Allawi Makes a Giant Mistake

Yesterday Iraqi interim Prime Minister Iyad Allawi signed into a law a new, emergency security doctrine institutionalizing martial law in order to deal with the continuing problems with insurgent forces in Baghdad. In response, some have praised Allawi for recognizing the seriousness of the insurgency (the terrorists are trying to kill him, after all) and acting in turn. Although, the emergency powers law actually takes Iraq a step back -- When does the new regime become like the old? Idealists believe that a crack down will discourage future insurgent forces through forceful intimidation when in fact it will only disillusion more and more Iraqis, creating an even larger problem. It is rather depressing that Allawi has resorted to considering martial law at such an early point in his tenure, for not only do the citizens of Baghdad have to worry about insurgents, they now also have to fear their brand new, supposedly sovereign government. Many dictatorships under the shroud of democracy have been born under such dire circumstances, and there must be fear that martial law power may be extended in time out of sheer paranoia.

Perhaps the most frightening part about this entire issue is how the interim Iraqi Human Rights Minister described the emergency powers law as comparable to the USA Patriot Act.