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Constitution of Iraq

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Iraqi Constitution
CreatedSummer 2005
Presented18 September 2005
Ratified15 October 2005
Date effective28 December 2005
Politics of Iraq

Arab League Member State of the Arab League

Constitution
Government
Legislature
Judiciary
Administrative divisions
Elections
Foreign relations
flag Iraq portal

The Constitution of the Republic of Iraq (Arabic: دستور جمهورية العراق Kurdish: دەستووری عێراق) is the fundamental law of Iraq. The first constitution came into force in 1925. The current constitution was adopted on September 18, 2005 by the Transitional National Assembly of Iraq,[1] and confirmed by constitutional referendum, held on October 15, 2005.[2] It was published on December 28, 2005 in the Official Gazette of Iraq (No. 4012), in Arabic original,[3] and thus came into force. An official translation into English for international use was produced in cooperation between Iraqi state authorities and the United Nations' Office for Constitutional Support.[4][5] Since 2006, several proposals for adoption of various constitutional amendments were initiated. The Kurdish language is official at state level.[6]

YouTube Encyclopedic

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  • Iran's Revolutions: Crash Course World History 226
  • For a secular constitution in Iraqi Kurdistan, Bread and Roses TV

Transcription

Hi, I’m John Green and this is Crash Course World History and today we’re talking about Iran. Oh, Mr. Green? Mr. Green? I know that country. It’s in the Middle East. It’s with Egypt. No, Me from the Past, we’re going to talk about Iran. Now, I used to be you so I remember when you would look at this part of the world and you would be like, “oh yeah, that’s a thing.” And in your case that “thing” extended more or less from I guess, like, western China to, like, uh, Poland. Then you’d make a bunch of broad generalizations about that area and no doubt use the terms Arab and Muslim interchangeably. But as usual Me From the Past the truth resists simplicity. So today we are going to talk about Iran and just Iran. Specifically, the 1979 Iranian Revolution. So the 1979 Iranian Revolution and its aftermath are often seen by detractors as the first step in the creation of an isolated, fundamentalist state that supports terrorism, and, you might be surprised to hear me say, that there is some truth to that interpretation. That said, the way you think about the Iranian Revolution depends a lot of which part of it you are looking at. And regardless, it’s very important because it represents a different kind of revolution from the ones that we usually talk about. So the 1979 uprisings were aimed at getting rid of the Pahlavi Dynasty, which sounds, like, impressive, but this dynasty had only had two kings, Reza Shah and Mohammed Reza Shah. Before the Pahlavis, Iran was ruled by the Qajar dynasty, and before that the Safavids. The Safavids and Qajars were responsible for two of the most important aspects of Iran: The Safavids made Shia Islam the official state religion in Iran, starting with Ismail I in 1501, and the Qajars gave the Muslim clergy – the ulema – political power. So most of the world’s Muslims are Sunnis but the Shia, or Shiites are an important sect that began very early on – around 680 CE and today form the majority of Muslims in Iran and Iraq. Now within both Sunni and Shia there are further divisions and many sects, but we’re just going to talk about, like, the historical difference between the two. Shia Muslims believe that Ali should’ve been the first Caliph, Sunni Muslims think that Abu Bakr, who was the first Caliph, was rightly chosen. Since that disagreement, there have been many others, many doctrinal differences but what’s more important is that from the very beginning, Shia Muslims saw themselves as the party of the oppressed standing up against the wealthy and powerful and harkening back to the social justice standard that was set by the prophet. And this connection between religious faith and social justice was extremely important to the Iranian Revolution in 1979 and also to previous revolutions in Iran. This is really crucial to understand because many historians argue that the Iranian revolution represents what the journalist Christian Caryl called an “odd fusion of Islam and late-twentieth century revolutionary politics.” But actually, in the scheme of Iranian history, its not so odd. Because 1979 was not Iran’s first revolution. The first major one was in 1906. It forced the ruling Qajars to accept a constitution. It created a parliament and supposedly some limits on the king, and made Shia Islam the official state religion, but it also protected the rights of minorities in Iran. It ultimately failed partly because the clergy withdrew their support, partly because the shah worked very actively against it, and maybe most importantly, because the Russians and the British worked to keep Persia weak so they could continue to try to dominate the region. Which reminds me that most people in Iran are not Arabs, they are Persian. And most people in Iran don’t speak Arabic, they speak Farsi, or as we often call it in English, Persian. So after WWI European rivalries really heated up because of the discovery of oil in the Middle East. The British established the Anglo Iranian Oil Company – which would later come to be known