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From bullets to ballot box – Iraq's violence-free election
By Kim Gamel and Hamza Hendawi in Baghdad
CANDIDATES in this month's Iraqi provincial elections are answering questions from voters and debating issues ranging from housing shortages to the need for foreign investment.
This style of campaigning is new to Iraq, where candidates for the first time feel safe enough to canvass for votes and focus on grass-roots issues. Earlier elections held after Saddam Hussein was toppled in 2003 were overshadowed by religious divisions and violence.The shift was evident at a forum that brought together 13 candidates standing in the 31 January election for provincial councils, including a communist, Shiites, Sunnis and a journalist who formed a party named after a television show called Let's Talk.As a waiter in traditional Arab dress poured coffee at the gathering in a Baghdad country club, the moderator and people in the audience asked candidates how they would improve services.They got one minute for each answer. And no-one was surprised when the power went out briefly – a common occurrence in a country that still has severe electricity shortages.Madiha al-Moussawi, a candidate from a secular party, promised to encourage foreign investment to help create jobs.Ayad Younis, of the Sunni bloc, the Iraqi Accordance Front, said: "Our goal is a better life for Baghdad and respect for women."A new rule allows Iraqis to vote for individuals instead of only parties. That has led a number of first-time candidates to stand, hoping to persuade voters to turn against politicians criticised for misrule.The field is crowded. There are 14,431 candidates competing for 444 seats on councils in all but four of Iraq's 18 provinces. The electoral commission says 75 per cent of the parties are new.US and Iraqi officials have high hopes for the first nationwide balloting in three years, looking for it to unify ethnic and sectarian groups. The goal is to bolster local government – a key step in rebuilding the country.The vote will also been seen as a verdict on the conduct of the government of Nouri al-Maliki, the prime minister.Elections in 2005 saw little public campaigning because of a rampant violence that threatened civil war. In those ballots, people chose parties, often with little idea who was running.This time, hopefuls have been trumpeting their programmes and handing out cards at rallies and on walks through markets. One even organised a football game in which players wore T-shirts with his picture on them.Qassim Hilail Sabre, 47, an aid worker with a charity that helps poor people and orphans, is one first-timer. "I decided to take part to improve public services," said Mr Sabre, one of 3,000 candidates for Baghdad provincial council, which has 57 seats.Colourful posters and banners plaster overpasses, bridges and lampposts as well as the concrete blast barriers dissecting the capital and other cities. Workers were out putting up more this week on whatever space remained.Candidates have come up with what they hope will be catchy slogans that appeal to the hopes and fears of an electorate that is emerging from years of violence but is still fearful Iraq could slide back into chaos. Others speak to people's religious beliefs or indirectly criticise outgoing local governments in Baghdad and elsewhere.Billboards carry messages that vary from "With us, your life is more valuable" by the Sunni Iraqi Islamic Party to "We're coming to bring change" by the small Constitutional Party.The use of religious symbols or sites such as mosques for campaigning has been banned in a bid to prevent inflaming sectarian tensions, but the rule is hard to enforce.The law also forbids using money or intimidation to gain votes, but some tribal leaders are paying clansmen about £70 each if they swear an oath to vote for the leaders' picks. At a rally in Baghdad last week, one woman handed out chocolate and gave elderly women money."Some officials have begun giving promises of a better life," said Saad Salman, 50, an oil ministry employee. "But we wonder why now? Why they did not say or do that before?"Sabah al-Tememey, a 33-year-old mother of three who is running for the first time, said she entered the race in hopes of easing the suffering of Baghdad's people, despite fears she might be targeted by Islamic extremists for not wearing a headscarf."My neighbourhoods are full of widows, and my brother is unemployed," she said."I can't fix everything, but it'll be a first step."Local polls could have dramatic effect on national parliamentIRAQIS in 14 out of Iraq's 18 provinces will vote to select members of provincial councils, whose duties include choosing provincial governors and provincial administrations.There are 444 provincial council seats at stake. A total of 14,431 candidates are registered, including 3,912 women. They belong to more than 400 parties or groups.In past elections, voters were only allowed to choose from party lists. This time, they must pick a party or group, but can also vote for an individual candidate from a selected group if they wish. Parties that win three or more seats must give every third seat to a woman.Six seats nationally are set aside for candidates from Christian, Shabak, Yazidi and Sabean religious minorities.The elections will not only reshape local government but could set the tone for parliamentary elections later this year.The polls are also expected to change the balance of power among Iraq's Sunni Arabs, many of whom did not participate in the last provincial elections in 2005. Their marginalisation has helped fuel discontent and violence. The United States expects that many tribal leaders whose support of "Awakening Councils", neighbourhood patrol units instrumental in reining in violence, will win power from other Sunni parties.