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U.S. Transfers "Sovereignty" to Iraq Two Days Early
From Kansas City to Ireland: A Response to the So-Called
Transfer of Power in Iraq
U.S. Transfers "Sovereignty" to Iraq Two
Days Early
In a surprise move the U.S. held a brief ceremony in Baghdad
earlier today to mark the so-called handover of power to the
new unelected government of Iraq. The handover was scheduled
to take place on Wednesday June 30 but the US moved up the
date with hopes that it would pre-empt further attacks by
members of the Iraq resistance to coincide with the handover.
Technically the handover of power ends the 14-month occupation
of Iraq, but many questions remain as to how much power the
US has actually handed over. The U.S. will keep 130,000 troops
on the ground. US Ambassador John Negroponte will head up
the largest embassy in the world. The new government will
be barred from amending the interim constitution that was
drawn up by the US and the US-appointed Iraqi Governing Council.
The US has put in place numerous laws to protect US forces
and contractors.
We go to Baghdad to speak with correspondents Patrick Cockburn
of the London Independent and Christian Parenti of The Nation,
electroniciraq.net founder Ali Abunimah joins us from Jordan
and independent reporter Rahul Mahajan.
The ceremony was attended by a handful of Iraqi and coalition
officials including the head of the Coalition Provision Authority
Paul Bremer and Iyad Allawi who was selected to be Iraq's
prime minister. Allawi is a former Baathist who has ties to
the CIA and Saudi intelligence. Iraq's newly selected president
Ghazi Yawer was also present.
Over the past week, scores of Iraqis have died in attacks
that were apparently staged to disrupt the handover of power.
President Bush was in Turkey at the NATO summit while Bremer
presided over the ceremony.
Bremer left the country on a US Air Force C-130 at about
12:30 p.m. Baghdad time shortly after the ceremony ended
On Saturday Bremer signed an edict that gave US soldiers
and military contractors immunity from Iraqi laws even after
the handover of power.
The Washington Post reports Bremer has also issued a series
of other edicts that could affect how Iraq is governed for
years. He has appointed at least two dozen Iraqis to government
jobs with five-year terms including Iraq's new national security
advisor and national intelligence chief. This means the US
will have high-placed allies in government regardless of who
wins the upcoming Iraqi elections.
Bremer has also formed a seven-member election commission
that will have the power to disqualify political parties and
candidates.
Meanwhile it has been widely reported Allawi is considering
imposing martial law or issuing special emergency laws.
Allawi said during the ceremony, "The security situation
of our country now lies in our hands. We are going to announce
the new measures today and tomorrow."
Over the weekend Allawi also announced the U.S. would soon
handover Saddam Hussein to the new Iraqi government.
The transfer of power came after a weekend that saw dozens
of Iraqis die as members of the resistance launched attacks
across the country. In Hilla a double car bombing killed up
to 40 people. In Baquba, gunmen attacked the offices of Prime
Minister Ayad Allawi's party, the Iraq National Accord, the
offices of one of the country's biggest Shiite parties, the
Supreme Council of the Islamic Revolution in Iraq also came
under attack. At a checkpoint north of Baghdad six Iraqi National
Guard soldiers were killed by anti-tank rockets. Two Iraqi
children died in a mortar attack near the Sheraton Hotel in
Baghdad. A U.S. soldier died in Baghdad in a rocket attack
on the coalition's base. Meanwhile U.S. forces bombed Fallujah
again killing up to 25 in an attempt to kill supporters of
Abu Mussab al-Zarqawi.
- Patrick Cockburn, journalist with the London Independent.
- Rahul Mahajan, author of Full Spectrum Dominance: U.S.
Power in Iraq and Beyond (Seven Stories). He has a Ph.D.
in particle physics. He writes a blog at empirenotes.org.
- Christian Parenti, contributing writer to the Nation
Magazine and author of the forthcoming book The Freedom:
Shadows and Hallucinations in Occupied Iraq.
From Kansas City to Ireland: A Response to the So-Called
Transfer of Power in Iraq
We speak with Kansas City Star columnist Lewis Diguid about
the situation in Iraq as well as local politics in Kansas,
Irish peace activist Ciaron O'Reilly in Dublin discusses Ireland's
response to Bush's recent visit and former U.S. Army captain
and Gulf War resistor Dr. Yolanda Huet-Vaughn discusses U.S.
foreign policy and her reasons for saying no to war.
- Lewis Diuguid, columnist and editorial board member at
the Kansas City Star.
- Ciaron O'Reilly, Irish peace activist who was at Shannon
airport when Bush arrived. He is a member of the Dublin
catholic worker community and is awaiting trial for disarming
US warplane in Shannon airport in a separate Plowshares
action.
- Dr. Yolanda Huet-Vaughn, a former captain in the US Army
and Gulf War resistor. She based her refusal to go overseas
on her fear that Gulf duty would force her to violate her
Hippocratic oath as a doctor. She was specifically opposed
to administering two experimental drugs, the anthrax vaccine
and PB pills, a nerve gas antidote.
For a copy of today’s program, call 1 (800) 881 2359.
Our website is www.democracynow.org.
Our email address is mail@democracynow.org.
Democracy Now! is produced by Mike Burke, Sharif Abdel Kouddous,
Ana Nogueira, Elizabeth Press, Jeremy Scahill and Parvez Sharma.
Mike Di Filippo is our engineer.
Thanks also to Uri Galed, Angela Alston, Orlando Richards,
Simba Russeau, Johnny Sender, Rich Kim, Joe Murgio, John Randolph,
Chris Zucker, Karen Ranucci, Denis Moynihan, Eric Rweyemamu,
Jenny Filipazzo and Isis Phillips.
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