as BP. They also extracted a bunch of concessions from the Iranian government in addition to extracting lots of oil. And they helped to engineer a change in dynasty by supporting military commander Reza Khan in his coup in February 1921. Reza Khan became Reza Shah and then he attempted to turn Persia, which he re-named Iran in 1935, into a modern, secular, western-style state kind of like Turkey was under Ataturk. But Reza Shah is perhaps best remembered for his over the top dictatorial repression, which turned the clergy against him. Okay, so during World War II Reza Shah abdicated and his young son Mohammad Reza Shah became the leader of Iran. Which he remained, mostly, until 1979 when he definitely stopped being the leader of Iran. So after World War II, the British allowed greater popular participation in Iran’s government. The main party to benefit from this openness was Tudeh, the Iranian communist party. Mohammed Mosaddegh was elected prime minister in 1951 and led the parliament to nationalize Iran’s oil industry, and that was the end of the democratic experiment. Now most history books say that in 1953 the British and the CIA engineered a coup to remove Mosaddegh from office. And that is quite possibly true. It is definitely true that we tried to engineer a coup. It’s also true that Mosaddegh quit and fled Iran following demonstrations against him. But we also know that the Shia clergy encouraged those demonstrations. That’s a bit of a weird decision for the Clergy, considering that Shia Islam traditionally takes a radical stance against oppression. But it’s important to remember that Mosaddegh was supported by the Tudeh party and they were communists. Nationalization of the oil industry was one thing, but a further shift toward communism might mean appropriation of the land that supported the clergy, maybe even a rejection of religion altogether. So now we’ve seen two occasions where the Shia clergy support helped facilitate change. Right, in 1906 and again in 1953. So, let’s flash ahead to 1979. The Shah was definitely an autocrat, and he employed a ruthless secret police called the SAVAK to stifle dissent. In 1975, the Shah abolished Iran’s two political parties and replaced them with one party the Resurgence party. You’ll never guess who was resurging - the Shah. There was a huge round of censorship and arrests and torture of political prisoners signaling that autocracy was in Iran to stay. But before those events in 1975, say between 1962 and 1975, by most economic and social measures Iran saw huge improvements. In 1963, the Shah had tried to institute what he called a White Revolution – top-down modernization led by the monarchy, and in many ways he was successful, especially in improving industry and education. Oil revenues rose from $555 million in 1964 to $20 billion in 1976. And the Shah’s government invested a lot of that money in infrastructure and education. The population grew and infant mortality fell. A new professional middle class arose. But the White Revolution wasn’t universally popular. For instance, it was opposed by one particular Shia cleric - the Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini. Khomeini spoke out against the White Revolution from the religious center of Iran, Qom. One of his main complaints was that the reforms would grant more rights to women, including the right to vote, but he also attacked the government for, quote: “the rigging of elections and other constitutional abuses, neglect of the poor and the sale of oil to Israel.” And in general, Khomeini felt that a king’s power was inherently un-Islamic and that Shia tradition was to fight that power. That noted about Khomeini, the 1979 revolution didn’t start out to create an Islamic state. At first it was a pretty typical uprising by dissatisfied Iranians to overthrow a government that they perceived as corrupt and unresponsive to their needs. In spite of, or arguably because of, oil-fueled economic growth, many Iranians weren’t enjoying economic success. The universities were turning out more graduates than there were jobs and the mechanization of agriculture had the predictable result of displacing farmers who moved to cities. Especially the capital city of Tehran where there weren’t nearly enough jobs for the number of people. So, I think it’s unfair to say that a majority of the demonstrators who took to the streets in late 1978 were motivated by a fundamentalist vision of Islam. They were dissatisfied with economic inequality and political repression and a corrupt regime. So why do we generally remember the 1979 revolution as having been motivated by Shia Islam. Well, Let’s go to the Thought Bubble. So the initial demonstrations did begin after an Iranian newspaper on January 7, 1978 published an article that was critical of Khomeini. By the way, at the time he was living in Paris. These initial demonstrations were pretty small, but when the government police and army forces starting firing on demonstrators, killing some of them, the protests grew. Each time marchers protested against the violent treatment of demonstrators, the government would crack down, and their violent reaction would spur more demonstrations. There was also a lot of criticism of the west tied up in the revolution. According to one woman who participated: “American lifestyles had come to be imposed as an ideal, the ultimate goal. Americanism was the model. American popular culture – books, magazines, film – had swept over our country like a flood...We found ourselves wondering ‘Is there any room for our own culture?’” The Shah never understood why so many people were protesting against him; he thought that they were communists, or being supported by the British. He also thought that merely bringing prosperity would be enough to keep him in power. It wasn’t. On January 16, 1979 he left Iran. He eventually ended up in the U.S., which had unfortunate consequences for diplomatic relations between the U.S. and Iran. But the point here is that the first part of the Iranian revolution was relatively peaceful protests followed by a government crackdown, more protests that eventually led to the collapse of the monarchy, and that looks kind of familiar, especially if you’ve studied, like, the French or Russian or even the American Revolutions. And most historians argue these protests weren’t about Islam, but rather, “The discontent over living conditions, pay cuts, and the threat of unemployment fused with the general disillusionment and anger with the regime.” The government that eventually replaced the monarchy was the second, and in many ways much more revolutionary revolution. Thanks Thought Bubble. So the new Islamic Republic of Iran was based on Khomeini’s idea about what an Islamic government should be, a principle he called velayat-e faqih. Mainly it was that a sharia law scholar, would have ultimate authority, because he was more knowledgeable than anyone about law and justice. There would be a legislature and a president and a prime minister, but any of their decisions could be overturned by the supreme ruler who from 1979 until his death was Khomeini. Now, if democracy is only about holding elections, then the new Iran was a democracy. I mean, Iran has elections, both for president and for the parliament. And for the record, despite what Khomeini might have thought in the ‘60s, women can vote in Iran and they do. They also serve in the parliament and the president’s cabinet. And in the referendum on whether to create an Islamic Republic of Iran, the vast majority of Iranians in a free and open vote, voted “yes.” Now governance in Iran is extremely complicated, too complicated for one Crash Course video. But in once sense at least, Iran is definitely not a democracy. The ultimate authority, written into the constitution, is not the will of the people but god, who is represented by the supreme religious leader. And the actions of the Islamic Republic, especially in the early chaotic days of 1979 but also many times since, don’t conform to most ideas of effective democracy. Like one of the first things that Khomeini did to shore up his support was to create the Islamic Revolutionary Guards and Hezbollah to defend the revolution against coup attempts. Although initially there were opposition parties, their activities were curtailed by the new “revolutionary courts” that applied sharia law in a particularly harsh fashion. Like it’s estimated that by October 1979, several hundred people had been executed. And under the new constitution, Khomeini was given extensive power. I mean, he could appoint the heads of the armed services, and the Revolutionary Guard and the national TV and radio stations. He also approved the candidates for presidential elections and appointed six of the twelve members of the Guardian Council that approved legislation from the parliament before it became law. So structurally Iran’s government looked kind of like other governments, but as Michael Axworthy points out it was different because, quote, “above and beyond stood the faqih, with the power and the responsibility to intervene directly in the name of Islam; indeed with powers greater than those given to most monarchs in constitutional monarchies.” By 1979, Iran already had a long history of clerical involvement in protest and dynamic change, but it also had a long history of pushing for constitutions and liberty. The current end result is the Islamic Republic of Iran, but it’s worth remembering that both those threads of history are still part of Iranian life. Like we saw that in 2009 and 2010 with the so-called Green Revolution where there were huge protests after an Iranian election. Those protests involved young people arguing for more rights and liberties.. But they were also led by, and encouraged by, reformist Shia clerics. In the U.S. we mostly remember the 1979 Iranian Revolution for its burning of American flags and taking of hostages in the American Embassy. That belonged more to the second phase of the revolution, the chaotic period when the Islamic republic was being born. Life in the Islamic Republic of Iran remains highly repressive. I mean, for instance, Iran still executes a very high percentage of criminals. But it’s inaccurate to say that Iran is merely a dictatorship, or that it’s merely repressive. And one of the challenges for people in the West trying to understand Iran is that we have to disentangle the various aspects of the revolution rather than simply relying on the images that have defined it for us. I hope this episode can help a little. You can find more resources in the links below. Thanks for watching. Crash Course is filmed here in the Chad and Stacey Emigholz studio in Indianapolis and it’s made possible because of the hard worth of all of these people. Thank you for watching and as we say in my hometown, “don’t forget to be awesome.”

