A wave of deadly attacks on pro-democracy activists and
journalists in
Iraq have sparked mounting calls to boycott October
parliamentary elections, as perpetrators go unpunished.
اضافة اعلان
Killings, attempted murder and abductions have targeted more
than 70 activists since a protest movement erupted against government
corruption and incompetence in 2019.
Elections were set in response to a central demand of the
protracted protest movement that lasted from October to June 2020, and during
which demonstrators also railed against Iran’s influence in
Iraq.
But as attacks continue with impunity, more voices have
joined a call to boycott the vote.
Former lawmaker Faeq Al-Sheikh Ali resigned after
anti-government campaigner Ihab Al-Wazni was shot dead in an ambush in the
central holy Shiite shrine city of Karbala on May 9.
“I announce my withdrawal from the legislative elections,”
he said after Wazni’s killing.
He also called for other leaders of the protest movement to
pull out of the race.
“Prepare... to continue the revolution in the coming months
against Iran and its dirty militias,” Sheikh Ali said. “There is no other
choice but to topple this criminal regime.”
Authorities have consistently failed to publicly identify or
charge the perpetrators of the killings, which have not been claimed.
However, activists have repeatedly blamed Iran-linked armed
groups that wield considerable influence in Iraq.
Wazni had for many years criticized Iraqi armed groups and
Iran’s outsized influence in the country.
The day after he was killed, prominent journalist Ahmed
Hassan was also shot in southern Iraq. He remains in a coma after undergoing
brain surgery.
‘Who killed me?’
After Wazni’s murder, a movement born out of the
anti-government protests called Al-Beit Al-Watani — the National Bloc — said it
would boycott the October elections.
“We reject elections until the killers of the leaders of the
October revolution are behind bars,” the bloc’s founder Hussein Al-Gharabi told
AFP, referring to the protest movement.
Since then, 17 groups have joined the call for a boycott.
They had presented lists for the elections, believing they
had strong popular support to change the system through the ballot box.
But all that changed with the murder of Wazni and the attack
on Hassan.
“We are firmly against holding elections, as long as weapons
are freely available and killings continue,” the groups said in a joint
statement on May 17.
Pro-democracy activists called for a protest on Tuesday in
the capital Baghdad, to demand the government arrest those responsible for the
killings.
They are convinced the perpetrators are known by security
forces, but have not been arrested because of links with neighboring Iran.
On Twitter, photos have circulated of prominent activists
murdered in the country with the hashtag “Who killed me?”
However, analysts expressed doubt that calls for a boycott
would stop the elections, saying traditional parties control political power in
the country through pressure, vote buying and intimidation.
Renewed violence?
Citing “chaos” in the country, analyst Ali Al-Baidar said
“it would be better to push back the elections until the security situation
improves.”
“Money (to buy votes) flows freely, weapons circulate
without any control and political parties impose their will on citizens. All
this is an obstacle to transparent elections,” he said.
But he remained skeptical over the power of a boycott.
“There will be a media impact, and this will be a message to
the international community, but it is the major parties that have the power
and influence,” he added.
“Moreover, if there are demonstrations, they will not be on
the scale of those in the past because the leaders have been killed, injured,
fled the country or found refuge in autonomous Kurdistan”.
Analyst Ihsan Al-Shamari echoed Baidar.
He said groups linked to the protest movement “recognized
the error they made in wanting to participate in the elections.”
“They realized it was the traditional parties, backed by
foreign states, in particular Iran, that control the state, power, money and
weapons,” he said, adding that “they realize it is very difficult for them to
enter the political scene”.
But communist leader Raid Fahmi, whose party has suspended
its participation in elections, warned the situation could be volatile.
“The people are frustrated,” Fahmi said. “If the doors of
democracy and free, transparent elections close, this could lead to a new wave
of violence.”
Read more opinions
.jpg)
.jpg)
