Baath reform sets lawmakers fighting

Reforms that would ease curbs on former members of Saddam Hussein’s Baath Party rejoining Iraq’s civil service and military appeared headed for legislative gridlock after attempts Sunday to read a draft bill in parliament disintegrated into yelling and finger-pointing.

It was the first time that Iraqi lawmakers had taken up any of the so-called major benchmarks that Washington has deemed crucial for the long-term cessation of sectarian violence and national reconciliation.

The Iraqi Cabinet approved changes to a draft of the law this month.

Although some Iraqi politicians believe the bill would in effect give a free pass for supporters of the executed president to again occupy powerful positions, other lawmakers have cited a need to put the past behind so the nation can move forward.

Discussion of the so-called de-Baathification measure comes as U.S. officials press the Iraqi government to take advantage of a relative lull in violence that has left a precious window in which to make political progress.

U.S. officials said that attacks across Iraq have dropped by 55% since the last of 28,500 additional American troops arrived in mid-June as part of a military buildup aimed at suppressing sectarian violence.

Bombings and civilian deaths have decreased in the last six months, but there has been an increase in attacks in recent weeks.

On Sunday, a suicide car bomb killed nine people and wounded 30 near the Health Ministry in central Baghdad, Iraqi police sources said.

Pharmacist assistant Abu Ahmed, who works at nearby Baghdad Hospital, said he heard a huge explosion as he arrived at work in the morning.

“Our hospital received four very critical cases of injured civilians, and the doctors are performing operations on them,” Abu Ahmed said in a telephone interview. “A medical assistant and lab technician were among the killed victims.”

An Iraqi soldier was killed and six others wounded when a second explosion occurred after security forces arrived at the scene of a roadside bombing in Baghdad. The earlier bombing wounded two people.

The legislation being considered by parliament would loosen the restrictions on former Baath Party members and also address the issue of pensions for former senior members of Hussein’s military.

Some said it would go too far in restoring their rights.

“In my opinion, there is an unannounced public amnesty by the government, that all [Baathists] will return to government offices, whether they made mistakes or not,” Safia Suhail, an opposition party lawmaker, told reporters. “Then they may reach decision-making positions without punishment to [those who were] wrongdoers.”

Thousands of Baathists were fired from government and military jobs after Hussein was toppled during the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in 2003. The Baathists, mainly Sunni Arabs, have long been considered complicit in the persecution of Iraq’s Shiite Muslim community during Hussein’s rule.

Baathists have complained of unfair treatment at the hands of subsequent Iraqi administrations.

And many have argued that all Baathists should not be punished because of the crimes of some party members.

“It is not possible to try Baath as a system,” said Neda Jubbori, a female member of the Iraqi Front for National Dialogue. “This [legislation] puts all Baathists and security forces elements as guilty.”

The initial U.S.-led occupation agency and its Iraqi allies aggressively sought to ban tens of thousands of Baathists from government service -- high-ranking government positions as well as school teaching jobs.

Since then, more than 45,000 former Baathist members of Hussein’s military reportedly have been granted pensions or allowed to return to active service.

Some have found other government work.

U.S. officials have since identified de-Baathification reform along with legislation on sharing the country’s oil wealth as key political strategies for uniting opposing factions.

However, Iraqi politicians have made little headway.

On Sunday, the verbal objections were accompanied by yelling and fist pounding, as some lawmakers questioned the constitutionality of the proposed bill and whether all necessary legal procedures had been followed before the reading of the draft.

The ruckus drew the wrath of parliament Speaker Mahmoud Mashadani.

“If this chaos continues, I will ask to kick you out according to the bylaw,” he warned one lawmaker.

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ann.simmons@latimes.com

Times staff writers Saif Rasheed and Usama Redha and special correspondents in Baghdad contributed to this report.