History

Iraq's first constitution, which established a constitutional monarchy, entered into force under the auspices of a British military occupation in 1925 and remained in effect until the 1958 revolution established a republic. Interim constitutions were adopted in 1958, 1964, 1968, and 1970, the last remaining in effect de jure until the Transitional Administrative Law was adopted in 2003 after the fall of Saddam Hussein. In 1990, a draft constitution was prepared but never promulgated due to the onset of the Gulf War.

The current constitution was approved by a referendum that took place on 15 October 2005. The constitution was drafted in 2005 by members of the Iraqi Constitution Drafting Committee to replace the Law of Administration for the State of Iraq for the Transitional Period (the "TAL"). The TAL was drafted between December 2003 and March 2004 by the Iraqi Governing Council, an appointed body that was selected by the Coalition Provisional Authority after the Iraq War and Occupation of Iraq by the United States and Coalition forces.

Under a compromise brokered before the referendum, it was agreed that the first parliament elected pursuant to the new constitution would institute a Constitutional Review Committee with a view to determine whether the constitution should be amended. Any amendments agreed would have to be ratified by a referendum similar to the one that originally approved it. After this agreement was entered into, the Sunni-majority Iraqi Islamic Party agreed to back a Yes vote in the referendum that took place on October 15, 2005. The Constitutional Review Committee was constituted by the Iraqi parliament on 25 September 2006.[1]

Electoral Commission officials said at a news conference that 78 percent of voters backed the charter and 21 percent opposed it. Of the 18 provinces, two recorded "No" votes greater than two thirds, one province short of a veto. A two-thirds rejection vote in three of the country's 18 provinces (of which three—Mosul, Anbar, and Salahaddin—are thought to include Sunni majorities) would have required the dissolution of the Assembly, fresh elections, and the recommencement of the entire drafting process. Turnout in the referendum was 63 percent, according to commission officials.

The drafting and adoption of the new Constitution was not without controversy, however, as sectarian tensions in Iraq figured heavily in the process. The chairman of the drafting committee, Humam Hamoudi, regularly made statements which were interpreted as meaning that there would be no compromises on Sunni demands.[7] The deadline for the conclusion of drafting was extended on four occasions because of the lack of consensus on religious language. In the end, only three of the 15 Sunni members of the drafting committee attended the signing ceremony, and none of them signed it. Sunni leaders were split as to whether to support the constitution. Saleh al-Mutlaq, the chief Sunni negotiator, urged followers of his Hewar Front to vote against it, but the biggest Sunni block, the Iraqi Accord Front did support the document after receiving promises that it would be reviewed and amended, taking into account their views. A Constitution Amendment Committee has been set up in this regard, but the progress has been slow. Notably, the same figure who chaired the drafting committee, Humam Hamoudi, is chairing the amendment committee as well.

