that these bases are logical and very pragmatic for holding any conference that might reach a solution."

He went on: "We are at a crucial junction. The Arab League has submitted an initiative. We must exploit this initiative to set the ground for a solution to the Iraqi problem."

Source: BBC Monitoring Middle East

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