Posted on 03/26/2003 6:58:46 AM PST by Oldeconomybuyer
AMMAN, March 26 (AFP) - The International Crisis Group (ICG) on Wednesday called for the establishment of a UN transitional authority in post-war Iraq until a legitimate and democratic authority can take over.
"The best road for Iraq and the international community is to set up a UN transitional civil authority with full executive and legislative powers to run the country until a legitimate, democratic permanent Iraqi authority can be established," the ICG said in the statement released in Brussels and Amman.
Such a governing body should be set up "as soon as possible after hositilities have ceased," the international think-tank said, quoting from an ICG report entitled "War in Iraq: Political Challenges After the Conflict."
The report warned that "assumption of full authority by the United States (in post-war Iraq) ... risks alienating Iraqis and would confirm the view held by many that Washington nurtures imperial designs.
"It would also create a serious anti-American backlash in the broader region," the Brussels-based group cautioned.
The creation of an interim Iraqi authority "to which the US would transfer power and with which it would jointly govern ... is also flawed", it said, because "no optimal Iraqi candidates exist".
"Too little is known about the actual preferences or aspirations of people inside the country," the independent group said.
It quoted ICG Iraqi analyst Luluwa al-Rashid as saying there were "serious doubts about the degree of genuine representation" of Iraqi exiled leaders.
"Inside Iraq, numerous forces will probably come forward quickly but they are likely to be dominated by those who gained prominence during the years of (the ruling) Baath Party," Rashid said.
ICG Middle East programme director, Robert Malley, warned "it would be a mistake to short-circuit the domestic political contest by prematurely picking a winner".
Malley said the bulk of Iraqis inside Iraq "would remain voiceless".
The ICG urged the UN to start planning for elections to "minimise perceptions of foreign domination and make best use of local resources to ensure security, law and order" in post-war Iraq.
Otherwise the UN (Russia, France, Germany, and Chine)can go to HELL.
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