Drafting and adoption

See also: Members of the Iraqi Constitution Drafting Committee and Iraqi constitution ratification vote, 2005

The Transitional National Assembly of Iraq, which was elected in January 2005 pursuant to the Coalition Provisional Authority's Transitional Administrative Law, appointed a Constitutional Committee for the purpose of preparing a draft constitution by 15 August 2005. The Committee was initially made up of 55 members, all of whom were drawn from the Transitional National Assembly, but its membership was eventually expanded beyond the Assembly's numbers, in order to allow representatives from the Sunni Arab community to participate (given that the latter had boycotted the elections that gave rise to the Transitional National Assembly).

According to the Transitional Administrative Law, the Constitutional Committee was obliged to complete its work by 15 August 2005, and for the draft to be submitted to a referendum by 15 October 2005. However, by the beginning of August 2005, all parties were in agreement that a final agreement on some of the Constitution's most important elements, including federalism, was still far from complete. As a result, the Committee was effectively dissolved and replaced by an ad hoc body (referred to as the "Leadership Council"), which was composed of approximately 6 members and which continued to negotiate the constitution's final terms until three days before the referendum date.

The first draft of the proposed constitution was presented to the Transitional National Assembly on Sunday 28 August 2005. It described the state as a "democratic, federal, representative republic" (art. 1) (however, the division of powers is to be deferred until the first parliament convenes), and a "multi-ethnic, multi-religious and multi-sect country" (art. 3). The draft was approved, but political negotiations continued, in order to reach a compromise that would also ensure the support of Sunni groups, thus leading to consequent revisions and redrafting of several articles.

On 18 September 2005, the Transitional National Assembly of Iraq approved and adopted the final constitutional draft, that was then put to the public. The Constitution was finally adopted on 15 October 2005, in a national referendum. The Constitution was published on 28 December 2005, in the Official Gazette of Iraq (No. 4012), in Arabic original, and thus came into force.

Since there were several unofficial translations of previous drafts and proposals, that were created earlier, during the summer of 2005, an official translation of the Constitution, for international use (in English language) was produced, in cooperation between state authorities Iraq and the United Nations' Office for Constitutional Support.

Proposed changes

Main article: Amendment to the Constitution of Iraq

Under a compromise brokered before the referendum, it was agreed that the first parliament that was to be elected pursuant to the new constitution would institute a Constitutional Review Committee with a view to determine whether the constitution should be amended. Any amendments agreed would have to be ratified by a similar referendum to the one that originally approved it. After this agreement was entered into, the Sunni-majority Iraqi Islamic Party agreed to back a Yes vote in the referendum that took place on 15 October 2005. The Constitutional Review Committee was constituted by the Iraqi parliament on 25 September 2006. [2]

Overview

Basic principles

The Constitution sets out a multitude of basic assertions (unfortunately because of last minute changes to the constitution, most of the footnote references below to specific articles in the constitution are inaccurate):

  • Iraq is an independent nation.[8]
  • The system of government is a democratic, federal, representative, parliamentary republic.[8]
  • Islam is the state religion and a basic foundation for the country's laws,[9] and no law may contradict the established provisions of Islam.[10]
  • No law that contradicts the principles of democracy may be established.[11]
  • No law that contradicts the rights and basic freedoms may be established.[12]
  • The Islamic identity of the majority of the Iraqi people and the full religious rights for all individuals and the freedom of creed and religious practices is guaranteed.[13]
  • Iraq is part of the Islamic world and its Arab citizens are part of the Arab nation.[14]
  • Iraq is a multiethnic, multi-religious and multi-sect country[14] and Arabic and Kurdish are the official languages.[15] Iraqis are guaranteed the right to educate their children in their mother tongues, such as Turkmen, Chaldean, and Assyrian, in government educational institutions, or any other language in private educational institutions, according to educational regulations.[15]
  • The Turkomen, Chaldean, and Assyrian languages will be official in the areas where they are located.[16] Any region or province can take a local language as an additional official language if a majority of the population approves in a general referendum.[17]
  • Entities or trends may not advocate, instigate, justify or propagate racism, terrorism, "takfir" (declaring someone an infidel), or sectarian cleansing.[18] The "Saddamist Ba'ath Party", regardless of the name that it adopts, is specifically banned.[18]
  • The country has a military and security services under the command of the civil authority, and will not interfere in politics, or be used in the transfer of authority.[19] Militias are prohibited.[20] Military officials may not hold office.[21]
  • The constitution is the highest law of the land.[22] No law may be passed that contradicts the constitution.[23]

