The Weekly Magazine Interviewing His Eminence Sayyed Ammar al-Hakim

 The Weekly Magazine (Alesbuyia) published in Baghdad conducted an in-depth interview with his Eminence al-Sayyed Ammar al-Hakim in the private office of his Eminence al-Hakim, head of the Islamic Supreme Council in Iraq and the leader of the United Iraqi Coalition. The interview addressed many of the topics in the Iraqi arena and the latest political and security developments as well as many of the issues that concern the issue of Iraq and further other topics. Below is the written version of the interview:

The Correspondent: What about the Supreme Council preparations and expectations for the forthcoming provincial elections where it would participate by the List of al-Mihrab Martyr?

Sayyed Ammar al-Hakim: I think that the elections are an important and healthy  station in the development of a democratic system in Iraq; it is the right of all the political powers involved to legitimately and honorably compete to win the trust of the Iraqi street, which, in turn, puts its trust in whomever it wants; furthermore, it is the right of every political entity to design its political program that would help draw the political map of Iraq to carry out the democratic project, and the Islamic Supreme Council is, no exception, making efforts, like all other competing parties, to make Iraqis aware of its political agenda through meetings, seminars, and activities. I disagree with all those propagating the decline of Islamic political parties, and I think that Iraqis still put their trust in the Islamic Supreme Council. It is only two weeks before the truth of such readings unveiled after the results of the elections would be disclosed.

The Correspondent: Media experts criticize your electoral campaign, claiming that the List of al-Mihrab Martyr uses the same tactics it used in its previous campaigns, i.e. making advantage of the religious symbols to propagate and induce the public, what is your viewpoint?.

 
Sayyed Ammar al-Hakim: We have to admit that most of the political entities fix the pictures of their leaders into their propaganda posters, and if the religious leaders of the Supreme Council are originally wearing a certain religious uniform, are they required to absent themselves from the election campaign, or otherwise wearing a new suit; this is an overstatement. Regarding the popularity of the Supreme Council among Iraqis, we still have two weeks ahead to see the results of our campaign and we’d prefer actions rather than words. Besides, we are not too rushing to deliver statements over our supporters’ trust in us; we are quite confident that they trust us.

The Correspondent: Do you seek to make parties, such as Asadr Current, the Islamic Virtue Party or others, which withdrew from the Coalition rejoin it?

Sayyed Ammar al-Hakim:  This idea is validly present and efforts to bring these parties back have been underway right from the first day they broke with the Alliance; not only these parties but other parliamentarily non-represented parties are also involved. We need to mobilize all potential powers for the sake of building our in-infancy-still democracy which needs great efforts to establish harmony. The democratic project cannot be restricted to limited political powers or figures however they are influential; we are in the phase of being widely open to all national powers and seeking to form large-scaled frameworks to ensure a real momentum.

 

The Correspondent: Which of the political currents and powers, in your viewpoint, could stand as the strongest rival to the Supreme Council in the forthcoming elections?

Sayyed Ammar al-Hakim: All competitors are our friends; and those who are competing with us in the elections are our future friends or allies regardless of the elections turnout. We are not concerned about the results and the Supreme Council is serious about the involvement of all the competing powers, even rivals who have a single seat in the Parliament or Provincial Councils; we seek that every political entity or figure plays a role, including for instance the Islamic Virtue Party and the Reform Current of Dr. al-Jafary; we look at them all as friends and potential allies.

The Correspondent: The Supreme Council and the United Iraqi Coalition are influential in the decision-making and voting in the Parliament, why?

Sayyed Ammar al-Hakim: Of course, when the biggest bloc has the weight, it will be influential in the decision-making; additionally, when we look at the executive positions in the Iraqi government, we will find compatible with the weight of the Supreme Council and the number of votes it obtains; consequently if we find similar specifications and criteria in a list other than that of al-Mihrab Martyr, we would naturally side with it and give it our votes but not to men affiliated with the List of al-Mihrab Martyr. Not only that, many the competing powers will ally with us even if we would not give them our votes.

The Correspondent: The Supreme Council is accused of being infiltrated by some Iranian figures working in its formations, such as al-Furat Satellite Channel, is it so?

Sayyed Ammar al-Hakim: This is not true; if there is a need, it is natural that we seek others’ expertise, whether Iranian or Turkish or any other nationality. However, we did not need it so far, and we are relying on the Iraqi figures from the Supreme Council. As for al-Furat Channel, like any other infant channel, it needs the support of specialized companies. We did contract with specialized Iranian companies that helped us build the channel and their contracts expired and the channel is run by Iraqi specialized cadres. Despite my many remarks on its performance, I feel that the channel is suffering from weakness and there are efforts to import Arab expertise (namely from Lebanon) to develop the skills of our staffs. There is no harm to say that Iraq needs cadres and technical supervision.

The Correspondent: What about the calls to regionalize the province of Basra, which may not go in line with the Supreme Council’s aspirations to federalize the southern provinces… where do you stand regarding the idea of the creation of a special region of Basra?

 
Sayyed Ammar al-Hakim: Provided that it is constitutional, any idea is acceptable whether it goes with our estimates as persons, or lies within the interests of Iraq. We have proposed the formation of the Region of the South, but another idea, that of the Region of Basra, was launched; though different from our visions, we accept the idea since it is constitutional.

The Correspondent: In view of the health status of your father, are you leading the Supreme Council or are you are currently under preparation to lead it in the future?

 
Sayyed Ammar al-Hakim: It is well known that the Supreme Council is an institution wherein there is neither a leader nor those led, but there are regulations that govern the work of the Council’s committees in all circumstances. There is no authoritarian decision-maker; it is true that head of the Council is the one who decides, however, we have a consultational system in the Council. The decision-making is carried out generally through consultation. But in relation to the operational aspects, there are specific tasks assigned to the presidency of the Council and I wish I could help his Eminence in following them up and carrying them out.

The Correspondent: The Supreme Council has launched many criticisms of the Prime Minister over the mechanisms he follows to deliver some of the decisions; do you really find Mr. al-Malki authoritarian in his decisions?

Sayyed Ammar al-Hakim: Like other officials who assume positions in the Iraqi government, the Prime Minister, needs others to help him lead this country; he took unfortunate decisions and it is a normal situation for anyone in his position ruling Iraq to do so. His unfortunate decisions could be justifiable if one considers that our experience is still young and that none is infallible. I think we should consider others’ impressions about our performance; moreover, we have started accumulating the expertise and experience necessary to identify the weak and strong points of our experience here in Iraq and, consequently, to hone the strong and neutralize the weak. Additionally, I believe that if we reduce the problem into merely figures, we simplify it. We must account for the nature of the complications our country passes through; some of us consider the past and its tragedies and others look at the mysterious future and their role therein. Iraq is the intersection of international and regional interests, giving rise to many considerations to which one cannot turn a blind eye. Searching for someone to blame for our mistakes is not right and it is logical that we reconsider and assess our project here in Iraq, seeking remedies, building the state of institutions, assigning roles, and reinforce the partnership in accordance with the Iraqi Constitution.

 Translated by Dr. Ahmed al-Hameedawi