Rights and freedoms

The Constitution defines many rights and freedoms, and incorporates laws in many subject areas into the Constitution.[24] It guarantees the rule of law,[25][26] equality before the law,[27] equal opportunity,[28] privacy,[29] inalienable nationality and dual nationality,[30] judicial independence,[31] the prohibition on criminal ex post facto laws,[31] right to counsel,[31] a public trial unless the court decides to make it a secret trial,[31] a presumption of innocence,[31] the right to participate in public affairs and the right to vote, to elect and to nominate,[32] freedom from extradition,[33] political asylum,[33] "economic, social and cultural liberties",[33] the right to work,[34] the right to join trade unions,[34] ownership of personal property,[35] eminent domain powers,[35] rights similar to the Four Freedoms (European Union),[36][37] minimum wage,[26] universal health care,[38] free education,[39] dignity,[40] freedom from psychological and physical torture and inhumane treatment and the right to compensation,[40] freedom from "compulsory service",[40] limited freedom of expression, freedom of the press, and freedom of assembly,[41] the right to engage in sports,[41] limited freedom of forming and of joining associations and political parties,[42] requirement of warrants for wiretaps,[43] freedom of religion,[44] freedom of thought, conscience and belief.[45]

The Federal Government

The federal government is composed of the executive, legislative, and judicial branches, as well as numerous independent commissions.

Legislative branch

The legislative branch is composed of the Council of Representatives and the Federation Council.[46]

Council of Representatives
Main article: Council of Representatives of Iraq

The Council of Representatives is the main elected body of Iraq. The Constitution defines the "number of members at a ratio of one representative per 100,000 Iraqi persons representing the entire Iraqi people."[47] The members are elected for terms of 4 years.[48]

The council elects the President of Iraq; approves the appointment of the members of the Federal Court of Cassation, the Chief Public Prosecutor, and the President of Judicial Oversight Commission on proposal by the Higher Juridical Council; and approves the appointment of the Army Chief of Staff, his assistants and those of the rank of division commanders and above, and the director of the intelligence service, on proposal by the Cabinet.[49]

Federation Council
Main article: Federation Council of Iraq

The Federation Council is composed of representatives from the regions and the governorates that are not organized in a region. The council is regulated in law by the Council of Representatives.[50]

Executive branch

The executive branch is composed of the President and the Council of Ministers.[51]

President
Main article: President of Iraq

The President of the Republic is the head of state and "safeguards the commitment to the Constitution and the preservation of Iraq's independence, sovereignty, unity, the security of its territories in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution."[52] The President is elected by the Council of Representatives by a two-thirds majority,[53] and is limited to two four-year terms.[54] The President ratifies treaties and laws passed by the Council of Representatives, issues pardons on the recommendation of the Prime Minister, and performs the "duty of the Higher Command of the armed forces for ceremonial and honorary purposes."[55]

There also exists a Vice President which shall assume the office of the President in case of his absence or removal.[56]

The Presidency Council is an entity currently operating under the auspices of the "transitional provisions" of the Constitution. According to the Constitution, the Presidency Council functions in the role of the President until one successive term after the Constitution is ratified[57] and a government is seated.[58]

Council of Ministers
Main articles: Prime Minister of Iraq and Council of Ministers of Iraq

The Council of Ministers is composed of the Prime Minister and his cabinet. The President of Iraq names the nominee of the Council of Representatives bloc with the largest number to form the Cabinet.[59] The Prime Minister is the direct executive authority responsible for the general policy of the State and the commander-in-chief of the armed forces, directs the Council of Ministers, and presides over its meetings and has the right to dismiss the Ministers on the consent of the Council of Representatives.[60]

The cabinet is responsible for overseeing their respective ministries, proposing laws, preparing the budget, negotiating and signing international agreements and treaties, and appointing undersecretaries, ambassadors, the Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces and his assistants, Division Commanders or higher, the Director of the National Intelligence Service, and heads of security institutions.[61]

Judicial branch

The federal judiciary is composed of the Higher Judicial Council, the Supreme Court, the Court of Cassation, the Public Prosecution Department, the Judiciary Oversight Commission, and other federal courts that are regulated by law.[62] One such court is the Central Criminal Court.

Higher Judicial Council
Main article: Higher Judicial Council of Iraq

The Higher Judicial Council manages and supervises the affairs of the federal judiciary.[63] It oversees the affairs of the various judicial committees,[64] nominates the Chief Justice and members of the Court of Cassation, the Chief Public Prosecutor, and the Chief Justice of the Judiciary Oversight Commission, and drafts the budget of the judiciary.[63]

Supreme Court
Main article: Supreme Court of Iraq

The Supreme Court is an independent judicial body that interprets the constitution and determines the constitutionality of laws and regulations. It acts as a final court of appeals, settles disputes amongst or between the federal government and the regions and governorates, municipalities, and local administrations, and settles accusations directed against the President, the Prime Minister and the Ministers. It also ratifies the final results of the general elections for the Council of Representatives.[65]

Central Criminal Court
Main article: Central Criminal Court of Iraq

The Central Criminal Court of Iraq is the main criminal court of Iraq.[citation needed] The CCCI is based on an inquisitorial system and consists of two chambers: an investigative court, and a criminal court.[citation needed]

Independent commissions and institutions

The Independent High Commission for Human Rights, the Independent Electoral High Commission, and the Commission on Public Integrity are independent commissions subject to monitoring by the Council of Representatives.[66] The Central Bank of Iraq, the Board of Supreme Audit, the Communications and Media Commission, and the Endowment Commission are financially and administratively independent institutions.[67] The Foundation of Martyrs is attached to the Council of Ministers.[68] The Federal Public Service Council regulates the affairs of the federal public service, including appointment and promotion.[69]

Powers of the Federal Government

The federal government has exclusive power over:

  • Foreign policy and negotiation[70]
  • Fiscal and customs policy, currency, inter-regional and inter-governorate trade policy, monetary policy, and administering a central bank[71]
  • Standards and weights,[72] naturalization,[73] the radio spectrum, and the mail[74]
  • The national budget[75]
  • Water policies[76]
  • The Census[77]
  • Welfare programs
  • Management of oil and gas, in cooperation with the governments of the producing regions and governorates[78]

Powers shared with regional authorities:

  • regional customs
  • electrical power
  • environmental policy
  • public planning
  • health, and education

All powers not exclusively granted to the federal government are powers of the regions and governorates that are not organized in a region.[79] Priority is given to regional law in case of conflict between other powers shared between the federal government and regional governments.[79]

Regions

Chapter Five, Authorities of the Regions, describes the form of Iraq's federation. It begins by stating that the republic's federal system is made up of the capital, regions, decentralized provinces, and local administrations.

  • Part One: Regions

The country's future Regions are to be established from its current 18 governorates (or provinces). Any single province, or group of provinces, is entitled to request that it be recognized as a region, with such a request being made by either two-thirds of the members of the provincial councils in the provinces involved or by one-tenth of the registered voters in the province(s) in question.

  • Part Two: Provinces not organized into a Region

Provinces that are unwilling or unable to join a region still enjoy enough autonomy and resources to enable them to manage their own internal affairs according to the principle of administrative decentralization. With the two parties' approval, federal government responsibilities may be delegated to the provinces, or vice versa. These decentralized provinces are headed by Provincial Governors, elected by Provincial Councils. The administrative levels within a province are defined, in descending order, as districts, counties and villages.

  • Part Three: The Capital

Article 120 states that Baghdad is the Capital of the Republic, within the boundaries of Baghdad Governorate. The constitution makes no specific reference to the status of the capital and its surrounding governorate within the federal structure, stating merely that its status is to be regulated by law.

  • Part Four: Local Administrations

Consisting solely of Article 121, Part Four simply states that the constitution guarantees the administrative, political, cultural, and educational rights of the country's various ethnic groups (Turkmens, Assyrians, etc.), and that legislation will be adopted to regulate those rights.

See also

References

  1. ^ Sara B. Moller (2005), Low Intensity Conflict and Nation-Building in Iraq: A Chronology
  2. ^ Jonathan Morrow (2005): Iraq’s Constitutional Process II: An Opportunity Lost
  3. ^ "Constitution of the Republic of Iraq, Official Gazette of Iraq, No. 4012, of December 28, 2005 (Arabic text)" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 8 April 2023. Retrieved 29 November 2020.
  4. ^ UN WIPO: Iraqi Constitution (2005) in English translation
  5. ^ The ACE Electoral Knowledge Network: Iraqi Constitution (2005)
  6. ^ "Constitution Building and Federal Options in Iraq: The Kurdish Challenge - Iraq". ReliefWeb. Retrieved 9 April 2022.
  7. ^ International Crisis Group, "Unmaking Iraq: A Constitutional Process Gone Awry" ICG Middle East Policy Briefing 26 September 2005.
  8. ^ a b Constitution of Iraq, Article 1
  9. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 2(1st)
  10. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 2(1st)(a)
  11. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 2(1st)(b)
  12. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 2(1st)(c)
  13. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 2(2nd)
  14. ^ a b Constitution of Iraq, Article 3
  15. ^ a b Constitution of Iraq, Article 4(1st)
  16. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 4(4th)
  17. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 4(5th)
  18. ^ a b Constitution of Iraq, Article 7(1st)
  19. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 9(1st)(a)
  20. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 9(1st)(b)
  21. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 9(1st)(c)
  22. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 13(1st)
  23. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 13(2nd)
  24. ^ Bammarny, Bawar, Rule of Law in Iraq, in: Matthias Koetter / Gunnar Folke Schuppert, Understandings of the Rule of Law in various legal orders of the World, Rule of Law Working Paper Series No. 16, Berlin (ISSN 2192-6905): http://wikis.fu-berlin.de/download/attachments/145424416/[permanent dead link] Bammarny+Iraq.pdf.
  25. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 15
  26. ^ a b Constitution of Iraq, Article 28
  27. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 14
  28. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 16
  29. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 17
  30. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 18
  31. ^ a b c d e Constitution of Iraq, Article 19
  32. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 20
  33. ^ a b c Constitution of Iraq, Article 21
  34. ^ a b Constitution of Iraq, Article 22
  35. ^ a b Constitution of Iraq, Article 23
  36. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 24
  37. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 42
  38. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 31
  39. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 34
  40. ^ a b c Constitution of Iraq, Article 35
  41. ^ a b Constitution of Iraq, Article 36
  42. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 37
  43. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 38
  44. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 39
  45. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 40
  46. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 46
  47. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 47
  48. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 54
  49. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 58
  50. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 62
  51. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 63
  52. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 64
  53. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 67
  54. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 69
  55. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 70
  56. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 72
  57. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 134
  58. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 139
  59. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 73
  60. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 75
  61. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 77
  62. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 86
  63. ^ a b Constitution of Iraq, Article 88
  64. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 87
  65. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 90
  66. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 99
  67. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 100
  68. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 101
  69. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 104
  70. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 107(1st)
  71. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 107(3rd)
  72. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 107(4th)
  73. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 107(5th)
  74. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 107(6th)
  75. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 107(7th)
  76. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 107(8th)
  77. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 107(9th)
  78. ^ Constitution of Iraq, Article 109
  79. ^ a b Constitution of Iraq, Article 111

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This page was last edited on 25 March 2024, at 12:57
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